The historical epic and contemporary Hollywood : from Dances with wolves to Gladiator / James Russell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Russell, James, 1977-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Historical films--United States--History and criticism.

Historical films.

Epic films.

United States.

Epic films--United States--History and criticism.

Physical Description:

viii, 248 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Continuum, 2007.

Summary:

The Historical Epic in Contemporary Hollywood seeks to explain a recent revival of historical epic films in Hollywood. Rather than relying on abstract theoretical approaches, Russell employs empirical historical techniques to explore how industrial conditions and the agendas of key directors, writers and producers, led to the increased production of historical epics such as Dances With Wolves (1990), Titanic (1997), Gladiator (2000), and The Passion of the Christ (2004). Ultimately, the book argues that historical epics reappeared in the 1990s partly as a result of changing industrial conditions, but mainly because a generation of filmmakers began to seek out meaningful ways of passing on historical knowledge to younger generations.

Contents:

1 A Brief History of the Historical Epic 3

2 The Historical Epic as a Genre 7

3 Definitions of the Epic 9

Chapter 1 Big-Theme Films: Epics in the Roadshow Era 22

1 The Economics of the Roadshow Epic 23

2 Creative Conditions After World War II 30

3 Epics and Audiences 41

4 The Hollywood Epic in Decline 45

Chapter 2 The Epic, the Western and Dances with Wolves (1990) 54

1 Westerns and Epics, 1970 to 1990 56

2 Constructing Dances with Wolves 59

3 Narrative, Nostalgia and Film History 62

4 Critical and Commercial Responses 67

Chapter 3 Steven Spielberg, the Holocaust and Schindler's List (1993) 77

1 Spielberg, Hollywood and World War II 80

2 Judaism and the Origins of Schindler's List 83

3 The Holocaust in Schindler's List 88

4 Virtue in Schindler's List 92

Chapter 4 The Baby Boomers, Remembrance and Saving Private Ryan (1998) 106

1 Spielberg and the Baby Boom 108

2 The Baby Boom and American Film Culture 111

3 Generations in Saving Private Ryan 116

Chapter 5 DreamWorks SKG and The Prince of Egypt (1998) 131

1 The Establishment of DreamWorks SKG 133

2 The Prince of Egypt and the Epic Tradition 139

3 DreamWorks as Promised Land 144

Chapter 6 Gladiator (2000) and the Film Marketplace 156

1 The Epic at the Millennium 159

2 Gladiator and Public Entertainment 165

3 The Epic in the Film Marketplace 173

Chapter 7 Religion, Ritual and The Passion of the Christ (2004) 187

1 Presenting The Passion 190

2 The Power of The Passion 198

Conclusion: The Epic in the Age of Shock and Awe 215.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 223-241) and index.

ISBN:

0826427987

9780826427984

0826427995

9780826427991

OCLC:

74965194