BRITISH GENRES

In this unprecedented survey of British cinema from the 1930s to the New Wave of the 1960s Marcia Landy explores how cinematic representation and social history converge Landy focuses on the genre film a product of British mass culture often dismissed by critics as unrealistic showing that in England such cinema subtly dramatized unresolved cultural conflicts and was in fact more popular than critics have claimed Her discussion covers hundreds of worksincluding historical films films of empire war films melodrama comedy sciencefiction horror and social problem filmsand reveals their relation to changing attitudes toward class race national identity sexuality and gender Landy begins by describing the status and value of genre theory then provides a history of British film production that illuminates the politics and personalities connected with the major studios In vivid accounts of the films within each genre she analyzes styles codes and conventions to show how the films negotiate history fantasy and lived experience Throughout Landy creates a dynamic sense of genre and of how the genres shape not merely reflect cultural conflictsOriginally published in 1991The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest printondemand technology to again make available previously outofprint books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905