Synopses & Reviews
This groundbreaking book by one of Britain's leading film historians is the first to take on this major genre in all its complexity. It takes to heart Ken Loach's view that "the only reason to make films that are a reflection on history is to talk about the present." With this proposition as his starting point, James Chapman examines the place of historical films in British cinema history and film culture. Through in-depth case studies of fourteen key films, from
Henry V and
Zulu to
Chariots of Fire and
Elizabeth, he analyzes the themes they present, including gender, ethnicity, militarism and and imperialism--throughout exploring their dialectical relationship between past and present and how they project images and ideologies of "Britishness" to audiences in the UK and North America.
Synopsis
This groundbreaking book by one of Britain's leading film historians is the first to take on this major genre in all its complexity. It takes to heart Ken Loach's view that "the only reason to make films that are a reflection on history is to talk about the present." With this proposition as his starting point, James Chapman examines the place of historical films in British cinema history and film culture. Through in-depth case studies of fourteen key films, from
Henry V and
Zulu to
Chariots of Fire and
Elizabeth, he analyzes the themes they present, including gender, ethnicity, militarism and and imperialism--throughout exploring their dialectical relationship between past and present and how they project images and ideologies of "Britishness" to audiences in the UK and North America.
About the Author
James Chapman is Senior Lecturer in Film and Television History at The Open University. His books include
The British at War: Cinema, State and Propaganda, 1939-1945,
Licence to Thrill: A Cultural History of the James Bond Films and
Saints and Avengers: British Adventure Series of the 1960s, (all by I.B.Tauris).
Table of Contents
Introduction *
The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) *
The Iron Duke (1934) *
Victoria the Great (1937) and
Sixty Glorious Years (1938) *
This England (1941) *
Henry V (1944) *
Scott of the Antarctic (1948) *
Beau Brummell (1954) *
A Night To Remember (1958) *
Zulu (1964) *
The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968) *
Henry VIII and His Six Wives (1972) *
Chariots of Fire (1981) *
Elizabeth (1998) * Bibliography * Index