The Wiley-Blackwell history of American film
By: edited by Cynthia Lucia, Roy Grundmann, and Art Simon
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
Published: 2011
Place of publication: Malden
Language: eng
ISBN-13: 9781405179843
Subjects: Motion pictures; History
Other titles: History of American film
Description: Comprising 90 smart, useful essays written by accomplished film historians and critics, this sprawling, richly illustrated collection covers myriad subjects. The range of topics is impressive, as close to comprehensive as one can reasonably expect (the editors note that the book is not intended to be encyclopedic). Keenly aware of context, the essays examine US film as an art form, a technology, and an industry. Organized chronologically (the first volume covers the period from film's origins through the silents), the set has essays on traditional narrative films (romances, screwball comedies, Westerns, musicals, biopics, gangster films, film noir, science fiction, horror films) and on documentaries, different kinds of animation, avant-garde work, independent cinema, underground and blaxploitation films, pornography, and blockbusters. Many of the essays treat individuals - King Vidor, D. W. Griffith, Frank Capra, Orson Welles, Oliver Stone, the Coen brothers, among others - while others consider such subjects as audiences, women/minorities, sound, special effects, and film criticism. Missing are essays dedicated to film about Native Americans and about sport. All of the essays are well researched (and include bibliographies), and most are lucid and relatively jargon free. Several contributions are excellent, e.g., Robert Sklar's introduction to volume 1, "Writing American Film History." A superb compendium. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. D. A. Nathan Skidmore College. Review by Choice Review. Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.

This four-volume set is an exhaustive study of American film history from its late-nineteenth-century origins to the present day. Each volume begins with an introduction to some of the key individuals and groups, films, or significant developments of the period, which sets the stage for the essays that follow, and concludes with a section of summary essays that examine the relationship between the films and the culture of the era discussed. Although the majority of the 90 essays collected here were solicited by the editors for inclusion in this anthology, previously published articles of note, such as The Early Cinema of Edwin S. Porter, by Yale film scholar Charles Musser, are included. Authors range from well-established scholars like Paula J. Massood, of Brooklyn College, to such up-and-comers as Kenneth Chan, a current doctoral candidate who teaches at the University of Northern Colorado.^

Extremely comprehensive in its scope, the approach taken here is one of selected topics rather than encyclopedic entries. Well-trod subjects including the studio system, screwball comedies, westerns, Hollywood unions, and blacklisting are examined in depth, and a deliberate attempt has been made to give equal space to additional topics such as queer cinema, avant-garde films, and documentary filmmaking; biopics; cinema in the age of television; digital animation; and American film after 9/11 that have been less frequently discussed in similar works. More than 200 black-and-white images supplement the text and the full table of contents is included in each volume, along with the volume-specific list of contributors and an extensive index. This collection is an ambitious retrospective of American film history that students and scholars of the subject will find accessible and useful. Recommended for larger public libraries and academic libraries supporting a film-studies department.^

Szwarek, Magan Copyright 2010 Booklist. From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

Lucia (English & film & media studies, Rider Univ.; Framing Female Lawyers:¿ Women on Trial in Film), Roy Grundmann (film studies, Boston Univ.; Andy Warhol's Blow Job), and Art Simon (film studies, Montclair State Univ.; Dangerous Knowledge: The JFK Assassination in Art and Film) have created an outstanding collection of 90 new essays chronologically examining the history of American film. The books open with an introduction to the time period covered and include a brief explanation for the set's arrangement.^

For example, Volume 3 covers 1946-75, and the introduction notes that 1975 saw the release of Taxi Driver, a film discussed in several essays, easily found using the index, and referred to by Simon as "the last urban road film of the era." The high-quality essays feature eye-catching titles such as "Pink-Slipped: What Happened to the Women in the Silent Film Industry?", "The Gun in the Briefcase; Or, the Inscription of Class in Film Noir," and "Let 'Em Have It: The Ironic Fate of the 1930s Gangster." They provide a comprehensive and multifaceted overview of American film from its beginnings, covering political, cultural, social, and economic factors such as the Great Depression and World War II; the studio system; the black list; changing audiences; and race, class, and gender. In addition, there is a strong focus on the multitude of elements of film, such as production, distribution, camera techniques, lighting, editing, use of voice-overs, mise-en-scene, etc.^

VERDICT The physical volumes are attractive, though the approximately 200 black-and-white photos are insignificant to the value of the collection. Access is enhanced by a 37-page index. Highly recommended for lovers of film, film history, and American culture.-Susan L. Peters, Univ. of Texas, Galveston (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. Review by Library Journal Review. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: v. 1. Origins to 1928