Overview

Arguably a pioneer of the French New Wave (with Ascenseur pour l'échafaud, 1957) Louis Malle went on to enjoy an acclaimed yet provocative and versatile transatlantic career. This collection of original essays proposes to reassess his richly eclectic and boldly subversive oeuvre and redress the surprising critical neglect it has suffered over the years. It does so through a combination of transversal and monographic analyses that use a variety of critical lenses and theoretical tools in order to examine Malle's documentaries as well as his fiction features (and, more importantly, the constant shuttling and uniquely persistent cross-pollination between those two cinematic approaches), illuminate the profound, lasting dialogue his films entertained with literature and theater, bring to the fore their sustained, albeit often oblique autobiographical thrust along with their scathing sociopolitical critique, and scrutinize the alternating use of stars and non-professional actors. In addition, the volume features an exclusive interview with the acclaimed playwright John Guare (a close friend and collaborator of Louis Malle's who scripted Atlantic City) and is bookended by a foreword by Volker Schlöndorff and an afterword by Wes Anderson, two renowned filmmakers who articulate their admiration for, and the seminal influence of, their predecessor.

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9780231188708

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In sum, this volume is as generous to film enthusiasts just coming to Malle's work as it is to seasoned scholars. Critics and scholars will find a wealth of new biographical and critical detail, as well as new primary sources and an excellent introduction to the current state of debates on Malle and his legacy. Newcomers will gain insight into the wide-ranging talents and interests of this bicultural, bilingual director who successfully navigated the film industries in France and the United States. -- Alison J. Murray Levine * EuropeNow *

In sum, this volume is as generous to film enthusiasts just coming to Malle's work as it is to seasoned scholars. Critics and scholars will find a wealth of new biographical and critical detail, as well as new primary sources and an excellent introduction to the current state of debates on Malle and his legacy. Newcomers will gain insight into the wide-ranging talents and interests of this bicultural, bilingual director who successfully navigated the film industries in France and the United States. -- Alison J. Murray Levine * EuropeNow * The Cinema of Louis Malle: Transatlantic Auteur is a major contribution to the study of a filmmaker who has been critically neglected. As such, it will be a key reference for future analyses of Malle, and we can hope that it will also contribute to a broader renewed interest in the works of this multifaceted and seminal transatlantic auteur. -- Armelle Blin-Rolland, Bangor University * H-France *

Author Information

Philippe Met is professor of French and cinema studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He has authored and edited several books on literature or film, and is the coeditor of Screening the Paris Suburbs: From the Silent Era to the 1990s (2017).

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