Unraveling French Cinema provides a much needed introduction to the complexities of French film for students, cineastes, and the movie-loving public. Kline analyzes seven cinematic arenas, each chosen to present the reader with an experience of reading a film for plot and a particular definition of what it means to make a film.

Unraveling French Cinema provides a much needed introduction to the complexities of French film for students, cineastes, and the movie-loving public. * Looks at the differences between French and American national cinema * Explores how French directors shape their films around two potentially divergent goals: the narration of a story and an elaboration of some theory about film itself. * Demystifies the "difficulty" of French cinema, allowing the American movie-goer to enjoy films that are too often perplexing at a first viewing. * Offers extended analyses of classic, New Wave, and contemporary French films--including L'Atalante, Adele H., The Rules of the Game, and Cache.