Nietzsche in Hollywood : images of the Übermensch in early American cinema / Matthew Rukgaber.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rukgaber, Matthew, author.

Series:

SUNY Series, Horizons of Cinema

SUNY Series, Horizons of Cinema Series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Motion pictures--United States--History--20th century.

Motion pictures.

Philosophy in motion pictures.

Superman (Philosophical concept) in motion pictures.

Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm, 1844-1900--Influence.

Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (298 pages)

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Albany, NY : State University of New York Press, [2022]

Summary:

Argues that Nietzsche's idea of the Übermensch was a central concern of filmmakers in the 1920s and 1930s.

Contents:

Intro

Contents

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations of Nietzsche's Works

Introduction: Approaching Film with Nietzsche

1 The Inhuman in the Human: Social Darwinism and the Übermensch in the Silent Era

Introduction

Nietzsche, Darwin, and the Progressive Age on Film

Unnatural Knowledge and the Monsters It Creates

Conclusion

2 The Weakness in Strength: The Übermensch as Degenerate in the Films of Erich von Stroheim

Nordau, Norris, and Degeneration

Stroheim Directs the Collapse of Civilization

Madness and the Herd in The Great Gabbo (1929)

3 The Criminal Law: The Übermensch as Gangster and the Will to Power

Early Crime Films and the Reform of the Gangster

Underworld (1927) and the Justice of the Gangster

Little Caesar (1931) and the Becoming of the Gangster

Scarface (1932) and the End of the Gangster

4 The Salvation of Sin: The Übermensch as Superwoman and the Role of Gender

The Überfrau in American Silent Film

Baby Face (1933) and Red-Headed Woman (1932): The Überfrau and the Circle of Exploitation

Female (1933) and the Single Standard

5 The Truth of Lies: The Übermensch as Genius in the Comedies of Ben Hecht

The Genius of Manipulation: The Front Page (1931) and Design for Living (1933)

The Genius of Acting: Twentieth Century (1934)

The Genius of Deception: Nothing Sacred (1937)

6 The Freedom in Fate: The Übermensch as Dionysius in the Films of Josef von Sternberg

Morocco (1930) and Blonde Venus (1932): Looking into the Abyss

The Devil Is a Woman (1935): The Abyss Looks Back

Shanghai Express (1932): Faithful to the One

The Scarlet Empress (1934): Blood, Lust, and Madness

Conclusion.

7 The Revealing Mask: The Übermensch as Free Spirit in the Comedies of Ernst Lubitsch

Love and Illusion in Lubitsch's Early Musicals

Come Lie with Me: Trouble in Paradise (1932)

Nietzsche's Cinematic Fate

Conclusion: A Nietzschean Philosophy of Film

Nietzschean Films: An Incomplete Historical Picture

Nietzschean Film-Philosophy

Film-Style, Film-Form, and Film-Ontology

A Final Remark

Notes

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781438490298

1438490291

OCLC:

1341442408