Auf Zelluloid wurde der erste Kuss bereits 1896 festgehalten. Seit dem hat die körperliche und sexuelle Freizügigkeit im Film eine Entwicklung vollzogen, die immer schneller Tabus bricht und gesellschaftlich festgelegte Grenzen überschreitet. Im Zentrum bleibt letztendlich nur noch die Frage nach dem „Wie wird ES gezeigt?“ Extremes aus der Soft- bzw. auch Hardcore-Pornoindustrie kommt in diesem Band aus unserer Filmreihe genauso zum Zuge wie der Seitenblick auf die schwule/lesbische Film-Szene.
Der Niederländer Paul Verhoeven gilt als einer der provokantesten, kontroversesten und einfallsreichsten Regisseure im Filmgeschäft. Mit seinen Dokumentarfilmen erregt Paul Verhoeven erstmals 1973 internationales Aufsehen: sein Erotikfilm Türkische Früchte wird mit einem Oscar nominiert. Anschließend geht er nach Hollywood. Seine Filme sind ebenso ungezügelt wie ehrlich und ihre Szenen aufgrund der ungeschminkten Darstellung von Sex und Gewalt oft brutal.
Douglas Keesey offers a critical analysis of Chuck Palahniuk's work, particularly focusing on Fight Club and his subsequent thirteen novels. He challenges the perception of Palahniuk as merely a sensationalist or nihilist, arguing instead that the author embodies romantic ideals and values community. Keesey's readings reveal deeper themes in Palahniuk's writing, presenting a nuanced understanding of his literary contributions and the complexity of his characters and narratives.
Examining the career of Brian De Palma, the book delves into his cinematic successes and failures, highlighting his influence on Hollywood and the careers of stars like Robert De Niro and John Travolta. It explores the controversial themes in his films, such as violence against women and the portrayal of flawed characters. Author Douglas Keesey adopts a biographical lens, analyzing how De Palma's personal experiences shape his work. The accessible style and comprehensive film-by-film analysis make it an essential read for fans and scholars alike.
A world-weary detective, a seductive femme fatale, a mysterious murder - these elements of classic film noir live again in more recent hardboiled detective films from Chinatown to Sin City. But the themes of noir have also spilled over into gangster movies, as well as creating new genres including psycho-noir (Memento), techno-noir (The Matrix) and superhero-noir (The Dark Knight). Neo-Noir shows how new noir films have drawn upon contemporary social and historical events as well as the latest technological advances in filmmaking to put a new spin on a classic genre.
This lively and illuminating book explores over 100 contemporary horror films, providing insightful and provocative readings of what they mean while including numerous quotes from their creators. Some of these films, including The Babadook, The Green Inferno, It Follows, The Neon Demon, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and The Witch, are so recent that this will be one of the first times they are discussed in book form. The book is divided into three main sections: "nightmares," "nations," and "innovations." "Nightmares" looks at new manifestations of traditional fears, including creepy dolls, haunted houses and demonic possession as well as vampires, werewolves, witches and zombies; and also considers more contemporary anxieties such as dread of home invasion and homophobia. "Nations" explores fright films from around the world, including Australia, Canada, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, India, Japan, Norway, Russia, Serbia, Spain and Sweden as well as the UK and the U.S. "Innovations" focuses on the latest trends in terror from 3D to found-footage films, from Twilight teen romance to torture porn, and from body horror and eco-horror to techno-horror. Parodies, remakes and American adaptations of Asian horror are also discussed.
