Heir apparent to the legendary French critic and theorist André Bazin, Serge Daney (1944–1992) carried the torch of French film criticism to a new generation of cinéphiles with his insightful writing for Cahiers du cinema (for which he served as editor-in-chief from 1975 to 1981, ushering in a significant era of post-auterist criticism), for the newspaper Libération, and at the influential journal he founded, Trafic. Despite his canonical status in European film circles, his reputation abroad has been largely constrained—in no small part because his work has yet to be translated into English. Never a victim of fashion, Daney was a champion of both classical Hollywood genre films and promising new directors from France and abroad. This program offers a sampling of some of the critic’s most beloved films as well as a rare documentary in which Daney provides testimony to his passion for film and the culture at large. Each evening’s program will be introduced by a local film historian, scholar, or critic.
Heir apparent to the legendary French critic and theorist André Bazin, Serge Daney (1944–1992) carried the torch of French film criticism to a new generation of cinéphiles with his insightful writing for Cahiers du cinema (for which he served as editor-in-chief from 1975 to 1981, ushering in a significant era of post-auterist criticism), for the newspaper Libération, and at the influential journal he founded, Trafic. Despite his canonical status in European film circles, his reputation abroad has been largely constrained—in no small part because his work has yet to be translated into English. Never a victim of fashion, Daney was a champion of both classical Hollywood genre films and promising new directors from France and abroad. This program offers a sampling of some of the critic’s most beloved films as well as a rare documentary in which Daney provides testimony to his passion for film and the culture at large. Each evening’s program will be introduced by a local film historian, scholar, or critic.