The Artist as Monster: The Cinema of David Cronenberg (Heritage)

PAPERBACK INCLUDES TWO NEW CHAPTERS David Cronenberg is one of the most fascinating filmmakers in the world today. His provocative work has stimulated debate and received major retrospectives in museums, galleries, and cinematheques around the world. William Beard's The Artist as Monster was the first book-length scholarly work in English on Cronenberg's films, analyzing all of his features from Stereo (1969) to Crash (1996). In this paperback edition, Beard includes new chapters on eXistenZ (1999) and Spider (2002). Through close readings and visual analyses, Beard argues that the structure of Cronenberg's cinema is based on a dichotomy between, on the one hand, order, reason, repression, and control, and on the other, liberation, sexuality, disease, and the disintegration of self and of the boundaries that define society. The instigating figure in the films is a scientist character who, as Cronenberg evolves as a filmmaker, gradually metamorphoses into an artist, with the ground of liberation and catastrophe shifting from experimental subject to the self. Bringing a wealth of analytical observation and insight into Cronenberg's films, Beard's sweeping, comprehensive work has established the benchmark for the study of one of Canada's best-known filmmakers. "Filmmaker David Cronenberg's challenging and provocative work has stimulated impassioned debate, inspired major retrospectives, and been the subject of spirited, international inquiry, with books published in French, German, and Italian, as well as English. William Beard's The Artist as Monster, however, is the first systematic examination in English of Cronenberg's feature films, from Stereo (1969) to Crash (1996). Through extensive close reading of each film, and, where appropriate, consideration of the literary originals that inspired them, this impressive study traces the development of the themes, attitudes, and cinematic approaches that have characterized Cronenberg's cinema."--Jacket.;Stereo (1969) -- Crimes of the future (1970) -- Shivers (1975) -- Rabid (1976) -- The brood (1979) -- Scanners (1980) -- Videodrome (1982) -- The dead zone (1983) -- The fly (1986) -- Dead ringers (1988) -- Naked lunch (1991) -- M. Butterfly (1993) -- Crash (1996). "Filmmaker David Cronenberg's challenging and provocative work has stimulated impassioned debate, inspired major retrospectives, and been the subject of spirited, international inquiry, with books published in French, German, and Italian, as well as English. William Beard's The Artist as Monster, however, is the first systematic examination in English of Cronenberg's feature films, from Stereo (1969) to Crash (1996). Through extensive close reading of each film, and, where appropriate, consideration of the literary originals that inspired them, this impressive study traces the development of the themes, attitudes, and cinematic approaches that have characterized Cronenberg's cinema."--BOOK JACKET. Cover 1 Contents 6 Preface 8 Acknowledgments 14 1. Stereo (1969) 18 2. Crimes of the Future (1970) 30 3. Shivers (1975) 41 4. Rabid (1976) 64 5. The Brood (1979) 86 6. Scanners (1980) 111 7. Videodrome (1982) 136 8. The Dead Zone (1983) 180 9. The Fly (1986) 213 10. Dead Ringers (1988) 249 11. Naked Lunch (1991) 292 12. M. Butterfly (1993) 353 13. Crash (1996) 394 14. eXistenZ (1999) 438 15. Spider (2002) 486 Notes 520 Bibliography 568 Index 578 A 578 B 578 C 579 D 579 E 580 F 580 G 580 H 580 I 581 J 581 K 581 L 581 M 581 N 582 O 582 P 582 Q 582 R 582 S 583 T 583 U 583 V 583 W 583 X 583 Y 583 Z 583 David Cronenberg is one of the most fascinating filmmakers in the world today. His provocative work has stimulated debate and received major retrospectives in museums, galleries, and cinematheques around the globe. This is the first book-length scholarly work in English on Cronenberg's films David Cronenberg's first 'feature' film (at 63 minutes it is as long as many B-features) was shot for $8500 on 35mm black-and-white without synchronized sound: directed, written, produced, photographed, and edited by David Cronenberg.