Synopses & Reviews
From parents and teachers to politicians and policymakers, there is a din of voices participating in the debate over how young people are affected by violence, strong language, and explicit sexual activity in films. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) responded to this concern in 1968 when it introduced a classification and rating system based on the now well-known labels: andquot;G,andquot; andquot;PG,andquot; PG-13,andquot; andquot;R,andquot; and andquot;X.andquot; For some, these simple tags are an efficient way to protect children from viewing undesirable content. But do the MPAA ratings only protect children? In The Naked Truth, Kevin S. Sandler argues that perhaps even more than viewers, ratings protect the Hollywood film industry. One prime indicator of this is the collective abandonment of the NC-17 rating in 1990 by the major distributors of the MPAA and the main exhibitors of the National Association of Theatre Owners. By categorizing all films released by Hollywood and destined for mainstream theaters into R ratings (or lower), the industry ensures that its products are perceived as andquot;responsible entertainmentandquot;andmdash;films accessible by all audiences and acceptable to Hollywood's various critics and detractors.
Review
andquot;Clear, concise, and compelling, Washed in Blood examines the recurring theme of injured national masculinity in cinema. Written in flowing prose, this book is not only excellent, but important.andquot;
Review
andldquo;This is a timely book that alerts readers to the dangers of masculinist sacrificial filmsandmdash;seemingly innocuous entertainment fare. King deals with the complex logics of trauma, sacrifice, and cinema, analyzing films that at once indulge audiences with the experience of vicarious trauma and suggest the problematic possibility of leaving traumatic injury behind.andrdquo;
Review
andquot;A beautifully rendered and insightful analysis of a major strand within contemporary American films.
Washed in Blood is an important work that sheds light on the complex interrelationship between masculinity, national culture, and trauma.andquot;
Synopsis
Claire Sisco King offers an in-depth study of three prominent cycles of Hollywood films that follow the sacrificial narrative: the earlyandndash;toandndash;mid 1970s, the midandndash;toandndash;late 1990s, and the midandndash;toandndash;late 2000s. From Vietnam-era disaster movies to post-9/11 apocalyptic thrillers, she examines how each film represents traumatized American masculinity and national identity. What she uncovers is a cinematic tendency to position straight white men as Americaandrsquo;s most valuable citizensandmdash;and its noblest victims.
Synopsis
Will Smith in I Am Legend. Leonardo DiCaprio in Titanic. Charlton Heston in just about everything.
Viewers of Hollywood action films are no doubt familiar with the sacrificial victim-hero, the male protagonist who nobly gives up his life so that others may be saved. Washed in Blood argues that such sacrificial films are especially prominent in eras when the nationandmdash;and American manhoodandmdash;is thought to be in crisis. The sacrificial victim-hero, continually imperiled and frequently exhibiting classic symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, thus bears the trauma of the nation.
Claire Sisco King offers an in-depth study of three prominent cycles of Hollywood films that follow the sacrificial narrative: the earlyandndash;toandndash;mid 1970s, the midandndash;toandndash;late 1990s, and the midandndash;toandndash;late 2000s. From Vietnam-era disaster movies to post-9/11 apocalyptic thrillers, she examines how each film represents traumatized American masculinity and national identity. What she uncovers is a cinematic tendency to position straight white men as Americaandrsquo;s most valuable citizensandmdash;and its noblest victims.
About the Author
CLAIRE SISCO KING is an assistant professor in the department of communication studies at Vanderbilt University; she also teaches in the film studies program. Her work has been published in numerous communication and media studies journals.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Reel Presence, Sacrifice, and the Cinema
2. Unhinged Heroes and Alpha Traumas
3. Free Falls in the 1990s
4. Remakes, Resurrections, and Sacrificial Returns
Epilogue: Big-Screen Memories
Notes
Selected Bibliography
Index