"It is a lively pleasure to read Irving Singer's concrete and minutely attentive discussions of certain great films, and it is a privilege to follow him as he converses with the written or recorded words of three great directors, deriving from each a distinctive vision of reality."--Richard Wilbur, United States poet laureate, 1987-1988
Written clearly and engagingly, Irving singer's book is rich in examples, skillfully deployed and analyzed, that exhibit his wonderful knowledge of the three filmmakers under discussion. singer argues convincingly that their works reconcile formalism and realism and present distinct insights into human nature. His book should greatly interest students and faculty across the humanities, as well as more general readers.
(Saam Trivedi, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Simmons College)
Singer's book provides supremely literate commentary: this is a film criticism of ideas, images, and detail. His writing makes the book as pleasurable to read as the films are to watch.
(James Engell, Gurney Professor of English and Professor of Comparative Literature, Harvard University)
It is a lively pleasure to read Irving Singer's concrete and minutely attentive discussions of certain great films; and it is a privilege to follow him as he converses with the written or recorded words of three great directors, deriving from each a distinctive vision of reality.
(Richard William)
Writing from the perspective of his earlier work on love and sexuality, Singer puts his indelible stamp on this study of classical cinema by connecting some of our best loved films to his contributions in philosophy. This is an American philosopher's book--written well and wisely--about topics we all share.
(Marian Keane, film critic, Denver)
"Irving Singer's Three Philosophical Filmmakers is the kind of book which rarely gets written any more. Singer pushes aside the encrusted secondary literature which surrounds Hitchcock, Welles, and Renoir to engage with their works from a loving and knowing perspective. In the course of the book, he gives us a deeper appreciation of how these three men thought about and through the cinema. Some of what he has to say is certainly debatable—and that is part of this book's pleasure—because it comes from a lifetime of filmgoing rather than speaking through the borrowed authority of some theoretical grand master. Singer writes with an analytic eye and a conversational tone, showing how we must bring our minds and our hearts to bear on art that matters." Henry Jenkins, Director of the Comparative Media Studies, MIT
"Singer's book provides supremely literate commentary: this is a film criticism of ideas, images, and detail. His writing makes the book as pleasurable to read as the films are to watch."
--James Engell, Gurney Professor of English and Professor of Comparative Literature, Harvard University
"It is a lively pleasure to read Irving Singer's concrete and minutely attentive discussions of certain great films, and it is a privilege to follow him as he converses with the written or recorded words of three great directors, deriving from each a distinctive vision of reality."
--Richard Wilbur, United States poet laureate, 1987-1988
"Written clearly and engagingly, Irving Singers book is rich in examples, skillfully deployed and analyzed, that exhibit his wonderful knowledge of the three filmmakers under discussion. Singer argues convincingly that their works reconcile formalism and realism and present distinct insights into human nature. His book should greatly interest students and faculty across the humanities, as well as more general readers."
--Saam Trivedi, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Simmons College
"Irving Singer's *Three Philosophical Filmmakers* is the kind of book which rarely gets written any more. Singer pushes aside the encrusted secondary literature which surrounds Hitchcock, Welles, and Renoir to engage with their works from a loving and knowing perspective. In the course of the book, he gives us a deeper appreciation of how these three men thought about and through the cinema. Some of what he has to say is certainly debatable -- and that is part of this book's pleasure -- because it comes from a lifetime of filmgoing rather than speaking through the borrowed authority of some theoretical grand master. Singer writes with an analytic eye and a conversational tone, showing how we must bring our minds and our hearts to bear on art that matters."
--Henry Jenkins, Director of the Comparative Media Studies, MIT
"Writing from the perspective of his earlier work on love and sexuality, Singer puts his indelible stamp on this study of classical cinema by connecting some of our best loved films to his contributions in philosophy. This is an American philosopher's book -- written well and wisely -- about topics we all share."
--Marian Keane, film critic, Denver
About the Author
Irving Singer was Professor of Philosophy at MIT. He was the author of the trilogies The Nature of Love and Meaning in Life, P hilosophy of Love: A Partial Summing-Up, Mozart and Beethoven: The Concept of Love in Their Operas, all published by the MIT Press, and many other books.
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