Siegfried Kracauer's classic monograph is a comprehensive study of cinema through the lens of philosophy and media aesthetics.

This book is the first complete publication of Siegfried Kracauer's (1889–1966) classic monograph in Russian. In this massive work, the German sociologist of popular culture conducts a comprehensive study of black-and-white cinema through the lens of philosophy and media aesthetics. Immediately upon its publication in 1960, the publication was criticized for its "old-fashionedness." Kracauer ignores contemporary trends such as animated films and color, analyzing only "black-and-white cinema, which originated in photography," in order to thoroughly explore the most important aspects of cinema's essence. For the author, the camera is an instrument capable of capturing physical reality, and he views cinema as a means of depicting the transitory nature of material life, emphasizing what it can offer our perception of the world. This approach makes Kracauer's work a timeless book and allows the author to refer from its pages to the present moment at every stage of the development of art.