[Commlist] New book: Refocus: The Films of Lawrence Kasdan

New book out now:

‘ReFocus: The Films of Lawrence Kasdan’ by Brett Davies (Edinburgh 
University Press)

https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-refocus-the-films-of-lawrence-kasdan.html

30% discount code: NEW30

Lawrence Kasdan has created some of the most influential films in 
Hollywood history. He is the screenwriter of such beloved blockbusters 
as The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981),The 
Bodyguard (1992), and The Force Awakens (2015). Simultaneously, he has 
gained critical acclaim as the director of pictures that dissect 
contemporary American society: Body Heat (1981), The Big Chill (1983), 
The Accidental Tourist (1988), and Grand Canyon (1991). Frequently 
experimenting in different genres, Kasdan’s filmography defies easy 
classification, and this book is the very first global analysis of his 
career. Taking an inclusive, interdisciplinary approach in order to 
examine all aspects of his eclectic canon, the investigation reveals 
Lawrence Kasdan as a filmmaker who has helped shape modern American 
cinema, both through his screenplays for popular classics, and as 
writer-director of films synonymous with the largest demographic in US 
history.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Part I: "I’m making this up as I go": Lawrence Kasdan and Raiders of the 
Lost Ark
1. Smith and Jones: Discourse Analysis of the Raiders of the Lost Ark 
Story Conference
2. Visual Language in the Raiders of the Lost Ark Screenplay
Part II: Kasdan the Director: Developing Style(s)
3. Body Heat: Heightened Style in the Neo-Noir
4. Classical Structure in the "Perfect Ensemble" of The Big Chill
Part III: Voice of the Largest Generation
5. Altruism and Otherness in The Big Chill, The Accidental Tourist, and 
Grand Canyon
6. Cowboys, Aliens, and Sixtysomethings: Age and Nostalgia in Kasdan’s 
Later Films
Part IV: Influences, Without and Within
7. From Noir to Kurosawa: Allusion and Homage in Lawrence Kasdan’s Films
8. Kasdan’s Collaborations: Creation and Performance
Part V: A Long Time in a Galaxy Far, Far Away
9. From Star Wars to Saga: Lawrence Kasdan and The Empire Strikes Back
10. Revenge of the Monomyth: Reclaiming the Hero’s Journey in Return of 
the Jedi
11. A New Hope in The Force Awakens
12. A Changed Man: Solo and Beyond
Part VII: An Interview with Lawrence Kasdan

Reviews:
“In this wide-ranging volume, Brett Davies offers an absorbing overview 
of Lawrence Kasdan’s career as Hollywood screenwriter and director. As 
well as examining Kasdan’s directorial style, worldview, influences, and 
collaborations, Davies' volume is also notable for　revealing Kasdan’s 
role in the formation of the Indiana Jones and Star Wars franchises.” 
Warren Buckland, Reader in Film Studies at Oxford Brookes University and 
author of Directed by Steven Spielberg.

“This is an important book that uses a holistic approach drawing on 
primary source material, interviews and film analysis to demonstrate why 
Lawrence Kasdan and his films should be taken seriously. Davies 
reinforces the importance of studying so-called non-auteur directors and 
writers, whose contributions to cinema are worthy of attention.” Claire 
Jenkins, University of Leicester.
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