16th century (renaissance) poetry, 17th century literature, Charming, Dramatic, Epic, Excessive, Grand, Pop

When Naguib Mahfouz serialized his novel 'The Children of Gebelawi' in Arab-language newspapers, the fundamentalist Muslim group al-Jihad promptly put a bounty on his head. Thirty years later, in 1994, the Nobel Prize-winner was stabbed in the neck outside his Cairo home. Though he lived to tell the

Dramatic, Epic, Intense, Modernist literature, Mythic

Fran'ois Truffaut's name is by now synonymous with the French New Wave. The movement's birth was heralded when Truffaut printed his official manifesto against "le cinema de papa" in the journal Cahiers du Cinema. "A Certain Tendency in French Cinema," appearing in 1954, rocked the French film world's

Epic, French new wave, Lyrical, Psychological, Sensual

Akira Kurosawa fits easily in the pantheon of preeminent directors of the century. His films have exerted unforeseen influences on post-WWII film. George Lucas used his 'Hidden Fortress' as a model for 'Star Wars"; Sergio Leone adapted his samurai tales to the spaghetti western; John Sturges transfor

Classical japanese, Epic, Psychological, Self-reflection, Violent