A Companion to Jean Renoir WileyBlackwell Companions to Film Directors

Francois Truffaut called him, simply, ‘the best’. Jean Renoir is a towering figure in world cinema and fully justifies this monumental survey that includes contributions from leading international film scholars and comprehensively analyzes Renoir’s life and career from numerous critical perspectives.* New and original research by the world’s leading English and French language Renoir scholars explores stylistic, cultural and ideological aspects of Renoir’s films as well as key biographical periods * Thematic structure admits a range of critical methodologies, from textual analysis to archival research, cultural studies, gender-based and philosophical approaches * Features detailed analysis of Renoir’s essential works * Provides an international perspective on this key auteur’s enduring significance in world film history Content: Chapter none Introduction (pages 1–12): Alastair Phillips and Ginette VincendeauChapter 1 Shooting in Deep Time (pages 13–34): Martin O'ShaughnessyChapter 2 The Exception and the Norm (pages 35–52): Charles O'BrienChapter 3 The Invention of French Talking Cinema (pages 53–71): Michel MarieChapter 4 Renoir and His Actors (pages 72–87): Christophe DamourChapter 5 Design at Work (pages 88–105): Susan HaywardChapter 6 Sur un air de Charleston, Nana, La Petite Marchande d'allumettes, Tire au flanc (pages 107–120): Anne M. KernChapter 7 La Grande Illusion (pages 121–130): Valerie OrpenChapter 8 La Bete humaine (pages 131–143): Olivier CurchodChapter 9 La Regle du jeu (pages 144–165): Christopher Faulkner, Martin O'Shaughnessy and V. F. PerkinsChapter 10 The River (pages 166–175): Prakash YoungerChapter 11 Seeing with His Own Eyes (pages 177–198): Alastair PhillipsChapter 12 Popular Songs in Renoir's Films of the 1930s (pages 199–218): Kelley ConwayChapter 13 Renoir and the Popular Theater of His Time (pages 219–236): Genevieve SellierChapter 14 Theatricality and Spectacle in La Regle du jeu, Le Carrosse d'or, and Elena et les hommes (pages 237–254): Thomas ElsaesserChapter 15 French Cancan (pages 255–269): Ginette VincendeauChapter 16 Social Roles/Political Responsibilities (pages 270–290): Charles MusserChapter 17 Seeing through Renoir, Seen through Bazin (pages 291–312): Dudley AndrewChapter 18 Henri Agel's Cinema of Contemplation (pages 313–327): Sarah CooperChapter 19 Renoir and the French Communist Party (pages 328–346): Laurent MarieChapter 20 “Better than a Masterpiece” (pages 347–355): Claude GauteurChapter 21 Renoir and the French New Wave (pages 356–374): Richard NeupertChapter 22 Renoir between the Public, the Professors, and the Polls (pages 375–394): Ian ChristieChapter 23 Renoir under the Popular Front (pages 395–424): Brett BowlesChapter 24 The Performance of History in La Marseillaise (pages 425–443): Tom BrownChapter 25 ToniA Regional Melodrama of Failed Masculinity (pages 444–453): Keith ReaderChapter 26 La Regle du jeu (pages 454–473): Christopher FaulknerChapter 27 Renoir's Jews in Context (pages 474–492): Maureen TurimChapter 28 Renoir's War (pages 493–513): Julian JacksonChapter 29 Interconnected Sites of Struggle (pages 514–532): Elizabeth VitanzaChapter 30 The Southerner (pages 533–543): Edward GallafentChapter 31 The Woman on the Beach (pages 544–554): Jean?Loup BourgetChapter 32 Remaking Renoir in Hollywood (pages 555–571): Lucy Mazdon A Companion to Jean Renoir “An extraordinary collection of essays that more than fulfills the aims of its editors, Alastair Phillips and Ginette Vincendeau. The essays offer exciting, original work from younger scholars as well as long-established authorities, all of which offer invaluable insights into the films, writings, and life of Jean Renoir. Receiving particular attention are questions about the singularity or multiplicity of what the editors call the many ‘Renoirs'(French, American, Indian; even transnational), especially from the early 1930s through the early 1960s. Whether mining relatively unexplored archive materials, deploying newly current methodological approaches, interrogating one of a wide range of topics and issues, or engaging in close textual analysis, the contributors construct a tantalizing series of innovative ‘road maps'for future researchers to pursue.”Richard Abel, University of Michigan “Alastair Phillips and Ginette Vincendeau have brought together essays that bring new perspectives to both the best-known and the lesser-known of Renoir's films. Both French cinema specialists and viewers new to Renoir's work will find much of interest in this outstanding collection.”Judith Mayne, Ohio State University Dubbed simply “the best director”'by François Truffaut, Jean Renoir is a towering figure in world film history. This exhaustive survey of his work and life features a comprehensive analysis of his films from the multiple critical perspectives of the world's leading Renoir scholars. Renoir's career spanned four decades and four countries and included an extraordinary body of films, some of which – La Grande illusion (1937) and La Règle du jeu (1939) – are universally recognized masterpieces. Fathered by the celebrated painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir, the filmmaker lived through much of the twentieth century, beginning his career in the silent era and ending it in full Technicolor. His films