Abel Gance and the End of Silent Cinema - Sounding out Utopia (Paperback, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2016)

This book explores the creation and destruction of Abel Gance's most ambitious film project, and seeks to explain why his meteoric career was so nearly extinguished at the end of silent cinema. By 1929, Gance was France's most famous director. Acclaimed for his technical innovation and visual imagination, he was also admonished for the excessive length and expense of his productions. Gance's first sound film, La Fin du Monde (1930), was a critical and financial disaster so great that it nearly destroyed his career. But what went wrong? Gance claimed it was commercial sabotage whilst critics blamed the director's inexperience with new technology. Neither excuse is satisfactory. Based on extensive archival research, this book re-investigates the cultural background and aesthetic consequences of Gance's transition from silent filmmaking to sound cinema. La Fin du Monde is revealed to be only one element of an extraordinary cultural project to transform cinema into a universal religion and propagate its power through the League of Nations. From unfinished films to unrealized social revolutions, the reader is given a fascinating tour of Gance's lost cinematic utopia.

General

Imprint:	Springer International Publishing AG
Country of origin:	Switzerland
Release date:	July 2018
First published:	2016
Authors:	Paul Cuff
Dimensions:	210 x 148 x 15mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	241
Edition:	Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2016
ISBN-13:	978-3-319-81754-5
Categories:	Books > Arts & Architecture > Performing arts > General Books > Arts & Architecture > Music > General Books > Reference & Interdisciplinary > Interdisciplinary studies > Cultural studies > General Books > Humanities > History > History of specific subjects > Social & cultural history Books > History > History of specific subjects > Social & cultural history Books > Music > General Promotions
LSN:	3-319-81754-X
Barcode:	9783319817545

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