Passion and defiance : film in Italy from 1942 to the present

since World War Ii, Aesthetic Impulses Generated In Italy Have Swept Through Every Film Industry In The World, And In Her Book Mira Liehm Analyses The Roots In Literature, Philosophy, And Contemporary Italian Life Which Have Contributed To This Extraordinary Vigor. An Introductory Chapter Offers A Unique Overview Of The Italian Cinema Before 1942. It Is Followed By A Full And Profound Discussion Of Neorealism In Its Heyday, Its Difficult Aftermath In The Fifties, The Glorious Sixties, And Finally By An Analysis Of The Contemporary Cinematic Crisis. Mira Liehm Has Known Personally Many Of The Leading Figures In Italian Cinema, And Her Work Is Rich In Insights Into Their Lives And Working Methods. This Impressive Scholarly Work Immediately Outclasses All Other Available Italian Film Histories. It Will Be Essential Reading For Anyone Seriously Interested In The Cinema. Frontmatter FIRST ENCOUNTERS (BEFORE 1942) (page 1) I OBSESSION (1942-1944) (page 41) II LACRIMAE RERUM (1944-1948) (page 60) III NEOREALISM, ACT II (1948-1953) (page 90) IV WHAT IS REALITY? (page 103) V NEOREALISM IS LIKE... (page 129) VI DIFFICULT YEARS (1953-1959) (page 138) VII THE RIFT (1959-1960) (page 160) VIII THE GLORIOUS SIXTIES (1961-1969) (page 181) IX HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SIXTIES (page 221) X THE CHANGING IMAGE OF THE MOVIES (1970-1982) (page 249) XI THE DUSK OF THE LEOPARDS (page 289) XII UNDER THE SIGN OF VIOLENCE (page 307) NOTES (page 319) BIBLIOGRAPHY (page 361) INDEX OF NAMES (page 375) INDEX OF FILMS (page 383) Analyses the roots of aesthetic impulses in literature, philosophy, and contemporary Italian life. This book includes an introductory chapter which offers an overview of the Italian cinema before 1942. It also discusses neorealism in its heyday, and its difficult aftermath in the fifties, and the glorious sixties. Date: Easter 1940, a few months before Mussolini's declaration of war upon Britain and France. Mira Liehm. Includes Indexes. Bibliography: P. 361-373.