Screening the Crisis: US Cinema and Social Change in the Wake of the 2008 Crash

The financial collapse of 2008 has transformed how we think about social life, and film studies scholars have begun to integrate intellectual and political work to address this. Screening the Crisis reconsiders the relationships between cinema and society at a time when neoliberal policies threaten civic culture and human life. The book explores how new tendencies in US cinema enhance awareness of economic inequality, gender roles, racial conflicts, immigration, surveillance practices, the environmental crisis, the politics of housing, and nationhood through in-depth studies and contextualized analyses of recent films, genres, and filmmakers.

Format: Hardback
Length: 304 pages
Publication date: 11 August 2022
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

The financial collapse of 2008 marked a pivotal moment in history, extending and deepening a protracted crisis that had profound implications for our understanding of social life. In the face of these turbulent times, film studies scholars have embarked on a mission to integrate intellectual and political work in innovative ways, seeking to address the pressing challenges of our contemporary predicament. This timely volume, Screening the Crisis, brings together a diverse group of established authors and emerging scholars in the field of film studies to explore the complex relationships between cinema and society.

Amidst the neoliberal policies that threaten civic culture and nearly every aspect of human life, this volume reconsiders the dynamics between cinema and society. The contributors to this collection examine how new tendencies in US cinema enhance our awareness of the multifaceted problems confronting contemporary society. Economic inequality, shifts in gender roles, racial conflicts, immigration, surveillance practices, the environmental crisis, the politics of housing, and the fragility of nationhood are among the issues explored in depth through in-depth studies and contextualized analyses of a wide range of recent films, genres, and filmmakers.

The volume offers a comprehensive examination of the ways in which US cinema responds to the interconnected crises that characterize our current times. By exploring a diverse range of topics and perspectives, it serves as an essential reference work for scholars and researchers interested in understanding how cinema has shaped our understanding of the world and contributed to our collective efforts to navigate these challenging times.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781501388125