The tunnel at the end of the light : essays on movies and politics

The first book of nonfiction from one of our great fiction writers.Given that most Americans proudly consider themselves non-political, where do our notions of collective responsibility come from? Which self-deceptions, when considering ourselves as actors on the world stage, do we cling to most tenaciously? Why do we so stubbornly believe, for example, that our country always means well when intervening abroad?__The Tunnel at the End of the Light__ argues that some of our most persistent and destructive assumptions, in that regard, might come from the movies. In these ten essays Jim Shepard weaves close readings of film with cultural criticism to explore the ways in which movies work so ubiquitously to reflect how Americans think and act. Whether assessing the “high-spirited glee of American ruthlessness” captured in __GoodFellas__, or finding in __Lawrence of Arabia__ a “portrait of the lunatic serenity of our leaders’ conviction in the face of all evidence and their own lack of knowledge,” he explores how we enter into conversations with specific genres and films―__Chinatown__, __The Third Man__, and __Badlands__ among others―in order to construct and refine our most cherished illusions about ourselves. "Shepard may be the best lesser-known film critic." —The New York Times Book Review The first book of nonfiction from one of our great fiction writers. Given that most Americans proudly consider themselves non-political, where do our notions of collective responsibility come from? Which self-deceptions, when considering ourselves as actors on the world stage, do we cling to most tenaciously? Why do we so stubbornly believe, for example, that our country always means well when intervening abroad? The Tunnel at the End of the Light argues that some of our most persistent and destructive assumptions, in that regard, might come from the movies. In these ten essays Jim Shepard weaves close readings of film with cultural criticism to explore the ways in which movies work so ubiquitously to reflect how Americans think and act. Whether assessing the “high-spirited glee of American ruthlessness” captured in GoodFellas, or finding in Lawrence of Arabia a “portrait of the lunatic serenity of our leaders’ conviction in the face of all evidence and their own lack of knowledge,” he explores how we enter into conversations with specific genres and films—Chinatown, The Third Man, and Badlands among others—in order to construct and refine our most cherished illusions about ourselves. "Shepard may be the best lesser-known film critic." The New York Times Book Review The first book of nonfiction from one of our great fiction writers. Given that most Americans proudly consider themselves non-political, where do our notions of collective responsibility come from? Which self-deceptions, when considering ourselves as actors on the world stage, do we cling to most tenaciously? Why do we so stubbornly believe, for example, that our country always means well when intervening abroad? The Tunnel at the End of the Light argues that some of our most persistent and destructive assumptions, in that regard, might come from the movies. In these ten essays Jim Shepard weaves close readings of film with cultural criticism to explore the ways in which movies work so ubiquitously to reflect how Americans think and act. Whether assessing the high-spirited glee of American ruthlessness captured in GoodFellas , or finding in Lawrence of Arabia a portrait of the lunatic serenity of our leaders conviction in the face of all evidence and their own lack of knowledge, he explores how we enter into conversations with specific genres and films Chinatown, The Third Man , and Badlands among othersin order to construct and refine our most cherished illusions about ourselves. The first book of nonfiction from one of our great fiction writers. Given that most Americans proudly consider themselves non-political, where do our notions of collective responsibility come from? Which self-deceptions, when considering ourselves as actors on the world stage, do we cling to most tenaciously? Why do we so stubbornly believe, for example, that our country always means well when intervening abroad? The Tunnel at the End of the Light argues that some of our most persistent and destructive assumptions, in that regard, might come from the movies. In these ten essays Jim Shepard weaves close readings of film with cultural criticism to explore the ways in which movies work so ubiquitously to reflect how Americans think and act. Whether assessing the “high-spirited glee of American ruthlessness” captured in GoodFellas , or finding in Lawrence of Arabia a “portrait of the lunatic serenity of our leaders’ conviction in the face of all evidence and their own lack of knowledge,” he explores how we enter into conversations with specific genres and films― Chinatown , The Third Man , and Badlands among others―in order to construct and refine our most cherished illusions about ourselves. Retail. Badlands and the "innocence" of American innocence The Pianist and Schindler and the hero in disguise No regrets: Goodfellas and American hardball Lawrence, Aguirre, and the American imperial movement Zane Grey and the Borgias: The Third Man and the 2004 Republican ticket Babette's Feast and the weepie Fool me twice, shame on me: Saving Private Ryan and the politics of deception Sacrifice and rage from Nosferatu to Pat Tillman Chinatown and the tunnel at the end of the light The Vanishing and American sociopathy: just because you did something doesn't mean you're capable of doing it.