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The director of twenty-five films, including My Night at Maud's (1969), which was nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award, and the editor in chief of Cahiers du cinéma from 1957 to 1963, Éric Rohmer set the terms by which people watched, made, and thought about cinema for decades. Such brilliance does not develop in a vacuum, and Rohmer cultivated a fascinating network of friends, colleagues, and industry contacts that kept his outlook sharp and propelled his work forward. Despite his privacy, he cared deeply about politics, religion, culture, and fostering a public appreciation of the medium he loved.
List of contents
The Mysteries of "le grand Momo"
1. Maurice Schérer's Youth: 1920–1945
2. From Schérer to Rohmer: 1945–1957
3. Under the
Sign of Leo: 1959–1962
4. Under the Sign of
Cahiers: 1957–1963
5. The Laboratory Period: 1963–1970
6. Four
Moral Tales: 1966–1972
7. On Germany and the Pleasure of Teaching: 1969–1994
8. In Pursuit of
Perceval: 1978–1979
9. Six
Comedies and Proverbs: 1980–1986
10. The Rohmer of the Cities and the Rohmer of the Countryside: 1973–1995
11. In the Rhythm of the Seasons: 1989–1998
12. Filming History: 1998–2004
13. A Tale of Winter: 2006–2007
14. In Pain: 2001–2010
Notes
Index
About the author
Antoine de Baecque and Noël Herpe. Translated by Steven Rendall and Lisa Neal
Summary
Éric Rohmer set the terms by which people watched, made, and thought about cinema for decades. This definitive biography vividly captures Rohmer’s life and achievements. Antoine de Baecque and Noël Herpe detail Rohmer’s close communication with his contemporaries and competitors as well as his voracious appetite for art, culture, and debate.
Additional text
De Baecque and Herpe open the door to Rohmer’s world by treating the reader as an interlocutor to whom they are excitedly relaying delightful nuggets from the life of “le grand Momo”: that time he and an actress ate cookies and listened to Tahitian music in pious silence (p. 343); the other time when the American comedian Chris Rock remade his film Chloe in the Afternoon (p. 257). In other words, reading Éric Rohmer: A Biography feels like having a long conversation--a nourishing and satisfying one.
Report
One of the most distinguished filmmakers of the French new wave.... [de Baecque and Herpe] pull off the high-wire act of appealing to both film scholars and lay readers with a combination of comprehensive research and engaging storytelling. The book will foster a renewed appreciation of a complex artist and the remarkable body of work he left behind. Publishers Weekly (starred review)
