Dan Shaw writes intelligently and insightfully about the intersection between film and philosophy. This book is a treat not only for scholars but for everybody who loves film. -- Sander Lee, Professor of communication and Philosophy, Keene State College, USA, and author of 'Woody Allens Angst' Juxtaposing a set of well-known films with the theories of the central Existentialist philosophers from Arthur Schopenhauer to Simone de Beauvoir, Movies with Meaning explains not just how films raise significant philosophical issues, but also the ongoing relevance of films to understanding Existentialist thought. Anyone interested in Existentialism should read Shaws insightful accounts of films such as Hud and Missing in order to see how these films shed light on this important tradition of philosophical thought. -- Thomas E. Wartenberg, Research Professor of Philosophy, Mount Holyoke College, USA A wonderful introduction to existentialism and many of the excellent movies that embody this powerful current of thought. With incisive overviews of key existentialist and critical thinkers (Kierkegaard, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Sartre, de Beauvoir, Camus, and Foucault), coupled with illuminating philosophical discussions of contemporary films across a range of genres (Blade Runner, The Thin Red Line, Waking Life, Husbands and Wives, Michael Collins, and Revolutionary Road), Shaws Movies with Meaning offers an engaging and exciting foray into the world of film and philosophy for anyone interested in existential questions today. * Robert Sinnerbrink, Senior Lecturer in Philosophy, Macquarie University, Australia * In this engagingly written survey of existentialism, Shaw (communication and philosophy, Lock Haven Univ.) links central concepts from several key thinkers (Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Sartre, Camus, Beauvoir, and Foucault) with a dozen different films, in each case explaining how the film both illustrates and illuminates what the philosopher had in mind Shaws writing is clear and his comments are insightful. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers. * CHOICE *
