Synopses & Reviews
Agnès Varda, one of the major French filmmakers for the last forty years is here celebrated and situated by Alison Smith, by examining both the early films and the later successes, such as
Sans Toit ni Loi (1985),
Jane B. par Agnès V. (1987) and
Jacquot de Nantes (1991). Smith considers Vardas films in the light of her constant attention to film form, and proposes an integrated analysis of several major themes in her work, through a detailed study of her best-known or most significant films, which are then set in context against her lesser-known, but very extensive, oeuvre. The themes cover such issues as representation of place and community, representation of women and the use of memory, and are linked by a common concern with the process by which Varda transforms reality into constructed films. They owe their form to the combined subjectivitys of the filmmaker, the subjects filmed, and the audience.
Review
The author has a solid grasp of Vardas recurring themes, and she provides clear, close analyses of her distinctive cinema.
Choice
Synopsis
The first introduction in English devoted wholly to Varda and aimed at a general and student audience. Places Varda's major films in the context of her whole oeuvre and follows the development of important themes across her work.
Synopsis
A readable and thought-provoking account of Agnès Vardas contribution to French cinema from the 50s to the 90s.
About the Author
Alison Smith is Lecturer in French at Keele University.
Table of Contents
Introduction * Cinécriture and the Power of Images * People and Places * Women's Images and Self-images * Time and Memory * Performance, Audience and Actors * Conclusion * Filmography * Bibliography