The Films of Louis Malle: A Critical Analysis

With films like Les Amants and Le Souffle au cœur, Atlantic City and Au Revoir les enfants, French writer-director Louis Malle compiled a remarkable 40-year career, creating thirty acclaimed features and documentaries. Despite this success, Malle’s work has not received the critical attention it is due—largely because for nearly thirty years, several of his films remained unavailable to the public. This is the first book-length critical study of Malle’s entire oeuvre, covering The Silent World (1956) through Vanya on 42nd Street (1994). Here, Malle’s work is approached non-theoretically on a film-by-film basis; each motion picture is examined as an individualistic, self-referential exploration of its own subjects and themes, with form and style relative to content. The darker, more provocative side of Malle’s films is also explored, and the director’s need to challenge his audiences ethically is addressed. Film analyses are supplemented by interviews with those who have worked with Malle. A bibliography of major American, French and British books and articles on Malle is included, as is a Malle filmography, including cast and crew information, running times, years of release, production company data and a list of awards and award nominations for each film.

A former film and television story editor and Boston University graduate, Nathan C. Southern now freelances as a writer. He lives in Beverly Hills, Michigan. Jacques Weissgerber lives in Brookline, Massachusetts. Research assistant Heather McBrier lives in Erie, Pennsylvania. A foreword has been provided by acclaimed screenwriter Jean-Claude Carrière.