Mimetic Theory and Film

Paolo Diego Bubbio is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Western Sydney University, Australia. He is the author of Sacrifice in the Post-Kantian Tradition: Perspectivism, Intersubjectivity, and Recognition (2014) and God and the Self in Hegel: Beyond Subjectivism (2017). His most recent book, entirely devoted to mimetic theory, is entitled Intellectual Sacrifice and Other Mimetic Paradoxes (2018). Chris Fleming is Associate Professor in Philosophy and Social and Cultural Analysis at Western Sydney University, Australia. He is an editor of the Bloomsbury series on mimetic theory, Violence, Desire, and the Sacred, and the author of René Girard: Violence and Mimesis (2004) and Modern Conspiracy: The Importance of Being Paranoid (with Emma A. Jane) (Bloomsbury, 2014). He is also co-translator of René Girard and Raymund Schwager: Correspondence 1974-1991 (2016).

Recognizing a growing interest at the international level, this volume is a timely publication in studies of film, philosophy, and the work of René Girard, exploring with insight and acuity the intersections of mimetic dynamics, sacrifice, and the moving image. Assembling authoritative critical voices on mimetic theory and analysing both classic and recent films, this book shows the hermeneutical and critical productivity of Girard's theoretical insights for film studies. A must-read for anyone in the field.

• Notes on Editors and ContributorsIntroduction Diego Bubbio and Chris Fleming, Western Sydney University, Australia1. Buñuel’s Apocalypse NowAndrew McKenna, Loyola University Chicago, USA2. On Fiction and Truth: Joshua Oppenheimer’s The Act of Killing Paul Dumouchel, Ritsumeikan Uiversity, Japan3. Passing "The Imitation Game": Ex Machina, the Ethical, and Mimetic Theory Sandor Goodhart, Purdue University, USA4. Femina ex-machina Jean-Pierre Dupuy, École Polytechnique, Paris, France5. Looking for a Scapegoat and Finding Oneself: Kieslowski’s Decalogue and Mimetic TheoryJeremiah Alberg, International Christian University, Tokyo, Japan6. Violence and Politics in Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood Richard van Oort, University of Victoria, Canada7. The Screenic AgeEric Gans, UCLA, USA8. A Sacrificial Crisis Not Far Away: Star Wars as a Genuinely Modern Mythology Paolo Diego Bubbio, Western Sydney University, Australia9. Mimetic Magic and Anti-Sacrificial Slayage: A Girardian Reading of Buffy the Vampire Slayer George A. Dunn, University of Indianapolis, USA, and Brian McDonald, Indiana University, USA10. It’s Not the End of the World: Post-Apocalyptic Flourishing in Cartoon Network's Adventure TimeEmma A. Jane, University of New South Wales, AustraliaIndex