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The Maltese Falcon to Body of Lies

Spies, Noirs, and Trust

by Robert Von Hallberg

Type
Studies
Subject
GenreFilm Noir
Keywords
film noir, spy films
Publishing date
2015
Publisher
University of New Mexico Press
Collection
Recencies Series: Research and Recovery in Twentieth-Century
Language
English
Size of a pocketbookRelative size of this bookSize of a large book
Relative size
Physical desc.
Paperback • 232 pages
6 ¼ x 9 ½ inches (16 x 24 cm)
ISBN
978-0-8263-5136-4
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Book Presentation:
Film noir is by definition dark, but not, this book argues, desperate. Examining twenty-eight great noir films from the earliest examples of the genre, including The Maltese Falcon, The Big Sleep, and Out of the Past, to such twenty-first-century spy films as The Good Shepherd, Syriana, and The Bourne Ultimatum, this study explores the representations of trust and commitment that noir and spy films propose. Through thorough examination, von Hallberg provides insights into the cultural history of film and our cinematic experience with the concept of trust.

About the Author:
Robert von Hallberg is a professor of literature at Claremont McKenna College. He is the author and editor of several books, including The Maltese Falcon to Body of Lies: Spies, Noirs, and Trust (UNM Press).

Press Reviews:
"A compelling and marvelously personal essay on the psychology and morals of trust in the beleaguered world of noirs and spies, a world riddled by suspicion, shame, and guilt, yet not, it appears, without hope."--Maria DiBattista, author of Fast-Talking Dames

See the publisher website: University of New Mexico Press

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