by:
Picart, Caroline Joan (Kay) (Editor)

Publisher:
Praeger Publishers
Published:June 30, 2004
ISBN:0275978508
Format:Hardcover
Pages:0

Description: From Booklist
Editor Picart has created a comprehensive annotated listing of international films related to the Holocaust. The two volumes are divided by type of film covered. Volume 1 deals with fiction, for the most part feature or television films from various countries. Volume 2 contains two separate listings, one for documentaries and one for propaganda films. Volume 1 also contains a list of resources including archives of Holocaust films, film databases, film indexes, and sources for purchase of scripts. Each volume is indexed separately. Since there are several Hollywood fiction films, such as Casablanca, included in the propaganda film section, a set index of film titles would have been helpful.

Entries are arranged alphabetically by the film's original title, no matter the language, with its English translation in parentheses. Information provided in each entry generally includes country of production, date, genre, running time, production company and producers, cast and crew (including historical figures who appear in documentaries), inspiration (for example, the book on which a film is based), plot summary, primary sources (such as scripts and posters), and selected secondary sources. Picart has listed films even when much of the information normally included is unavailable, so that the reader will at least know that the film existed. Black-and-white stills from the films are scattered throughout both volumes. Several "Spotlight Essays" offer analyses of either a particular film or a theme related to one or more films.

As with any listing of this type, users may argue for or against the inclusion or placement of certain titles. However, it would be hard to find any film that has not been included. The set will be extremely useful in an academic or special library that supports either a film studies or Holocaust studies program. Its value as a collection development tool is enhanced by information on where to obtain these films. Rochelle Glantz
Copyright # American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Description:
The Holocaust has been the subject of an increasing number of recent films, most notably Schindler's List, Life Is Beautiful, and The Pianist, all of which were rewarded with many Academy Awards. But the history of films dealing with this important subject goes back much further than the early nineties, and the two-volume Holocaust Film Sourcebook will be the first comprehensive guide to them. It responds to this growing body of cinematic work that is uniquely intertwined with historical reality--and which often tries to recreate that "reality" for the audience. As more scholars and viewers turn to cinema for a greater understanding of the 20th century's greatest atrocity, this work is invaluable, offering readers a guide through all films--fictional, documentary, and propaganda--related to the Holocaust and its effects, including filmographies, bibliographies, production histories, and spotlight essays on key pictures. In doing so, it considers the questions at the root of Holocaust cinema: can reality be represented? What kinds of stories are best suited to it? What moral issues are at stake? But most importantly, it provides complete coverage of a subject that is at once timely, historical, creative, and unendingly controversial.