Cinema Today

(Paperback)

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Description

A third of the entire history of cinema is represented by films produced from 1970 onwards. Cinema Today explores this history, what may be referred to as the Third Age of world cinema, and the films, people and technologies which have shaped its development. The work of film-makers who have made a significant contribution to the film industry during this period is also highlighted and discussed. Cinema Today begins by examining the moment at which the modern blockbuster was born. In the early 1970s a string of spectacularly successful films such as MASH (1970), The Godfather (1972) and Jaws (1975) transformed the economic climate of Hollywood and the power relationship within it. The first half of the book looks at New Hollywood and explores its recent and continued development through film genres including Crime, Science Fiction, Horror and Comedy. The book identifies how social and economic change influenced the development of films, assesses the impact of emerging new waves of cinema on Hollywood and Hollywood's reaction to these changes. Influential directors such as Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, George Lucas, Spike Lee and Steven Spielberg are all featured in these chapters along with their films. We then move onto the world stage where Edward Buscombe explores the unique style of film output from Australasia, Africa, India, Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and South America. Specific film genres and trends of these regions are highlighted and discussed in relation to the social and economic climate of the time. Many of these film industries, such as French, Indian and Japanese, are significant centres of world production. In these chapters, Buscombe examines the Bollywood cinema of India, art house cinema of France, the British comedy, Japanese crime films and Mexican horror films. The films of Bernardo Bertolucci, Pedro Almodovar, Akira Kurosawa, Roman Polanski, Luc Besson, Mike Leigh, Ousmane Sembene and Chen Kaige are just an example of the range of work discussed. With a comprehensive directors' filmography, a bibliography, chronology and index at the back of the book, Cinema Today is an invaluable reference tool

Reviews

'Cinema Today is informative, comprehensive and up to date, and provides a unique resource for academics, students and anyone with an interest in the moving image and the film industry - an invaluable reference tool.' Cinema Technology, September 2003 'It's as big as a breeze block, but Edward Buscombe's mammoth tome is the most ambitious attempt to try to corral the multifarious strands of the contemporary global film industry into some semblance of critical order. Three pointed snatches of movie dialogue kick off proceedings, indicating the scope of Buscombe's project: the "Do ya feel lucky, punk" bit from Dirty Harry, a few lines from Eyes Wide Shut, and the letter-writing scene from Salaam Bombay! Five hundred pages and seemingly thousands of pictures later, Buscombe has got himself outside essays on everything from Hollywood and the Rise of the Blockbuster through to The Middle East and the Muslim World. - readable and scholarly at the same time, which is no small achievement. Andrew Pulver, The Guardian, 17 October, 2003 'HOT DOG RECOMMENDS This book is a bit like the Bible - if the Bible were about film and contained lots of pretty pictures. The breathtaking movie stills and photos of key players are the first things that will strike you about this huge encyclopedia of cinema knowledge and they are used very wisely, always in context with the author's views. Despite his explanation that half the book is devoted to US films, Buscombe's detailed and comprehensive exploration of key areas such as women and ethnicity in film is fluent and no less meticulous. Equally, his thoughts on auteurs, independents and reviving genres are not imposed on the reader and although the read is long, it is interesting and satisfying. This offers everything that could possibly be included inside one cover, and more. Cinema today, and for a further month of reading.' Ben Mahon, Hot Dog, December 2003 'With a stunning array of photographs, it's the perfect present for any film-lover.' The Good Book Guide, October 2003 'This epic survey of post-1970 cinema is possibly the most addictive film book ever published. Wherever you open it, your eye is struck by an iconic or striking image. ... Linked by judicious text, the book's 500 pages are equally divided between films you know (12 Hollywood genres) and films you'd like to know (the rest of the world).' The Independent, 50 Best Books for Christmas, 2003 'Unquestionably, this is a book that invites almost compulsive page-turning' Ian Christie, Sight and Sound (British Film Institute magazine), 2003 paperback quotes 'a handsome and revealing read, packed to the gills with arresting photographs and insightful analyses of key genres and trends.' Total Film, June 2005

Author Bio

Edward Buscombe is a leading authority on cinema, having lectured and written on film for over 30 years. Formerly Head of Publishing at the British Film Institute, Buscombe is a regular contributor to film journals and has written several books.