William Rothman 
Tuitions and Intuitions 
Essays at the Intersection of Film Criticism and Philosophy

William Rothman has long been considered one of the seminal figures in the field of film-philosophy. From his landmark book
Hitchcock: The Murderous Gaze, now in its second edition, to the essays collected here in
Tuitions and Intuitions, Rothman has been guided by two intuitions: first, that his kind of film criticism is philosophy; and second, that such a marriage of criticism and philosophy has an essential part to play in the serious study of film. In this book, he aspires, borrowing a formulation from Emerson, to ‘pay the tuition’ for these intuitions.



Thoughtful, philosophically sophisticated, and provocative, the essays included here address a wide range of films, including classical Hollywood movies; the work of ‘auteur’ directors like Alfred Hitchcock, George Cukor, Yasujirō Ozu, and Woody Allen; performances by John Barrymore and James Stewart; unconventional works by Jean Genet, Chantal Akerman, Terrence Malick, and the Dardenne brothers; the television series
Justified; and documentaries by Jean Rouch, Ross Mc Elwee, and Robert Gardner. All the essays address questions of philosophical significance and, taken together, manifest Rothman’s lifelong commitment when writing about a film, to respect the film’s own ideas; to remain open to the film’s ways of expressing its ideas; and to let the film help teach him how to view it, how to think about it, and how to discover what he has at heart to say about it.

विषयसूची

Acknowledgments

Preface



Introduction: How John the Baptist Kept His Head, or My Life in Film Philosophy




Part I. A Philosophical Perspective



1. Why Not Realize Your World? William Rothman interviewed by Jeffrey Crouse



2. Silence and Stasis



3. Film and Modernity



4. André Bazin as Cavellian Realist



5. What Becomes of the Camera in the World on Film?




Part II. Studies in Criticism



6. “I Never Thought I Should Sink So Low as to Become an Actor”: John Barrymore in
Twentieth Century



7. “I Look Up, I Look Down”: James Stewart in
Vertigo



8. Hats Off for George Cukor!



9. Woody Allen’s New York



10. Blood is Thicker than Water: The Family in Hitchcock



11. Space and Speech in the Films of Yasujiro¯ Ozu



12. Romance, Eroticism, and the Camera’s Gaze in Jean Genet’s
Un Chant d’amour



13. Face to Face with Chantal Akerman



14. Precious Memories in Philosophy and Film



15. Seeing the Light in
The Tree of Life



16. A Film That Is Also a Handshake: Philosophy in the Films of the Dardenne Brothers



17. Justifying
Justified



18. Documentary Film in Boston in the 1970s and 1980s



19. Sometimes Daddies Don’t Talk about Things Like That: Ross Mc Elwee’s
Bright Leaves



20. Jean Rouch as Film Artist:
Turu and Bitti,
Funeral at Bongo: The Old Anaï (1848–1972),
Ambara Dama



21. Dancing with Gardner: Robert Gardner’s Films on Art



22.
Dead Birds Re-Encountered: A Journey of Return



Notes

References

Index

लेखक के बारे में

William Rothman is Professor of Cinema and Interactive Media at the University of Miami. His previous books include, as author,
Hitchcock: The Murderous Gaze; as editor,
Cavell on Film and
Three Documentary Filmmakers: Errol Morris, Ross Mc Elwee, and Jean Rouch; and as coeditor, with Rebecca Meyers and Charles Warren,
Looking with Robert Gardner, all published by SUNY Press.