Overview

Positioned precariously between the uptight '50s and the freewheeling '70s, the 1960s marked a transitional decade in the film industry. As art, mass market, and pop culture merged and collided in true pop art style, cinema swirled with psychedelic energy. This handbook gathers the best films of the era, exploring the making and the mastery of such cinematic star turns as The Leopard, The Birds, Belle de Jour, A Fistful of Dollars, and Doctor Zhivago. With audiences ever more glued to their TV sets and the loosened rules about what was permissible in cinema with the abolition of the Production Code, filmmakers embraced the freedom to explore the possibilities of film as an art form. As was often the case, the Europeans led the way, the French with Nouvelle Vague directors like Godard and Truffaut, and the Italians with such innovative films as Fellini's 8 1/2 and Antonioni's Eclipse. By the mid-'60s the United States also began to exercise greater creative liberties, especially in films from young underground directors such as Russ Meyer, John Frankenheimer, and Sam Peckinpah. Meanwhile, Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music ushered out the grandiose Hollywood musical era with a bang while the Spaghetti Western became an instant phenomenon. Bond, James Bond, first appeared on-screen and Kubrick set new standards for sci-fi with 2001: A Space Odyssey. Though the term feminism may not have been ready for prime time, the decade was also one of major advances in female characterization. From Jane Fonda's Barbarella to Holly Golightly of Breakfast at Tiffany's to Bonnie Parker of Bonnie and Clyde, it was the 1960s that saw women on-screen graduate from decorative accessories to complex, kick-ass personas. About the series Bibliotheca Universalis -- Compact cultural companions celebrating the eclectic TASCHEN universe!

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9783836578516

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A truly stunning book, this is the browsing experience par excellence. You really won't be able to put it down. -- Film Review This book is a pleasure to spend time with, like a good friend or a great movie. -- Empire Magazine This stylish and intelligent guide is a must-have... it details in engaging script the most memorable movies of that vibrant decade. -- The Good Book Guide

Author Information

Jurgen Muller holds the chair of Early Modern and Modern Art History at the Technical University of Dresden. He studied art history at the universities of Bochum, Mu nster, Pisa, Paris and Amsterdam, and has worked as an art critic and curated numerous exhibitions. He is also the editor of TASCHEN's movies by decade series.

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