{"product_id":"the-fatal-alliance-a-century-of-war-on-film-isbn-9780063041417","title":"The Fatal Alliance: A Century of War on Film","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e“A marvelous bombshell of a book, by one of our most formidably knowledgeable and insightful writers on film, it is filled with surprises and witty asides. Though Thomson is quick to pounce on the hypocrisies and historical omissions of some of these war movies, there is nothing compromised about his own daredevil judgments. We are in the hands of a master critic\/essayist.”—Phillip Lopate\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom one of the greatest living writers on film, a magisterial look at a century of battle depicted on screen, and a meditation on the twisted relationship between war and the movies.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eThe Fatal Alliance\u003c\/em\u003e the acclaimed film critic David Thomson offers us one of his most provocative books yet—a rich, arresting, and troubling study of that most beloved genre: the war movie. It is not a standard history or survey of war films, although Thomson turns his typically piercing eye to many favorites—from \u003cem\u003eAll Quiet on the Western Front \u003c\/em\u003eto \u003cem\u003eThe Bridge on the River Kwai\u003c\/em\u003e to \u003cem\u003eSaving Private Ryan\u003c\/em\u003e. But \u003cem\u003eThe Fatal Alliance \u003c\/em\u003edoes much more, exploring how war and cinema in the twentieth century became inextricably linked. Movies had only begun to exist by the beginning of World War I, yet in less than a century, had transformed civilian experience of war—and history itself—for millions around the globe. This reality is the moral conundrum at the heart of Thomson’s book. War movies bring both prestige and are so often box office blockbusters; but is there something problematic at how much moviegoers enjoy depictions of violence on a grand scale, such as \u003cem\u003eApocalypse Now, Black Hawk Down, \u003c\/em\u003eor even \u003cem\u003eStar Wars\u003c\/em\u003e? And what does this truth say about us, our culture, and our changing sense of warfare and the past? \u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“[\u003cem\u003eA Light in the Dark\u003c\/em\u003e] is highly personal, unapologetically opinionated, intermittently whimsical, charmingly idiosyncratic and above all deeply impassioned. It reads, at times, like a love letter to the art that has moved Thomson most. Or a eulogy dedicated to a tradition, and indeed a world, he fears may be on the verge of disappearing.” \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eTroy Jollimore, Washington Post, on A Light in the Dark\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Insightful, fascinating, and educational . . . . The author's examination of why these types of films continue to resonate, despite their bleak and catastrophic subject matter, is a must read.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePopCultureGuy\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“With each new book from David Thomson . . . I have the same sensation I have when I enter a dark movie theatre: Anticipation, delight, curiosity . . . . a brilliant writer who writes better about film than almost everybody else . . . . not just a book about how films have treated war, but a fascinating, coruscating study of how films have shaped our minds and feelings about something that terrifies us, grips us . . . . What can I say? David Thomson, you’ve done it again.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eJames Grissom\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Interesting and thought-provoking . . . . Insightful and important.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"One of the finest living stylists in the English language.\" \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e“This stellar book is about how filmmakers simplify the bloody business of war and why audiences buy into it. Readers who enjoy vigorous arguments and good writing will love this book.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“\u003cem\u003eA Light in the Dark\u003c\/em\u003e took over my life for two days. It is a summary of cinema and a requiem. Love and sadness. A prodigious masterwork.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eJohn Boorman, director, on A Light in the Dark\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A marvelous bombshell of a book, by one of our most formidably knowledgeable and insightful writers on film, it is filled with surprises and witty asides. Though Thomson is quick to pounce on the hypocrisies and historical omissions of some of these war movies, there is nothing compromised about his own daredevil judgments. We are in the hands of a master critic\/essayist.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePhillip Lopate\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Praise the gods for giving us a writer with a deep moral sense and an epigrammatic prose style who writes as exquisitely about war as he does about film. Thomson's book brims with striking observations and provocative readings of crucial films, the great and the forgotten, from \u003cem\u003eAll Quiet on the Western Front \u003c\/em\u003eto \u003cem\u003eApocalypse Now\u003c\/em\u003e to \u003cem\u003eBlack Hawk Down\u003c\/em\u003e and scores more. \u003cem\u003eThe Fatal Alliance\u003c\/em\u003e is an absorbing, uproarious and essential book -- about war, about film, about us. And my God, the man can write!\"  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMark Danner, author of Stripping Bare the Body: Politics Violence War and Spiral: Trapped in the Forever War\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Thomson’s own genius is his ability to remain one of the leading authorities on cinematic history, without shying away from the controversial. Cinephiles seeking provocative arguments will appreciate his work.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Persistently, thoughtfully questioning what filmmakers intend, what conversations they’re accidentally stepping into and how we as moviegoers are implicated as war-story consumers. Thomson is exceedingly well-equipped for the job . . . . bracing and surprising.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Harper","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44890350059749,"sku":"NP9780063041417","price":35.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780063041417.jpg?v=1730233090","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/the-fatal-alliance-a-century-of-war-on-film-isbn-9780063041417","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}