Description
Cary Grant famously said, "Everyone wants to be Cary Grant--even I want to be Cary Grant." His development of that star image required serious work, but he also played a variety of characters requiring special performing talents. He was equally skilled in the screwball farce The Awful Truth, the dark thriller Notorious, the romantic melodrama An Affair to Remember, the domestic comedy Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, and the social drama None But the Lonely Heart. In a lively style accompanied by many illustrations, James Naremore analyzes these and other of Grant's best films, demonstrating that he had exceptional talent and greater range than usually recognized.
About the Author
James Naremore is author of many books on film, among them The Magic World of Orson Welles, Acting in the Cinema, and More Than Night: Film Noir in Its Contexts.
Reviews
James Naremore, our foremost expert on film acting, has given us a kaleidoscopic survey of the allure of Hollywood's dazzling prince. Always sensitive to each film's historical context and production circumstances, Naremore analyzes how Grant deployed gesture, expression, posture, vocal delivery-all the tools in the actor's kit-to generate unforgettable crazy comedy and somber drama. His supple crouch and pivot, his unpredictable facial reactions, and the fine shading he brings to a line or a look come to resemble the signature brushstrokes of a master painter. Not least, Naremore shows how Grant generously calibrated his performance to blend with the contributions of other players. Some Versions of Cary Grant is a model of nuanced, witty analysis and an admiring appreciation of one of cinema's greatest artists * David Bordwell, Jacques Ledoux Emeritus Professor of Film Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison *
James Naremore's rare and dazzling ability to analyze the subtleties of screen acting makes this study of what he shows to be the surprisingly rich persona of Cary Grant an engrossing, enlightening, and entertaining read. * Joseph McBride, author of biographies of FrankCapra, John Ford, and Steven Spielberg and critical studies of Orson Welles, Ernst Lubitsch, and Billy Wilder *
Book Information
ISBN 9780197566374
Author James Naremore
Format Hardback
Page Count 224
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 454g
Dimensions(mm) 159mm * 241mm * 17mm
About the Author
James Naremore is author of many books on film, among them The Magic World of Orson Welles, Acting in the Cinema, and More Than Night: Film Noir in Its Contexts.
Reviews
James Naremore, our foremost expert on film acting, has given us a kaleidoscopic survey of the allure of Hollywood's dazzling prince. Always sensitive to each film's historical context and production circumstances, Naremore analyzes how Grant deployed gesture, expression, posture, vocal delivery-all the tools in the actor's kit-to generate unforgettable crazy comedy and somber drama. His supple crouch and pivot, his unpredictable facial reactions, and the fine shading he brings to a line or a look come to resemble the signature brushstrokes of a master painter. Not least, Naremore shows how Grant generously calibrated his performance to blend with the contributions of other players. Some Versions of Cary Grant is a model of nuanced, witty analysis and an admiring appreciation of one of cinema's greatest artists * David Bordwell, Jacques Ledoux Emeritus Professor of Film Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison *
James Naremore's rare and dazzling ability to analyze the subtleties of screen acting makes this study of what he shows to be the surprisingly rich persona of Cary Grant an engrossing, enlightening, and entertaining read. * Joseph McBride, author of biographies of FrankCapra, John Ford, and Steven Spielberg and critical studies of Orson Welles, Ernst Lubitsch, and Billy Wilder *
Book Information
ISBN 9780197566374
Author James Naremore
Format Hardback
Page Count 224
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 454g
Dimensions(mm) 159mm * 241mm * 17mm
