Dialectics without Synthesis – Japanese Film Theory and Realism in a Global Frame

"Yamamoto has powerfully detonated the field of film theory by expanding it to include a surprising and potent Japanese discourse. Under his scrutiny, the terms realism, film, and even theory become duplicitous and nonconforming. Yet even if our dream of universal synthesis is shattered, he has given us a precious opportunity for a revision and reboot of the discipline."--Francesco Casetti, Yale University

"Yamamoto's book is exemplary in its examination of the dynamics behind global and local forces shaping knowledge production. Dialectics without Synthesis will surely be essential reading in any course seeking to give a global account of the development of film theoretical discourses."--Masha Salazkina, author of In Excess: Sergei Eisenstein's Mexico.

"The questions 'What is Japanese film theory?' and the variation 'Is there such a thing as Japanese film theory?' have been raised by many Japanese film critics and intellectuals. This long-awaited and groundbreaking book demonstrates how theory can be built, reconstituted, and at times, dismantled retrospectively and retroactively through a contemporary author's act of theorizing and historicizing a network of critical discourses."--Victor Fan, King's College London