Craziness and Carnival in Neo-Noir Chinese Cinema

by Harry H. Kuoshu

Overview

Craziness and Carnival in Neo-Noir Chinese Cinema offers an in-depth discussion of the “stone phenomenon” in Chinese film production and cinematic discourses triggered by the extraordinary success of the 2006 low-budget film, Crazy Stone. Surveying the nuanced implications of the film noir genre, Harry Kuoshu argues that global neo noir maintains a mediascape of references, borrowings, and re-workings and explores various social and cultural issues that constitute this Chinese episode of neo noir. Combining literary explorations of carnival, postmodernism, and post-socialism, Kuoshu advocates for neo noir as a cultural phenomenon that connects filmmakers, film critics, and film audiences rather than an industrial genre.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783030730802
Publisher:	Springer International Publishing
Publication date:	04/21/2021
Series:	Chinese Literature and Culture in the World
Edition description:	1st ed. 2021
Pages:	158
Product dimensions:	5.83(w) x 8.27(h) x 0.00(d)

About the Author

Harry H. Kuoshu is Herring Endowed Chair in Asian Studies and Film Studies at Furman University, USA, where he teaches courses on Chinese film, literature, culture and language. In addition to scholarly articles, he is the author of Lightness of Being in China (1999), Celluloid China (2002), and Metro Movies: Cinematic Urbanism in Post-Mao China (2011).

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction: Crazy Stone Phenomenon and Chinese Neo-Noir Comedies.- Chapter 2: Prelude: Rehumanization Craziness and Traditional Noir.- Chapter 3: Discourses: Crazy Stone Dropped in a “Postmodern” Pond.- Chapter 4: Films: Because of Crazy Stone.- Chapter 5: Dual Retrievals of Cinematic Craziness: A Coda.