Lights, camera, history : portraying the past in film / edited by Richard Francaviglia and Jerry Rodnitzky ; with an introduction by Peter C. Rollins ; contributions by Robert Rosenstone ... [and others].

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Francaviglia, Richard V.

Rodnitzky, Jerome L., 1936-

Rosenstone, Robert A.

Series:

Walter Prescott Webb memorial lectures ; 40.

The Walter Prescott Webb memorial lectures ; no. 40

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Motion pictures and history.

Historical films--History and criticism.

Historical films.

Physical Description:

viii, 138 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

College Station : Published for the University of Texas at Arlington by Texas A&M University Press, [2007]

Summary:

This Important Volume addresses a number of central questions about how history is depicted in film: What is lost and what is gained in portraying history through film? How do filmmakers and historians negotiate the tension between accuracy and truth? Do films, which are capable of not only capturing but also recreating the emotion of historical events, serve our understanding of the past? Does cinema embody the autobiographies of the scriptwriters and filmmakers more than those of the historical characters portrayed?

In the preface, the volume editors emphasize the importance of using film in teaching history: students will see historical films, and if they are not taught critical viewing, they will be inclined simply to accept what they see as fact. Authors of the individual chapters then explore the portrayal of history-and the uses of history-in specific films and film genres.

The cumulative effect is to increase the reader's understanding of the medium of film in portraying history and to stimulate the imagination as to how it can and how it should not be used. Students and teachers of history and cinema will benefit deeply from this informative and thoughtful discussion.

Contents:

Introduction: Film and History: Our Media Environment as a New Frontier / Peter C. Rollins 1

In Praise of the Biopic / Robert Rosenstone 11

History Is What Remains: Cinema's Challenge to Ideas about the Past / Geoff Pingree 31

Crusaders and Saracens: The Persistence of Orientalism in Historically Themed Motion Pictures about the Middle East / Richard Francaviglia 53

"The Truth Wrapped in a Package of Lies": Hollywood, History, and Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York / Daniel A. Nathan, Peter Berg, Erin Klemyk 91

In Defense of the Filmmakers / Robert Brent Toplin 113.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

1585445665

9781585445660

1585445800

9781585445806

OCLC:

70258925