Disaster Mon Amour

A deep--and darkly comic--dive into the nature of disasters, and the ways they shape how we think about ourselves in the world

"In this brilliant book, David Thomson tells the story of how we came to make disaster and catastrophe our best friends--how we let terror cocoon and take over our imaginations to avoid seeing the things that really frighten us. Riveting and totally original."--Adam Curtis, BBC filmmaker and political journalist

"Erudite. . . . Engaging. . . . A cri de coeur about art's struggle to keep up with reality."--Kirkus Reviews

Audiences swell with the scale of disaster; humans have always been drawn to the rumors of our own demise. In this searching treatment, noted film historian David Thomson examines iconic disasters, both real and fictional, exposing the slippage between what occurs and what we observe. With reportage, film commentary, speculation, and a liberating sense of humor, Thomson shows how digital culture commodifies disaster and sates our desire to witness chaos while suffering none of its aftereffects.

Ranging from Laurel and Hardy and Battleship Potemkin to Cormac McCarthy's The Road, and from the epic San Andreas to the intimate Don't Look Now, Thomson pulls back the curtain to reveal why we love watching disaster unfold--but only if it happens to others.

Author: David Thomson
Publisher: Yale University Press
Published: 01/25/2022
Pages: 224
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 8.60h x 5.60w x 1.00d
ISBN13: 9780300246940
ISBN10: 0300246943
BISAC Categories:
- Performing Arts | Film | History & Criticism
- Performing Arts | Television | History & Criticism
- Literary Criticism | Subjects & Themes | Historical Events

About the Author
David Thomson is one of the great living authorities on movies. He has written more than twenty books, including The New Biographical Dictionary of Film, Murder and the Movies, and biographies of David O. Selznick and Orson Welles. Thomson lives in San Francisco, CA.