Justin Vicari

Driven mad by modern life, Georges Vasseur leaves for a rest cure, where he encounters corrupt politicians, amnesiac coquettes, cheerfully sadistic killers, imperialist generals, and quack psychiatrists. Hypocrites are eternal, and not much has changed since Mirbeau wrote this acid portrait of his era.

"In startling new readings of Breton, Bataille, Cocteau, Artaud, Crevel and others, Justin Vicari examines intersections between surrealism and mental illness, deploying an interdisciplinary approach, including aesthetic theory, radical politics, and psychoanalysis. Of interest, the representation of the ideal woman as not only sexually available but mentally ill, a hysteric muse representing "authenticity" lost in modern life"--Provided by publisher.

"This book provides a cultural, historical and philosophical study of Japanese film, from the silent era to the present, focusing on its expansive consciousness. It examines masterpieces by Yasujir; Ozu, Kenji Mizoguchi, Nagisa Oshima and other directors, discussing their influence on the Japanese culture of esoteric Zen Buddhism and relating them to recent neuroscientific theories of brain trauma"--

"In recent decades, male bisexuality has become a recurring topic in international cinema, as filmmakers and their works challenge our ideas about sexual freedom and identity. In all of these films, more than a dozen of which are covered here, bisexuality is treated both as an actual practice and a complex metaphor for a number of things"--Provided by publisher.