Beyond the epic : the life & films of David Lean / Gene D. Phillips.

ISBN:

9780813171555

9780813138206

Title:

Beyond the epic : the life & films of David Lean / Gene D. Phillips.

Author:

Phillips, Gene D.

Personal Author:

Phillips, Gene D.

Publication Information:

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xvii, 545 pages, [24] pages of plates) : illustrations

Contents:

Front cover; Copyright; Contents; Foreword; Acknowledgments; Chronology; Prologue: A World on Film; 1. From Silents to Sound; 2. A Touch of Class; 3. Hope and Glory; 4. Enchantment; 5. Long Day's Journey; 6. Child's Play; 7. The Beautiful and the Damned; 8. The Wild Blue Yonder; 9. The Stag at Eve; 10. Love in the Afternoon; 11. The Undefeated; 12. Pillar of Fire; 13. In Search of a Hero; 14. Knight Without Armor; 15. The Lower Depths; 16. Darkness at Noon; Epilogue; Filmography; Notes; Select Bibliography; Index; Photo insert.

Local Note:

eBooks on EBSCOhost

Personal Subject:

Lean, David, 1908-1991.

Subject Term:

Motion picture producers and directors -- Great Britain -- Biography.

Format:

Electronic Resources

Electronic Access:

Click here to view

Publication Date:

2006

Publication Information:

Available:*

Shelf Number	Material Type	Copy	Shelf Location	Status
791.430233092	1:E-BOOK	1	1:ONLINE	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Two-time Academy Award winner Sir David Lean (1908-1991) was one of the most prominent directors of the twentieth century, responsible for the classics The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), and Doctor Zhivago (1965). British-born Lean asserted himself in Hollywood as a major filmmaker with his epic storytelling and panoramic visions of history, but he started out as a talented film editor and director in Great Britain. As a result, he brought an art-house mentality to blockbuster films. Combining elements of biography and film criticism, Beyond the Epic: The Life and Films of David Lean uses screenplays and production histories to assess Lean's body of work. Author Gene D. Phillips interviews actors who worked with Lean and directors who knew him, and their comments reveal new details about the director's life and career. Phillips also explores Lean's lesser-studied films, such as The Passionate Friends (1949), Hobson's Choice (1954), and Summertime (1955). The result is an in-depth examination of the director in cultural, historical, and cinematic contexts. Lean's approach to filmmaking was far different than that of many of his contemporaries. He chose his films carefully and, as a result, directed only sixteen films in a period of more than forty years. Those films, however, have become some of the landmarks of motion-picture history. Lean is best known for his epics, but Phillips also focuses on Lean's successful adaptations of famous works of literature, including retellings of plays such as Brief Encounter (1945) and novels such as Great Expectations (1946), Oliver Twist (1948), and A Passage to India (1984). From expansive studies of war and strife to some of literature's greatest high comedies and domestic dramas, Lean imbued all of his films with his unique creative vision. Few directors can match Lean's ability to combine narrative sweep and psychological detail, and Phillips goes beyond Lean's epics to reveal this unifying characteristic in the director's body of work. Beyond the Epic is a vital assessment of a great director's artistic process and his place in the film industry.

Author Notes

Gene D. Phillips is a professor of English and film at Loyola University. He lives in Chicago, IL.

Reviews (2)

Choice Review

In his study of auteurs, The American Cinema (1968), Andrew Sarris put David Lean in the "less than meets the eye" category. Phillips (Loyola Univ.) hopes to change such a notion in this critical biography, which looks afresh at the film director's achievements. He believes that Lean fulfilled to a tee the definition of "auteur," the filmmaker whose work comprises a mosaic of authorship in an art form so obviously the result of collaboration. Phillips looks not only at the blockbusters (The Bridge on the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago, A Passage to India) but also at Lean's British accomplishments (Brief Encounter, Great Expectations, Oliver Twist, among others). But the purpose of this book is not to pump up the auteur theory but to recognize Lean's overwhelming product. Kevin Brownlow, author of what Phillips believes is the definitive Lean biography (David Lean, 1997), writes here that he is amazed at how many interviews with figures prominent in Lean's story Phillips was able to gather. For each film, this critical biography offers summary and interpretation, thus paving Lean's road to the pantheon. The book includes a section of glossies, endnotes, a complete filmography, and a generous bibliography. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates, graduate students, general readers. A. Hirsh emeritus, Central Connecticut State University

Library Journal Review

Most movie buffs think of late British director David Lean as an epic filmmaker-his resume includes Lawrence of Arabia-but he also made intimate dramas (Brief Encounter), romances (Summertime), and two classic adaptations of Charles Dickens's novels (Great Expectations and Oliver Twist). Written with some cooperation from Lean before his death in 1991, this book by Phillips (film history & modern literature, Loyola Univ.; Creatures of Darkness: Raymond Chandler and Film Noir) presents an entertaining, in-depth look at Sir David's life and diverse career. Lean got his start in silent pictures; his early work as a film editor taught him how to tell a story visually. Besides the well-known facts about Lean's later epics, Phillips furnishes information on some of his less famous films, including Blithe Spirit and The Sound Barrier. There are even telling anecdotes about Lean's relationships with actors Noel Coward and Alec Guinness and producer Sam Spiegel, plus details on Lean's six marriages and numerous affairs. As most previous material on Lean is now out of print (notably, Kevin Brownlow's David Lean: A Biography), this book will be a welcome addition to large public and academic film biography collections.-Stephen Rees, Levittown Lib., PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.