Description:
1. Ernst Lubitsch is considered one of the most inventive filmmakers of early Hollywood. He is especially well known for creating the genre of sophisticated comedy.
2. This book focuses on the particularly Jewish characteristics of Lubitsch's films as well as their transnationality. It is informed by both German and German Jewish studies as well as film studies and feminist/queer studies.
3. Rick McCormick is a senior scholar of German with expertise in film. This book will find audiences with film and Jewish studies scholars.
Review Quotes:
"The author speaks with a distinct voice and pursues consistently his own, original argument. I can imagine how after reading any chapter, some readers may be inspired to view Lubitsch's films again and test Rick McCormick's theses."--Mila Ganeva, author of Women in Weimar Fashion: Discourses and Displays in German Culture
"The chief argument of the book is that Ernst Lubitsch's life and career should be understood through the lens of his transnational Jewish background. Rick McCormick brings an impressive level of scholarly erudition and critical acumen to the project."--Noah Isenberg, author of 'We'll Always Have Casablanca': The Life, Legend, and Afterlife of Hollywood's Most Beloved Movie
"Given its emphasis on identites sexual and ethinc, queerness and Jewishness, and its power to reveal the resistant potential of a mainstream artist, McCormick's work is ideally conceived for today's intellectual priorities."--Alan Lareua, University of Wisconsin-Oskosh, Monatshefte