East-West Cinema

This course is an introduction to intellectually stimulating cinematic works, discourses, and cultures of the post-Second World War period. With the recognition that Hollywood, like the United States of America, dominates postwar global interactions, we will focus instead on the film works of four major Asian and European directors—Vittorio De Sica (Italy), Akira Kurosawa (Japan), Satyajit Ray (India), and Michael Haneke (Austria)—who together represent a noteworthy range of cinematic poetics and politics.