Before the Fall : Soviet Cinema in the Gorbachev Years
Editorial Reviews
Book Description
This is an expanded edition of Kinoglasnost: Soviet Cinema in Our Time (Cambridge University Press, 1992). The book examines the fascinating world of Soviet cinema during the years of glasnost and perestroika--the 1980s. It shows how the reforms that shook the foundation of the Bolshevik state and affected economic and social structures have been reflected in the film industry. It also presents a survey of 300 films, including films that remained unscreened for decades for political reasons and films of the glasnost years. By 1991, the film industry had undergone a renaissance. But there were already signs of impending trouble. A new added chapter provides a commentary on the dramatic changes which took place in the 1990s. Perestroika now appears not as the dawn of a new era in Soviet cinema, but as the last stage of development before the fall caused by the realities of the market economy. When it first came out, the book received very favorable reviews. Following are a few samples: “What makes Kinoglasnost pre-eminent among current studies of the subject is the sustained attention Lawton pays to changes in the formal organization of Soviet cinema and in the cinema industry.” Julian Graffy, Sight and Sound, vol.3 (July 1993), 34. “Lawton’s book now stands as a valuable work of history on one aspect of a collapsed system.... This remains as a testimony of a fateful moment that has changed the course of history.” Louis Menashe, The Russian Review, vol.53, No.4 (October 1994), 574. “The author constructs a complex, multilayered narrative of a steady and significant movement toward radical change in Soviet society, an account of the growing anxiety and the hope experienced by Russian filmmakers and intelligentsia.” Ludmila Z. Pruner, Slavic and East European Journal, vol.38, No.4 (Winter 1994), 701.
Before the Fall : Soviet Cinema in the Gorbachev Years,Anna Lawton,New Academia Publishing,0974493406,History / Russia (pre- & post-Soviet Union),Russian Cinema, Cinema, Film, Russia, Russian History, Soviet Union, Gorbachev, Glasnost, Perestroika
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