A Sudden Flicker of Light

There are few greater film lovers than David Thomson, who over the course of fifty years has built up a reputation as one of the wisest and most penetrating voices on the art form. But Thomson is also aware of the dark side of this art to which he has devoted his career, and here he makes a full reckoning with it. In this book he argues that, in a profound way, the movies have been a destructive force—responsible for creating an alternate reality and fantasyland that has only deepened the isolation and disconnection of our society over the course of a century. Thomson explores the high and low points of film history with his usual brilliant insight—sharp and arresting readings of movies from Metropolis to Rear Window to Anora can be found in these pages. He also shows the ways in which our love of voyeurism and villainy, and the passivity the movies engender, have led to a coarsening not just of a medium, but of the larger culture, including our political life. A bracing and polemical book, this is a powerful capstone to a distinguished career.

From cinema’s most distinguished historian and critic comes a masterful one-volume look at the whole sweep of movie history. Perfect for fans of iconic films and modern classics, from Citizen Kane to Anora.