Ends of Literary Cinephilia

Abstract

This article explores the transformations of literary cinephilia from the 20th to the 21st century, in a context where the links between literature and cinema have become both denser and more complex. From the very beginnings of cinema, writers such as Gorky, Proust and Reverdy expressed skepticism and mistrust. However, a tradition of cinephile authors has developed who value the seventh art for its poetic and narrative potential. We highlight a contemporary paradox: at a time when cinephilia seems to be entering a “crisis” due to technological, social and cultural changes, literature is showing a renewed interest in cinema. Cinephilia thus becomes an object of memory, aesthetic reflection or fetishization. Two major trends are emerging: one considers cinema in the light of literature, while the other emphasizes cinema’s formal autonomy, its power to captivate the senses, sometimes in opposition to all intellectualism. These approaches can coexist, or even contradict each other, in the same author. Finally, we show how literary cinephilia is also a matter of individual and generational taste, helping to build canons or subvert them. From scholarly practice to affective passion, it is constantly redefining itself in dialogue with transformations in cinematic art and viewing media.