James Ursini (born May 10, 1947) is an American writer living in Los Angeles, and an educator. He received his master's degree in

Theater Arts Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and a Doctorate in Film in 1975 from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. He was born on May 10, 1947, in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. He has written and/or edited over a dozen books—most with

Alain Silver Alain Silver is a US film producer, director, and screenwriter; music producer; film critic, film historian, DVD commentator, author and editor of books and essays on film topics, especially film noir, the samurai film, and horror films. Filmmak ...

and two with

Dominique Mainon Dominique Mainon (April 4, 1970 – January 25, 2012) was an American author, screenwriter and filmmaker living in Laguna Beach, California. Mainon was also noted as a transhumanist and futurist. Speaking on a radio interview with Dr. James Hugh ...

(''The Modern Amazons: Warrior Women On-Screen'' and ''Cinema of Obsession: Erotic Fixation and Love Gone Wrong in the Movies''). He is noted for his work on

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

with

(''The Noir Style,'' ''The Film Noir Reader'' series, ''Film Noir,'' ''LA Noir,'' etc.) He has also done director studies on

David Lean Sir David Lean (25 March 190816 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Widely considered one of the most important figures in British cinema, Lean directed the large-scale epics ''The Bridge on the River ...

Robert Aldrich Robert Burgess Aldrich (August 9, 1918 – December 5, 1983) was an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. His notable credits include '' Vera Cruz'' (1954), ''Kiss Me Deadly'' (1955), ''The Big Knife'' (1955), '' Autumn L ...

Preston Sturges Preston Sturges (; born Edmund Preston Biden; August 29, 1898 – August 6, 1959) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film director. In 1941, he won the Academy Awards, Oscar for Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, Best Origina ...

, and

Roger Corman Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American film director, producer, and actor. He has been called "The Pope of Pop Cinema" and is known as a trailblazer in the world of independent film. Many of Corman's films are based on works t ...

and numerous DVD commentaries for Warner Bros., 20th Century-Fox, and the Criterion Collection. He has also produced several features and short documentaries as well as appearing in documentaries on film noir.

DVD commentaries

*''

Boomerang A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning b ...

'', with film historian

*'' Brute Force'', with Alain Silver *''

Call Northside 777 ''Call Northside 777'' is a 1948 reality-based newspaper drama directed by Henry Hathaway. The film parallels the true story of a Chicago reporter who proved that a man jailed for murder was wrongly convicted 11 years before. James Stewart stars ...

'', with Alain Silver *''

Crossfire A crossfire (also known as interlocking fire) is a military term for the siting of weapons (often automatic weapons such as assault rifles or sub-machine guns) so that their arcs of fire overlap. This tactic came to prominence in World War I. ...

'', with Alain Silver, plus audio interview excerpts of director

Edward Dmytryk Edward Dmytryk (September 4, 1908 – July 1, 1999) was an American film director. He was known for his 1940s films noir, noir films and received an Academy Award for Best Director, Oscar nomination for Best Director for ''Crossfire (film), Cros ...

*''

The Dark Corner ''The Dark Corner'' is a 1946 American crime film, crime film noir directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Lucille Ball, Clifton Webb, William Bendix and Mark Stevens (actor), Mark Stevens.. The film was not a commercial success but has since been ...

'', with Alain Silver *''

Dark Victory ''Dark Victory'' is a 1939 American melodrama film directed by Edmund Goulding, starring Bette Davis, and featuring George Brent, Humphrey Bogart, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Ronald Reagan, Henry Travers, and Cora Witherspoon. The screenplay by Ca ...

'', with

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...

film critic

Paul Clinton Paul Clinton (1953 – January 30, 2006) was an American film critic. He served as CNN.com film critic for 20 years. He was the co-founder of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA). Clinton was born in Columbus, Ohio and attended Ohio St ...

*''

Hobson's Choice A Hobson's choice is a free choice in which only one thing is actually offered. The term is often used to describe an illusion that multiple choices are available. The most well known Hobson's choice is "I'll give you a choice: take it or leave ...

'', with Alain Silver *''

House of Bamboo ''House of Bamboo'' is a 1955 American film noir shot in CinemaScope and DeLuxe Color, directed and co-written by Samuel Fuller, and starring Robert Ryan. The other co-screenwriter was Harry Kleiner. The cinematographer was Joseph MacDonald. Plot ...

'', with Alain Silver *''

Invisible Stripes ''Invisible Stripes'' is a 1939 Warner Bros. crime film starring George Raft as a gangster unable to go straight after returning home from prison. The movie was directed by Lloyd Bacon and also features William Holden, Jane Bryan and Humphrey ...

'', with Alain Silver *'' Kiss of Death'', with Alain Silver *''

Lady in the Lake ''Lady in the Lake'' is a 1947 American film noir starring Robert Montgomery, Audrey Totter, Lloyd Nolan, Tom Tully, Leon Ames and Jayne Meadows. An adaptation of the 1943 Raymond Chandler murder mystery ''The Lady in the Lake'', the picture ...

'', with Alain Silver *'' Nightmare Alley'', with Alain Silver *''

Out of the Past ''Out of the Past'' (billed in the United Kingdom as ''Build My Gallows High'') is a 1947 film noir directed by Jacques Tourneur and starring Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, and Kirk Douglas. The film was adapted by Daniel Mainwaring (using the pseu ...

'' *'' Panic in the Streets'', with Alain Silver *''

The River's Edge ''The River's Edge'' is a 1957 film noir adventure, crime, and drama DeLuxe CinemaScope film directed by Allan Dwan and starring Ray Milland, Anthony Quinn and Debra Paget. The picture is based on the unpublished short story "The Higher M ...

'', with Alain Silver *'' Smart Money'', with Alain Silver *''

The Street with No Name ''The Street with No Name'' is a 1948 film noir directed by William Keighley. A follow-up to ''The House on 92nd Street'' (1945), it tells the story of an undercover FBI agent, Gene Cordell ( Mark Stevens), who infiltrates a deadly crime gang. Cor ...

'', with Alain Silver *''

Where Danger Lives ''Where Danger Lives'' is a 1950 film noir thriller directed by John Farrow and starring Robert Mitchum, Faith Domergue and Claude Rains. Plot Dr. Jeff Cameron (Mitchum) treats a mentally disturbed attempted suicide victim (Domergue). She signs ...

'', with Alain Silver

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ursini, James 1947 births American film critics Film educators American film historians American male non-fiction writers Film theorists Writers from Pittsburgh UCLA Film School alumni Living people Historians from Pennsylvania