Impossible Bodies : Femininity and Masculinity at the Movies (Comedia)
Editorial Reviews
Review
"Chris Holmlund offers a view of contemporary cinema as outrageous as it is unexpected. This is not the Hollywood we thought we knew. Only Holmlund could bring together such a diverse and stimulating collection of onscreen bodies whose vague promises put us in all sorts of compromised positions as viewers and as consumers....an essential guide to the ways in which genre conventions resolve sexual, racial and class differences. Don't go to the movies without it!."
-Chon A. Noriega, University of California, Los Angeles
"An outstanding collection of essays.... displays a consistently light touch, is impressively researched and covers an astonishing range of fields. The quality of argument is outstanding; the writing is scholarly, yet witty and passionate. Holmlund always resists easy shots, pointing the reader to the more complex questions that lie beneath. This is certain to be an invaluable book."
-Yvonne Tasker, University of East Anglia
"Impossible Bodies is a valuable work for anyone interested in depictions of the body in film, and all of the glorious messiness that entails."
-Meredith Guthrie, Bowling Green State University,Film and History, 2004
"Holmlund's book is not only a pleasurable read but also a valuable text for feminist and gay and lesbian film theorists as well as critical race theorists."
-Marnie Binfield The Velvet Light Trap, 2004
"Impossible Bodies is a valuable work for anyone interested in depictions of the body in film, and all of the glorious messiness that entails."
-Film & History: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Film and Television Studies, 2004
Book Description
Impossible Bodies investigates issues of ethnicity, gender and sexuality in contemporary Hollywood. Examining stars from Clint Eastwood and Arnold Schwarzenegger to Whoopi Goldberg, Jennifer Lopez and Dolly Parton, Chris Holmlund focuses on actors whose physique or appearance puts them at the margins of Hollywood film, and yet who occupy shifting and key positions in contemporary mainstream cinema. Grouped into three sections, "gesturing towards genres," "siding with sidekicks" and "staring at stars," chapters examine a range of "impossible bodies" on film from the Pumping Iron documentaries to The Quick and the Dead.
Impossible Bodies : Femininity and Masculinity at the Movies (Comedia)
Impossible Bodies : Femininity and Masculinity at the Movies (Comedia),CHRIS HOLMLUND,Routledge,0415185769,Body, Human, in motion picture,Body, Human, in motion pictures,Cinema/Film: Book,Film & Video - General,Film & Video - History & Criticism,Gender Studies,Minorities in motion pictures,Performing Arts,Pop Arts / Pop Culture,Sex role in motion pictures,Ethnic studies,Films, cinema
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