1
of
1
Edge of the Screen
Brief Description
This book is a series of seventeen meditations that revolve around the notion of the viewer’s placement at the edge of the screen. Every page is an opportunity to think about an aspect of film, or of film viewing, in new ways, and to begin reconsidering...
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$5199
Unit price
/
Unavailable
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER
Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks
Found a better price? Request a price match
Edge of the Screen
$5199
Unit price
/
Unavailable
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
This book is a series of seventeen meditations that revolve around the notion of the viewer’s placement at the edge of the screen. Every page is an opportunity to think about an aspect of film, or of film viewing, in new ways, and to begin reconsidering deeply ingrained ways of unthinkingly characterising and accounting for what it is that we watch when we watch a film, what happens to us, and how we make sense of and appreciate it.
This volume follows from three others by the author: Virtuoso: Film Performance and the Actor’s Magic (2020); The Film Cheat: Cinematic Artifice and Viewing Pleasure (2021); and Uncanny Cinema: Agonies of the Viewing Experience (2022). All of these, including Edge of the Screen, meander and interrogate cinema as we watch it, both connecting us to and disconnecting us from the moment of pleasure.
Each meditation is characterised by a deep penetration of the inquiring, continually hungry authorial mind and a very extensive set of analyses of filmic moments from myriad films, including 2001: A Space Odyssey, Memento, Zabriskie Point, An American in Paris, Planet of the Apes (1968), Superman (1978), Possessed, The Jungle Book (1942), The Spy Who Came In from the Cold, The Toll of the Sea, Rope, and numerous others. These meditations are careful and philosophical as much as energetically ruminative, yet are written in an accessible style for all interested readers who both love cinema and wonder about that love.
Each chapter can stand alone, even though all work together to challenge perspectives on what we encounter, experience, think, and feel when we watch films. Across its chapters, Edge of the Screen takes on a wide range of topics: the ontology of film; the relation between characters, actors, and the figures who appear onscreen; film’s relationships to the other arts, especially painting but also novels and theatre; the passage of time in film, and its momentary character; film criticism, including deeply held values such as coherence; film’s relationship to mortality; and more.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9798765128329
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 11 December 2025
Country: United States
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Illustration: 20 bw illus
Audience: Professional and scholarly
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 20.0mm
Width: 146.0mm
Height: 226.0mm
Weight: 420g
Pages: 312
About the Author
Murray Pomerance is an independent scholar living in Toronto, Canada, and Adjunct Professor in the School of Media and Communication at RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. He is the author of The Hitchcock Quartet (An Eye for Hitchcock, A Dream of Hitchcock, A Voyage with Hitchcock, and A Silence from Hitchcock); Uncanny Cinema: Agonies of the Viewing Experience (Bloomsbury, 2022); Color It True: Impressions of Cinema (Bloomsbury, 2022); The Film Cheat: Film Artifice and Viewing Pleasure (Bloomsbury, 2020); Virtuoso: Film Performance and the Actor’s Magic (Bloomsbury, 2019); Cinema, If You Please: The Memory of Taste, the Taste of Memory (Bloomsbury, 2018), and many other volumes including, with Matthew Solomon, The Biggest Thing in Show Business: Living It Up with Martin & Lewis (2024). Pomerance’s fiction has appeared in The Paris Review, New Directions, The Kenyon Review, and elsewhere; he is the author of Grammatical Dreams, A King of Infinite Space, and other books.
