Few contemporary directors are more closely associated with “style” and “genre” than Quentin Tarantino and the Coen Brothers. But where did they come from? And whose films were they watching? This course uses their work to investigate the art they embrace, both literary and filmic, from Screwball Comedy to New Wave and from Homer to Elmore Leonard. We’ll also look at some of the theories relevant to their work: genre, auteur, postmodernism, psychoanalysis. Films covered will include Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where art Thou? and No Country for Old Men. Hey. The Dude abides.
