The Radical Faces of Godard and Bertolucci (Contemporary Approaches to Film and Media Series)

From the radical 1960s through the neo-conservative 1980s and into the early 1990s, the provocative cinematic careers of French director Jean-Luc Godard and Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci have captured the imagination of filmgoers and critics alike. Although their films differ greatly-Godard produces highly cerebral and theoretical work while Bertolucci creates films with more spectacle and emotionalism-their careers have sparked lively discussion and debate, mostly centered around the notion of an Oedipal struggle between them. The Radical Faces of Godard and Bertolucci, however, provides new insight into their relationship by specifically addressing their influences upon each other. This careful analysis of their films pays special attention to the more recent and often critically neglected films, and locates their work within the cultural critiques of feminism, postmodernism, and multiculturalism.