Also by Professor Murray Pomerance
View all-
Marnie
A thrilling tale of anxiety and moral extremity, Marnie (1964) cemented Alfred Hitchcock's reputation as a master of suspense and the visual form. Murray Pomerance here ranges through the many tortuous and thrilling passages of Marnie, weaving critical discussion together with production history to reveal Marnie as a woman in flight from her self, her past, her love, and the...Paperback$2999Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Murray Pomerance offers an illuminating account of one of Hitchcock's most intriguing and successful films, The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), starring James Stewart and Doris Day. Through a close reading of the film alongside analysis of its complex production history, Pomerance's analysis highlights its darkest nuances, and its themes of musicality, gendered power, and cultural strangeness. He proposes...Paperback$2999Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Uncanny Cinema
Murray Pomerance's latest book explores an encyclopaedic range of films and television shows to demonstrate the difficulty of conveying the experience of viewing cinema through words and the medium of text. From On the Waterfront to Marriage Story, Uncanny Cinema illuminates that words and writing are in perilous waters when applied to cinema, similar to ungestured talk. The book begins...Paperback$13700Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 2-3 weeks
More from Arts & Culture
View all-
Dylan's PickBold Types
A tribute to 32 truly independent bookshops throughout Aotearoa New Zealand, from north of Auckland down to Dunedin, and coast to coast. Jane Ussher's photographs show every bookstore in its unique nature - including behind the counter, smoko rooms, the mess which tells the hardworking story behind the joy of matching books with customers. Jemma Moreira's careful editing has crafted...Hardback$5999Elsewhere:$7000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
New ReleaseDisney Moana: The Official Cookbook
Embark on a culinary adventure with Moana of Motunui with Pacific recipes inspired by Moana and Moana 2! After a long day of sailing to see how far you’ll go or keeping the demigod Maui out of trouble with Te Fiti, catch a break with the delicious dishes in Moana: The Official Cookbook! Featuring more than 50 recipes spanning the...Hardback$4499Elsewhere:$5299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
This Angry Pen of Mine
This Angry Pen of Mine by Layne Staley invites you to dive into the untold creative world of Layne Staley, the legendary voice behind Alice in Chains. This extraordinary collection showcases his handwritten lyrics, deeply personal poetry, stunning original artwork, rare photos, fan tributes, and so much more. Step into the world of Layne Staley like never before. For the...Hardback$7299Elsewhere:$8999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
They Bloom Because of You
Bestselling author and Instagram sensation Jessica Urlichs returns with a new collection of beautifully observed poems about the ever-evolving journey of motherhood - the hard, the magic and the fleeting. ‘A raw and honest read that makes you feel seen and understood in a way that will bring you to tears.’ - Hilary Swank ‘A book to keep close and...Paperback$3000Elsewhere:$3600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Leaves of Grass
A collectible new Penguin Classics series offers beautiful, slim, clothbound editions of ten favourite poets. In 1855, Walt Whitman published his first collection of poetry, Leaves of Grass. The volume received great praise from leading Transcendentalist poet Ralph Waldo Emerson. This encouragement led to what would become a lifelong project, as Whitman expanded and rewrote the volume until his death...Hardback$2200Elsewhere:$2400Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Great Writers and the Cats who Owned Them
Throughout history, cats and writers have bonded together in a magical combination of comfort, companionship and inspiration. The famous authors featured here range from Samuel Johnson, whose cat Hodge dined on oysters, and Edward Lear, whose charismatic cat Foss was missing half his tail, to Margaret Mitchell, L. M. Montgomery and Dorothy L. Sayers, who rescued her kitten Blitz from...Hardback$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Beautiful Chaos
The Instant Sunday Times Bestseller Selected poems from bestselling author and Instagram poet, Jessica Urlichs. 'These words awaken the magic of life by celebrating the ordinary.' - Giovanna Fletcher Motherhood is messy and beautiful, and hard and humbling. We adore our children and sometimes we miss ourselves. Beautiful Chaos is a collection of raw, honest poems about motherhood, capturing everything...Paperback$2900Elsewhere:$3500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
The Odyssey
Composed at the rosy-fingered dawn of world literature almost three millennia ago, The Odyssey is a poem about violence and the aftermath of war; about wealth, poverty and power; about marriage and family; about travellers, hospitality, and the yearning for home. This fresh, authoritative translation captures the beauty of this ancient poem as well as the drama of its narrative....Paperback$2999Elsewhere:$3599Unit price /UnavailableBackorderShips late August -
Wreck This Journal: Now in Colour
The creative journey continues with Wreck This Journal: Now in Colour by Keri Smith, the latest and most vibrant edition of the groundbreaking series that redefined journaling. Celebrating its 10th anniversary, this edition brings the playful destructiveness of the original to life in dazzling full colour, adding a dynamic new dimension to the beloved prompts. Whether you're a seasoned Wreck-er,...Paperback$2500Elsewhere:$2800Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Did I Ever Tell You This?
In this unexpected memoir, written in a creative burst of just a few months in 2022, Sam Neill tells the story of how he became one of the world’s most celebrated actors, who has worked with everyone from Meryl Streep to Isabel Adjani, from Jeff Goldblum to Sean Connery, from Steven Spielberg to Jane Campion. By his own account, his...Paperback$3799Elsewhere:$4500Unit price /UnavailableBackorderShips early September -
A Thousand Feasts
THE INSTANT #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER From award-winning writer Nigel Slater, comes a new and exquisitely written collection of notes, memoir, stories and small moments of joy. 'Nigel Slater’s prose is the rarest delicacy of all: exquisite yet effortless, filled with heart, tenderness, yearning and humour' ELIZABETH DAY For years, Nigel Slater has kept notebooks of curiosities and wonderings, penned...Paperback$2999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Deliver Me from Nowhere (Movie Tie-In)
An updated movie tie-in edition of the fascinating story behind the making of Bruce Springsteen's most surprising album, Nebraska, and its pivotal role in the rock legend's career. The inspiration for the major motion picture starring Jeremy Allen White and Jeremy Strong. The fascinating story behind the making of Bruce Springsteen's most surprising album, Nebraska, revealing its pivotal role in...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
