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Crooked, but Never Common : The Films of Preston Sturges by Stuart Klawans (2023, Trade Paperback)

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Crooked, but Never Common: The Films of Preston Sturges

About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherColumbia University Press

ISBN-100231207298

ISBN-139780231207294

eBay Product ID (ePID)4057238085

Product Key Features

Number of Pages288 Pages

Publication NameCrooked, but Never Common : the Films of Preston Sturges

LanguageEnglish

SubjectIndividual Director (See Also Biography & Autobiography / Entertainment & Performing Arts), Film / Direction & Production, Film / History & Criticism

Publication Year2023

TypeTextbook

Subject AreaPerforming Arts

AuthorStuart Klawans

FormatTrade Paperback

Dimensions

Item Height0.8 in

Item Weight16.4 Oz

Item Length8.5 in

Item Width5.5 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceScholarly & Professional

LCCN2022-013872

Reviews[Klawans] carefully shows how these complicated comedies work, exploring what one might call Sturges's 'moral universe,' which can be more unforgiving toward 1940s America than the surface froth suggests. . . The author deserves admiration for taking Sturges's comedy seriously., Stuart Klawans' deep dive into the films of Preston Sturges is a gift for cinephiles. Whether providing context or close analysis, his tone is witty and accessible as well as erudite and profound., [Klawans's] prose positively sizzles at every turn, in what is sure to be a defining study of Sturges's films., From one of our finest critics, an elegant and deftly argued contribution to our appreciation of the great and glorious Preston Sturges. Klawans teases out inspired connections in the culture surrounding the director--the books, paintings and legends that fed the artistry of a man who refused to call himself an artist. The kind of book that makes you want to dive back into the films for fresh stimulation and delight., Klawans offers fresh analyses of Sturges's movies, an impressive accomplishment considering how much has already been written about them. . . [He] thinks through Sturges's work with love and careful attention., [A] portrait of a director with a gift for character development and 'head-spinning dialogue executed at high speed' by an author with a keen critical eye and plenty of flair in his own writing. Film buffs will relish this., Stuart Klawans's deep dive into the films of Preston Sturges is a gift for cinephiles. Whether providing context or close analysis, his tone is witty and accessible as well as erudite and profound., From one of our finest critics, an elegant and deftly argued contribution to our appreciation of the great and glorious Preston Sturges. Stuart Klawans teases out inspired connections in the culture surrounding the director--the books, paintings, and legends that fed the artistry of a man who refused to call himself an artist. The kind of book that makes you want to dive back into the films for fresh stimulation and delight., Nobody wrote better screenplays than Preston Sturges, whose dialogue remains among the most sparkling ever committed to the screen. Yet, until now, his achievements as a visual artist have been overlooked. Klawans's wonderful new study has finally remedied that, demonstrating that Sturges was an artist as skilled with the camera as he was with a typewriter., It's obvious Klawans has pored over Sturges's films. After reading his thoughtful analyses, film buffs will want to rewatch them, armed with new insights., Crooked, but Never Common brings new perspective to old movies that are in many minds better remembered for their motley assortments of expertly deployed character actors--among them William Demarest, Franklin Pangborn, Jimmy Conlin, and Eugene Pallette--than for their depth and magnificent construction., Coming late to the party of Sturgesologists, Stuart Klawans has extended and upended the field with his takes that are as witty and audacious as his subject. One has only to read his wry unpacking of the contradictions in Sullivan's Travels , or his sympathetic dissections of my own favorites, The Lady Eve and Unfaithfully Yours . Klawans really knows these films, has a nuanced understanding of cinema in general, writes beautifully, and is the best, most trustworthy guide imaginable to the genius of Preston Sturges. A triumph., Klawans is a virtuoso writer and a savvy political thinker . . . Sturges's personal dilemmas flicker within an entertainment that becomes even more complex and stylish when we detect their traces., Stuart Klawans has extended and upended the field with takes that are as witty and audacious as his subject. One has only to read his wry unpacking of the contradictions in Sullivan's Travels or his sympathetic dissections of my own favorites, The Lady Eve and Unfaithfully Yours . Klawans really knows these films, has a nuanced understanding of cinema in general, writes beautifully, and is the best, most trustworthy guide imaginable to the genius of Preston Sturges. A triumph., The book is both a compelling biography of Sturges and a close read of his films, and Klawans writes with great wit and insight.

