Reviews
Italian Neorealism was among the areas of cinema dearest to Bazin, yet until now his writings on it have not been readily accessible in English. Cardullo's anthology provides not only translations of the major essays, but a comprehensive bibliographical and filmographic apparatus criticus. His introduction offers a succinct biography of Bazin along with a stimulating assessment of the importance of his work, unabashedly embracing its transcendental and spiritual qualities. This is a valuable resource for scholars of cinema and Italian culture alike. 'e"Keith Reader, Emeritus Professor of Modern French Studies, Glasgow University, Italian Neorealism was among the areas of cinema dearest to Bazin, yet until now his writings on it have not been readily accessible in English. Cardullo's anthology provides not only translations of the major essays, but a comprehensive bibliographical and filmographic apparatus criticus. His introduction offers a succinct biography of Bazin along with a stimulating assessment of the importance of his work, unabashedly embracing its transcendental and spiritual qualities. This is a valuable resource for scholars of cinema and Italian culture alike. --Keith Reader, Emeritus Professor of Modern French Studies, Glasgow University, The work of the post-war Italian neorealist filmmakers constitutes one of the most respected and influential bodies of aesthetic creation of the twentieth century, and the French critic André Bazin was their first and most eloquent champion. Bert Cardullo's introduction to Bazin and neorealism, collecting all Bazin's trail-blazing writings on those Italian artists, and packaging them with ample filmographies and bibliographies, finally makes accessible in one volume an important, but hitherto widely scattered, body of reflection, criticism and theorising to lovers and students of film and of the art of film. - Christopher Wagstaff, Senior Lecturer in Italian Studies at the University of Reading, author of Italian Neorealist Cinema: An Aesthetic Approach (Toronto, 2007)., The work of the post-war Italian neorealist filmmakers constitutes one of the most respected and influential bodies of aesthetic creation of the twentieth century, and the French critic Andre Bazin was their first and most eloquent champion. Bert Cardullo's introduction to Bazin and neorealism, collecting all Bazin's trail-blazing writings on those Italian artists, and packaging them with ample filmographies and bibliographies, finally makes accessible in one volume an important, but hitherto widely scattered, body of reflection, criticism and theorising to lovers and students of film and of the art of film. -- Christopher Wagstaff, Senior Lecturer in Italian Studies at the University of Reading, author of Italian Neorealist Cinema: An Aesthetic Approach (Toronto, 2007)., Bert Cardullo's invaluable anthology makes available for the first time in one English-language volume all of Bazin's major texts on Italian neorealism. It provides a chronological overview of Bazin's developing critical response to neorealism, combining ambitious theoretical-historical essays with shorter and more focused reviews of individual films. Cardullo's choice of texts vividly recaptures the immediacy and excitement of Bazin's contemporary discovery and promotion of neorealism, while reflecting the critical intelligence that ensures the lasting value of his insights. It is of compelling interest not only to teachers and students of cinema but potentially to a wider public of film enthusiasts. -- Douglas Smith, School of Languages and Literatures, University College Dublin
