Description: The author of "The Return of Martin Guerre" and "Women on the Margins" now tackles the large issue of how the moving picture industry has portrayed slaves in five motion pictures: "Spartacus" (1960), "Burn!" (1969), "The Last Supper" (1976), "Amistad" (1997), and "Beloved" (1998). 10 halftones.
Brief description: Natalie Zemon Davis was a preeminent social and cultural historian of early modern Europe. Her many books include Women on the Margins, Fiction in the Archives, and Trickster Travels. The recipient of a National Humanities Medal, she taught at Brown University, the University of Toronto, the University of California, Berkeley, and Princeton University, where she was Henry Charles Lea Professor of History.
Review Quotes: Here, slavery itself serves as a springboard for a larger consideration: respect for the historical record vs. a need for dramatic effect. Davis argues convincingly for the historical film as a source of 'thought experiments' about the past rather than pure presentation of fact.--Anthony J. Adam "Library Journal"