Documenting the Documentary: Close Readings of Documentary Film and Video, New and Expanded Edition (Contemporary Approaches to Film and Media Studies)

Review

"This volume arrives as a genuine gift. Anyone seeking to study the subtleties and complexities of the documentary film will want to see as many of the best examples of this form as possible. And anyone who sees a good range of outstanding examples will want to know what others who have taken the time and effort to examine them closely can reveal about why they possess the power and fascination that they do. This new and expanded edition of Documenting the Documentary gathers together an exemplary set of essays that do exactly that. It is a great boon to teacher and student alike."―Bill Nichols, from the foreword"It provide[s] a thorough and flexible set of teaching texts for a senior undergraduate course on documentary film...It works as a teaching anthology because the writing is clear and accessible to senior undergraduate students, and because so many essays consist of textual analysis that engages larger cultural contexts and are explicit in their methodology."―Canadian Journal of Film Studies"Grant and Sloniowski have assembled a very fine collection, representing the best current scholarly writing on documentary. Since the anthology covers the full breadth of documentary films from Nanook of the North to Paris Is Burning, it consititutes a kind of critical history as well. It will be a gold mine for teachers and students and in many disciplines―as both reference and text book."―John Hess, University of Maryland"There is something for everyone in this text. . . . A complex collection of critical essays, a wonderful reference text, and an enjoyable read for the cinephile."―Journal of Film and Video"Strongly recommended for students and scholars at all levels."―CHOICE"The book is an interesting collection, and in its attention to close readings and details, it presents an alternative to many of the other documentary anthologies presently available."―Jane Roscoe, Screening the Past"The extremely broad range of documentary films and videos―from Nanook of the North to Paris Is Burning―makes this an extremely useful and instructive text for several communication courses."―Communications Booknotes Quarterly"Many of the essays are conceptually rich; all are readable. This impressive collection, strongly recommended for students and scholars at all levels, is an important addition to scholarship on documentary film."―K. S. Nolley, CHOICE"A gold mine for teachers and students and in many disciplines―as both reference and text book."―John Hess, University of Maryland"If I was suddenly asked to teach a History of the Documentary class and told that my budget would allow for the use of just one textbook, Documenting the Documentary: Close Readings of Documentary Film and Video is the one I would select. . . With this book as our guide, we will come out at the end of this exploration with "a profound appreciation of the aesthetic complexity of the documentary form."―Cynthia Close, Documentary Magazine

Review

"This volume arrives as a genuine gift. Anyone seeking to study the subtleties and complexities of the documentary film will want to see as many of the best examples of this form as possible. And anyone who sees a good range of outstanding examples will want to know what others who have taken the time and effort to examine them closely can reveal about why they possess the power and fascination that they do. This new and expanded edition of gathers together an exemplary set of essays that do exactly that. It is a great boon to teacher and student alike."—Bill Nichols, "It provide[s] a thorough and flexible set of teaching texts for a senior undergraduate course on documentary film...It works as a teaching anthology because the writing is clear and accessible to senior undergraduate students, and because so many essays consist of textual analysis that engages larger cultural contexts and are explicit in their methodology."— "Grant and Sloniowski have assembled a very fine collection, representing the best current scholarly writing on documentary. Since the anthology covers the full breadth of documentary films from to it consititutes a kind of critical history as well. It will be a gold mine for teachers and students and in many disciplines—as both reference and text book."—John Hess, "There is something for everyone in this text. . . . A complex collection of critical essays, a wonderful reference text, and an enjoyable read for the cinephile."—Journal of Film and Video "Strongly recommended for students and scholars at all levels."—CHOICE "The book is an interesting collection, and in its attention to close readings and details, it presents an alternative to many of the other documentary anthologies presently available."—Jane Roscoe, "The extremely broad range of documentary films and videos—from to —makes this an extremely useful and instructive text for several communication courses."—Communications Booknotes Quarterly "Many of the essays are conceptually rich; all are readable. This impressive collection, strongly recommended for students and scholars at all levels, is an important addition to scholarship on documentary film."—K. S. Nolley, "A gold mine for teachers and students and in many disciplines—as both reference and text book."—John Hess, "If I was suddenly asked to teach a History of the Documentary class and told that my budget would allow for the use of just one textbook, is the one I would select. . . With this book as our guide, we will come out at the end of this exploration with "a profound appreciation of the aesthetic complexity of the documentary form."—Cynthia Close,