are notable for their paradoxical combination of strong internal coherence and thematic breadth and diversity, and they provide a rich source for today's scholars of film history and French culture. This handbook, the largest volume on Renoir ever produced in the English language, ranges in scope from extreme close-up analysis of individual films to long-shot explorations of his aesthetics and the social and cultural contexts in which he worked. The most ambitious critical study of Renoir to date, this book will appeal to film enthusiasts as much as scholars and specialists. A Companion to Jean Renoir An extraordinary collection of essays that more than fulfills the aims of its editors, Alastair Phillips and Ginette Vincendeau. The essays offer exciting, original work from younger scholars as well as long-established authorities, all of which offer invaluable insights into the films, writings, and life of Jean Renoir. Receiving particular attention are questions about the singularity or multiplicity of what the editors call the many Renoirs (French, American, Indian; even transnational), especially from the early 1930s through the early 1960s. Whether mining relatively unexplored archive materials, deploying newly current methodological approaches, interrogating one of a wide range of topics and issues, or engaging in close textual analysis, the contributors construct a tantalizing series of innovative road maps for future researchers to pursue. Richard Abel, University of Michigan Alastair Phillips and Ginette Vincendeau have brought together essays that bring new perspectives to both the best-known and the lesser-known of Renoirs films. Both French cinema specialists and viewers new to Renoirs work will find much of interest in this outstanding collection. Judith Mayne, Ohio State University Dubbed simply the best director by Franois Truffaut, Jean Renoir is a towering figure in world film history. This exhaustive survey of his work and life features a comprehensive analysis of his films from the multiple critical perspectives of the worlds leading Renoir scholars. Renoirs career spanned four decades and four countries and included an extraordinary body of films, some of which La Grande illusion (1937) and La Rgle du jeu (1939) are universally recognized masterpieces. Fathered by the celebrated painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir, the filmmaker lived through much of the twentieth century, beginning his career in the silent era and ending it in full Technicolor. His films are notable for their paradoxical combination of strong internal coherence and thematic breadth and diversity, and they provide a rich source for todays scholars of film history and French culture. This handbook, the largest volume on Renoir ever produced in the English language, ranges in scope from extreme close-up analysis of individual films to long-shot explorations of his aesthetics and the social and cultural contexts in which he worked. The most ambitious critical study of Renoir to date, this book will appeal to film enthusiasts as much as scholars and specialists. François Truffaut Called Him, Simply, 'the Best'. Jean Renoir Is A Towering Figure In World Cinema And Fully Justifies This Monumental Survey That Includes Contributions From Leading International Film Scholars And Comprehensively Analyzes Renoir's Life And Career From Numerous Critical Perspectives. Includes: New And Original Research By The World's Leading English And French Language Renoir Scholars Explores Stylistic, Cultural And Ideological Aspects Of Renoir's Films As Well As Key Biographical Periods ; Thematic Structure Admits A Range Of Critical Methodologies, From Textual Analysis To Archival Research, Cultural Studies, Gender-based And Philosophical Approaches ; Features Detailed Analysis Of Renoir's Essential Works ; Provides An International Perspective On This Key Auteur's Enduring Significance In World Film History.--publisher's Website. Introduction: Renoir In And Out Of His Time / Alastair Phillips And Ginette Vincendeau. -- Part I: Renoir In Close-up. Reassessing Renoir's Aesthetics ; Critical Focus On Selected Films. -- Part Ii: Renoir: The Wider View. Renoir's Filmmaking And The Arts ; Renoir's Place In The Critical Canon. -- Part Iii Renoir, A National And A Transnational Figure. Renoir, The Chronicler Of French Society ; Renoir, The Transnational Figure. Edited By Alastair Phillips And Ginette Vincendeau. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "François Truffaut called him, simply, 'the best'. Jean Renoir is a towering figure in world cinema and fully justifies this monumental survey that includes contributions from leading international film scholars and comprehensively analyzes Renoir's life and career from numerous critical perspectives. Includes: New and original research by the world's leading English and French language Renoir scholars explores stylistic, cultural and ideological aspects of Renoir's films as well as key biographical periods ; Thematic structure admits a range of critical methodologies, from textual analysis to archival research, cultural studies, gender-based and philosophical approaches ; Features detailed analysis of Renoir's essential works ; Provides an international perspective on this key auteur's enduring significance in world film history."--Site de l'éditeur