Recent Publications in the Field of Italian Cinema

Abstract

REVIEWS nella cit. recensione, p. 2006, il richiamo ai « bigonzoni » e agli altri termini ariostcschi non in vale propriamente da citazione testuale, ma da riferimento a memoria. Questo peraltro potrebbe anche confermare la provvisorieta di una redazione dei DL consistente pura dinamica di pensiero, senza il soccorso e la mediazione di libri e documenti. Recent Publications in the Field ofltalian Cinema To date is the best introduction to Italian cinema available in English Cinema from Neo-realism to the Present (Ungar, 1983) of which Fellini himself has said: ... a very good hook, and an accurate one. The material in the Bondanella text is cen- Peter Bondanella's Italian tered around a selection of representative films which are discussed at length and presented in their historical and cultural context. This fo- cus helps the reader orient him/herself and is essential for the newcomer to the rather vast subject of Italian film production. For those who might he interested in tracking down a copy of a film, Bondanella's section on rental information will undoubtedly prove quite valuable. on the same subject is Mira Leihm's Passion and Defiance. Film in Italy from 1942 to the Present (UC Press, 1984). Liehm's text, while offering a large section on the generally neglected early Italian film (1930-42) and a greater emphasis on Italian cinema before 1952, not to mention a wide selection of photographic illustra- tions (147 m ali!) ends up resembling more a compendium of names and titles while providing only brief descriptions and superficial ana- recent attempi lyses A more of the films themselves. In addition to the standard text bibliog- raphy, Liehm includes a four page bibliography of articles it is on the subject ofltalian film (although indexed by author and not by subject, which would bave been more useful), a list of published screenplays and an accurate index of the film titles and their English translation. A in rather disappointing attempt at presenting the more recent Italian is R. T. Witcombe's The New Italian Cinema. Studies Dance and Despair (Oxford University Press, 1982). Meant clearly for the already initiated, Witcombe's text focuses on comparisons be- film production tween the following directors: Antonioni-Ferreri; Bellocchio-Cavani; Bolognini-Bertolucci, Pasolini-Fellini, Rosi-Petri, Olmi-Taviani, Visconti-Wertmuller, with a final chapter devoted to Franco Brusati,