Artistic, intellectual, and appreciably avant-garde, the French film industry has, perhaps more than any other national cinema, been perennially at the center of international film culture. With a host of high-grossing contemporary hits like Paris, je t'aime and Amelie, France has also been home historically to some of the most influential filmmakers and movements—and, indeed, the very first motion picture was screened in Paris in 1895.
This volume addresses the great directors and key artistic movements, but also ventures beyond these already well-established films and figures, broadening the canon through an examination of a great many lost or neglected French films. The essays explore the salient stylistic elements, cultural contexts, and the various conceptions of cinema in France. Illustrated by screen shots, film reviews by leading experts offer original approaches to both overlooked pictures and acknowledged classics in a wide variety of genres, including counter-cinema, comedy, documentary, film noir, and Francophone and immigrant filmmaking. Readers wishing to explore particular topics in greater depth will be grateful for the book's reading recommendations and comprehensive filmography.
A visually engaging journey through one of the most dynamic, variegated, and idiosyncratic film industries, Directory of World Cinema: France will be a must-have for Francophiles and cinema savants.
