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Acknowledgments
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xiii TheessaysonTourneurandMizoguchiappearedintheiroriginal forminFilmCommentandarereprintedhere,revisedand (inthecaseofthelatter)considerablyextended,withthepermission ofitseditors.Othersections,writtenforthebook,have beenserializedinFilmComment,andtheessayonWelleshas appearedintranslationinPositif. “LevinandtheJam”developedoutoflecturesgivenforthe OpenUniversityatYorkduringthesummersof1973and1974. Iwouldliketopaytributetothestimulatingandintenselycreative atmosphereofOpenUniversitysummerschools. Manyoftheessayshavedevelopedoutoflecturesgivenduring thepastfiveyearsatQueen’sUniversity,Canada,atBerkshire CollegeofEducationandattheUniversityofWarwick. Theirfinalform,therefore,hasbeeninfluencedbydiscussions withcolleaguesandstudentsinwaystoointricateandoftentoo indirectfordetailedacknowledgmentofdebtstobepossible. PeterHarcourt,VictorPerkins,DouglasPye,GaryMcCallum, DaveElliott,JoyceNelson,andTomRyanhaveallbeenimportant tomeduringthisperiod,byvirtueofencouragementsor argument;butI’msurethislistisfarfromexhaustive.Ihave triedinthisbooktobecompletelymyself,asaresultofwhich Ihavebecomemuchmoreawareofthemultiplicityofinfluences ,tangibleandintangible,bywhichtheselfisdetermined atanygiventime. Iwanttoacknowledge,withoutirony,aparticulardebtto theeditorsandcriticsofScreenmagazine,whohaveprovided, overthepastfewyears,sosustainedandformidableachallenge ACKNOWLEDGMENTS totraditionalaesthetics.Ifmyworkhasdevelopedduringthis period—andIthinkithas—thatdevelopmenthasbeeninlarge measure a response to the challenge. Nor is the debt merely negative:Ibelievethereaderwillrepeatedlydetecttracesofa positiveinfluence,evenifIhaveusedideasandinterestsderived fromScreeninwayswithwhichitswritersmightnotwishtobe associated. I particularly want to thank The Other Cinema for their generosityinrepeatedlylendingme,freeofcharge,printsof Godard’srecentfilms.Theyknewthatmyattitudetothefilms wasnotlikelytobeunequivocallyfavourable,andIinterpret theirassistanceastestifyingtoadisinterestedconcernforthe developmentoffilmculture;besidesthat,fewdistributorsin myexperiencearesowelcomingandfriendly. Finally,nothinginthebookwouldbequitethesamewereit notformyunionwithJohnAnderson,whohasaffectedevery essayateverystage,fromthefirsttentativeformulationofideas tothedetailoftheirfinalexpression. xiv acknowledgments ...