Dewey Edition23

IllustratedYes

Dewey Decimal791.430233092

Table Of Content1. Instead of an Introduction: A Rhetoric of Preston Sturges 2. Ya Can't Get Away from Arithmetic: The Great McGinty 3. He Thinks He Has Ideas: Christmas in July 4. I'm Not a Poet, I'm an Ophiologist: The Lady Eve 5. As You Are, So Shall You Remain: Sullivan's Travels 6. Topic A: The Palm Beach Story 7. Homo Sapiens, the Wise Guy: Triumph Over Pain 8. Psycholology: The Miracle of Morgan's Creek 9. That's All You Know How to Hurt: Hail the Conquering Hero 10. You Arouse the Artist in Me: The Sin of Harold Diddlebock 11. Every Emotion Was Exaggerated: Unfaithfully Yours 12. Instead of a Conclusion: A Genealogy of Preston Sturges Acknowledgments Bibliography Index

SynopsisIn a burst of creativity unmatched in Hollywood history, Preston Sturges directed a string of all-time classic comedies from 1939 through 1948-- The Great McGinty , The Lady Eve , Sullivan's Travels , The Palm Beach Story , and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek among them--all from screenplays he alone had written. Cynical and sophisticated, romantic and sexually frank, crazily breakneck and endlessly witty, his movies continue to influence filmmakers and remain popular to this day. Yet despite this acclaim, Sturges's achievements remain underappreciated: he is too often categorized as a dialogue writer and plot engineer more than a director, or belittled as an irresponsible spinner of laughs. In Crooked, but Never Common , Stuart Klawans combines a critic's insight and a fan's enthusiasm to offer deeper ways to think about and enjoy Sturges's work. He provides an in-depth appreciation of all ten of the writer-director's major movies, presenting Sturges as a filmmaker whose work balanced slapstick and social critique, American and European traditions, and cynicism and affection for his characters. Tugging at loose threads--discontinuities, puzzles, and allusions that have dangled in plain sight--and putting the films into a broader cultural context, Klawans reveals structures, motives, and meanings underlying the uproarious pleasures of Sturges's movies. In this new light, Sturges emerges at last as one of the truly great filmmakers--and funnier than ever., In Crooked, but Never Common , Stuart Klawans combines a critic's insight and a fan's enthusiasm to offer deeper ways to think about and enjoy Preston Sturges's work. He provides an in-depth appreciation of all ten of the writer-director's major movies., In a burst of creativity unmatched in Hollywood history, Preston Sturges directed a string of all-time classic comedies from 1939 through 1948-The Great McGinty , The Lady Eve , Sullivan's Travels , The Palm Beach Story , and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek among them-all from screenplays he alone had written. Cynical and sophisticated, romantic and sexually frank, crazily breakneck and endlessly witty, his movies continue to influence filmmakers and remain popular to this day. Yet despite this acclaim, Sturges's achievements remain underappreciated: he is too often categorized as a dialogue writer and plot engineer more than a director, or belittled as an irresponsible spinner of laughs. In Crooked, but Never Common , Stuart Klawans combines a critic's insight and a fan's enthusiasm to offer deeper ways to think about and enjoy Sturges's work. He provides an in-depth appreciation of all ten of the writer-director's major movies, presenting Sturges as a filmmaker whose work balanced slapstick and social critique, American and European traditions, and cynicism and affection for his characters. Tugging at loose threads-discontinuities, puzzles, and allusions that have dangled in plain sight-and putting the films into a broader cultural context, Klawans reveals structures, motives, and meanings underlying the uproarious pleasures of Sturges's movies. In this new light, Sturges emerges at last as one of the truly great filmmakers-and funnier than ever.

LC Classification NumberPN1998.3.S78K55 2023