Kubrick, New and Expanded Edition: Inside a Film Artist's Maze

by Thomas Allen Nelson

Book Overview

Stanley Kubrick ranks among the most important American film makers of his generation, but his work is often misunderstood because it is widely diverse in subject matter and seems to lack thematic and tonal consistency. Thomas Nelson's perceptive and comprehensive study of Kubrick rescues him from the hostility of auteurist critics and discovers the roots of a Kubrickian aesthetic, which Nelson defines as the "aesthetics of contingency."

After...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0253213908
• ISBN13: 9780253213907
• Release Date: June 2000
• Publisher: Indiana University Press
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.1" x 9.1"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

A wonderful view

There can be no greater praise for a book about Kubrick than to say that it is worthy of its subject. This one is. The opening chapter gives the bare biographical facts, and attempts to dispel a few of the myths about Kubrick's personality - not least the idea that, for example, a man's real or journalistically endowed flying phobia should have the least relevance for a viewer or a critic of his films. The next chapter analyses the early films up to the first masterpiece, Paths of Glory; and each subsequent film (except for the compromised Spartacus) has a chapter to itself. Nelson's critiques are detailed, comprehensive, thoroughly readable and constructive - which is to say, favourable. He appreciates the films and wishes others to appreciate them too. This revised and expanded edition contains, in the first chapter, a charming tribute to the director and, in two new chapters, analyses of Full Metal Jacket and Eyes Wide Shut which show that, in the intervening years between The Shining and the present, Nelson's abilities have diminished as little as Kubrick's. All the essays in the book can be read and enjoyed for their own sake - I was especially fond of the one on A Clockwork Orange, long before I was able to see the film itself - but they will also make you long to be back there in the dark, sharing the artist's vision with the eyes Nelson has widened for you.

Excellent.

By far the finest book on Kubrick, and one of the best full-length studies of a single director. The new chapters on Full Metal Jacket and especially Eyes Wide Shut are fascinating. I can't say I always agree with Mr. Nelson's take on some things. But the intelligence with which his ideas are set forth make the book more than worth the time and money.

Best Film Study on Kubrick that I've seen so far, honestly

Probably the best study on Kubrick that is out right now. (And, yes, I have talked to Nelson. He is expanding the book to include FMJ and EWS. And I simply cannot wait until it comes out! Probably some time next spring). I've read the Walker book. And that comes close. But this book is certainly the most exhaustive and insightful piece of work you'll read on Kubrick. It will literally change the way you see movies period. You'll never look upon 'The Shining' the same way. Indeed, upon any of his films in the same way. I must say, it's like I felt my jaw dropping to the floor when I was reading this. This book will tell you EXACTLY why Kubrick is the film genius eveyone says he is. Only after reading Nelson's book will you find just how much can be said in a film. I was absolutely enthralled by every analysis. A must-read for any aspiring Kubrick fans. Or for any film buff anywhere.... who wants to learn something....

T.A. Nelson a craftsman in his own right.

I have been a student of T.A. Nelson at San Diego State University for the past year and a half, I can assure you that he does want to expand his book to include Kubrick's last two films, and when he does it will be a glorious treat indeed. His passion for film as an art is not only evident in his book, but in his teaching aswell. Thank you Dr. Nelson for your passion and love of film.

One of the better analyses of Kubrick's work

An excellent review/analysis of Kubrick's works. Although occasionally it neglects certain aspects of particular films, I have found it to be one of the most in depth and perceptive looks at the master's films. Nelson discusses not only the thematics which are presented through dialogue and action, but those that are communicated in a strcictly visual sense, ie shot composition, etc. A must for all Kubrick aficionados and students of film.