The Films of Robin Williams ― Critical Essays

[From his first appearance as Mork from Ork on the 1970s sitcom Happy Days, comediactor Robin Williams was heralded as a singular talent. In the pre-cable television era, Williams was one of the few actors who made the successful transition from television actor to movie star. Robin Williams may be widely remembered for his stratospherically-quick comic mind, or for his unexpected and tragic passing in 2014. Yet, Robin Williams was also an Oscar-winning actor, renowned comedian, and artist, who gifted the world with a vast and varied body of work. This scholarly collection, the first one of its kind, brings together a wide array of essays, offering a keen look at Williams and his oeuvre. His beloved hits such as Mrs. Doubtfire, Good Morning, Vietnam, Good Will Hunting, The Fisher King, Dead Poets Society, and Aladdin are covered. Film scholars, students, and fans alike will also find essays delving into his early career with Mork and Mindy, and The World According to Garp, and political and satirical films Moscow on the Hudson and Toys. Williams’s often darker and lesser-known fare such as Being Human, One Hour Photo, Final Cut, and Boulevard are also included. Robin Williams was more than a movie star; for decades of television and movie watchers, he was an artist and cultural icon.]

Johnson Cheu is an assistant professor in the Department of Writing, Rhetoric and American Cultures at Michigan State University in East Lansing. He has published work in disability studies and popular culture, as well as poetry and creative essays.