Christopher Nolan is the writer and director of Hollywood blockbusters like The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, and also of arthouse films like Memento and Inception. Underlying his staggering commercial success however, is a darker sensibility that questions the veracity of human knowledge, the allure of appearance over reality and the latent disorder in contemporary society. This appreciation of the sinister owes a huge debt to philosophy and especially modern thinkers like Friedrich Nietzsche, Sigmund Freud and Jacques Derrida. Taking a thematic approach to Nolan's oeuvre, Robbie Goh examines how the director's postmodern inclinations manifest themselves in non-linearity, causal agnosticism, the threat of social anarchy and the frequent use of the mise en abyme, while running counter to these are narratives of heroism, moral responsibility and the dignity of human choice. For Goh, Nolan is a 'reluctant postmodernist'. His films reflect the cynicism of the modern world, but with their representation of heroic moral triumphs, they also resist it.

From Eugene Delacroix's interpretation of the 1830 French revolution to Uli Edel's version of the Baader-Meinhof Gang, artistic representations of historical subjects are appealing and pervasive. Movies often adapt imagery from art history, including paintings of historical events. Films and art shape the past for us and continue to affect our interpretation of history. While historical films are often argued over for their adherence to "the facts," their real problem is realism: how can the past be convincingly depicted? Realism in the historical film genre is often nourished and given credibility by its use of painterly references. This book examines how art-historical images affect historical films by going beyond period detail and surface design to look at how profound ideas about history are communicated through pictures. Art and the Historical Film: Between Realism and the Sublime is based on case studies that explore the links between art and cinema, including American independent Western Meek's Cutoff (Kelly Reichardt, 2010), British heritage film Belle (Amma Asante, 2013), and Dutch national epic Admiral (Roel Reine, 2014). The chapters create immersive worlds that communicate distinct ideas about the past through cinematography, production design, and direction, as the films adapt, reference, and transpose paintings by artists such as Rubens, Albert Bierstadt, and Jacques-Louis David.

When we bury our secrets, they always come back to haunt us...Their rise was meteoric. Only a few years before, they had been three friends from Glasgow, just trying to survive tough lives of danger and dysfunction. But on one Hollywood evening in 1993, they were on the world's biggest stage, accepting their Oscar in front of the watching world. That night was the beginning of their careers. But it was also the end of their friendship. Over the next twenty years, Mirren McLean would become one of the most powerful writers in the movie industry. Zander Leith would break box-office records as cinema's most in-demand action hero. And Davie Johnson would rake in millions as producer of some of the biggest shows on TV. For two decades they didn't speak, driven apart by a horrific secret. Until now... Their past is coming back to bite them, and they have to decide whether to run, hide, or fight. Because when you rise to the top, there's always someone who wants to see you fall. An exciting new glam thriller for the fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid, Liane Moriarty and Jo Spain Previously published in the UK as TAKING HOLLYWOOD by Shari King. 'Brilliant, a white-knuckle ride of a novel. Gripping and wildly glamorous' Tilly Bagshawe 'It's a real slice of Hollywood and a brilliant read' Gerard Butler 'A glam, edgy thriller, just the way I like them' Martina Cole 'Sex, scandal and secrets galore' Jackie Collins 'A high-stakes thriller with a dark, moving story at its core. Page-turning entertainment at its very best' - TJ Emerson 'It's a thriller that's gritty, sexy and a sensational page turner. You won't be able to put it down. I loved it!' Lorraine Kelly 'I loved this Hollywood tale with deep Scottish roots. It's dark, sinful, glittering and thrilling. An absolute adventure from the very first page' Carmen Reid 'The mean streets of Glasgow meet the glitz of Hollywood. A riveting read!' - Evie Hunter

Musical theatre is often perceived as either a Broadway based art form, or as having separate histories in London and New York. Musical Theatre Histories: Expanding the Narrative, however, depicts the musical as neither American nor British, but both and more, having grown out of frequent and substantial interactions between both centres (and beyond). Through multiple thematic 'histories', Millie Taylor and Adam Rush take readers on a series of journeys that include the art form's European and American origins, African American influences, negotiations arounddiversity, national identity, and the globalisation of the form, as well as revival culture, censorship and the place of social media in the 21st century. Each chapter includes case studies and key concept boxes to identify, explain and contextualise important discussions, offering an accessible study of a dynamic and ever evolving medium. Written and developed for undergraduate students, this introductory textbook provides a newly focused and alternative way of understanding musical theatre history.

Star Wars: The Blueprints brings together the original technical drawings from deep within the Lucasfilm Archives. Combined with commentary from J. W. Rinzler, the collection maps in precise, vivid, and intricate detail the genesis of one of the most enduring onscreen stories. Special features: more than 250 blueprints; more than 500 photographs and illustrations; and, ten gatefolds.

The importance of citywide festivals like Mardi Gras and Fiesta for the LGBTQ community Festivals like Mardi Gras and Fiesta have come to be annual events in which entire cities participate, and LGBTQ people are a visible part of these celebrations. In other words, the party is on, the party is queer, and everyone is invited. In Queer Carnival, Amy Stone takes us inside these colorful, eye-catching, and often raucous events, highlighting their importance to queer life in America's urban South and Southwest. Drawing on five years of research, and over a hundred days at LGBTQ events in cities such as San Antonio, Santa Fe, Baton Rouge, and Mobile, Stone gives readers a front-row seat to festivals, carnivals, and Mardi Gras celebrations, vividly bringing these queer cultural spaces and the people that create and participate in them to life. Stone shows how these events serve a larger fundamental purpose, helping LGBTQ people to cultivate a sense of belonging in cities that may be otherwise hostile. Queer Carnival provides an important new perspective on queer life in the South and Southwest, showing us the ways that LGBTQ communities not only survive, but thrive, even in the most unexpected places.