David Fincher: Films That Scar

This book places Quentin Tarantino at the heart of Hollywood, showing a director who speaks through film, who examines the world beyond the movies in a way few have previously attempted, and at which fewer still have succeeded.

This incisive book provides an in-depth critical and biographical study of the artistic range of film director Gus Van Sant.

This revealing study looks at the influences and creative impulses that shape one of today's most progressive, thoughtful filmmakers.

There is a growing critical consensus that David Fincher is one of the most talented filmmakers in contemporary Hollywood. He has reanimated the crime genre, created films that make audiences question the boundaries between art and reality, and challenged Hollywood's crushing commercial drive for narrative closure. What motivates this exceptionally talented stylist?

David Fincher is one of the most exciting filmmakers working in Hollywood today. He has produced a string of groundbreaking films that have achieved both critical and commercial success, while constantly challenging audiences to rethink their expectations of generic boundaries. David Fincher: Films That Scar is the first truly analytical work on the films of this mysterious and complex filmmaker.

This insightful book analyzes all of Fincher's feature films, as well as examples of his commercials and pop videos, tracing key influences that include his background in special effects. It considers how he creates roles for strong women, how he has extended the detective genre, and how he adapts cult texts. The book also questions whether Fincher's films, famous for their downbeat endings and "dark" visual style, are really bleak or just part of an unconventional approach to filmmaking. In the end, readers will understand the development of Fincher's individual films and appreciate how the films relate closely to each other.

Mark Browing, PhD, has taught film studies in a number of schools in England and was senior lecturer in education in Bath. He is the author of David Cronenberg: Author or Filmmaker? and Stephen King on the Big Screen. He currently works in Germany where he is writing books on Danny Boyle and Wes Anderson.