Best of British: Cinema and society, 1930-1970

Cinema and Society

by Jeffrey & Aldgate Anthony Richards, Anthony Aldgate

This is a revised and expanded edition of the classic book on film history. The authors examine how aspects of British society are reflected in and shaped by cinema. Films studied include, among others, "Sanders of the River, A Canterbury Tale, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, The Guinea Pig, The Blue Lamp, The Ladykillers, I'm All Right Jack, The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, If . . ., and "Scandal.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction

170 pages, Hardcover

First published November 10, 1983

Reviews

[Nicholas · Rating 2 out of 5]

quite boring and a slog to read. the framework that the authors set out in the opening chapter are interesting and the overarching perspectives of what each film is interesting, but the chapters fail to intertwine any deep sociological or cultural connections between the films and the times they were constructed in. there was little mention of any theoretical approaches as well. what did the film come to represent? how does the style of filming demonstrate these historical changes? etc. there was an overemphasis on the plots of the story and essentially each chapter read as a synopsis of each film highlighted for each chapter. if you are a british cinephile this is probably more up your alley, and shouldn’t really be thought of as a history book.