Jacques Tourneur: The Cinema of Nightfall - Tapa dura

"the first in-depth exploration of Tourneurs entire career -detailed -informative -immensely readable -insightful -comprehensive -essential -well

At least three of director Jacques Tourneurs films--Cat People, I Walked with a Zombie and The Leopard Man--are recognized as horror classics. Yet his contributions to these films are often minimized by scholars, with most of the credit going to the films producer, Val Lewton. A detailed examination of the directors full body of work reveals that those elements most evident in the Tourneur-Lewton collaborations--the lack of monsters and the stylized use of suggested violence--are equally apparent in Tourneurs films before and after his work with Lewton. Mystery and sensuality were hallmarks of his style, and he possessed a highly artistic visual and aural style. This insightful critical study examines each of Tourneurs films, as well as his extensive work on MGM shorts (1936-1942) and in television. What emerges is evidence of a highly coherent directorial style that runs throughout Tourneurs works.