Masculinities in Contemporary Argentine Popular Cinema
Carolina Rocha’s new book “Masculinities in Contemporary Argentine Popular Cinema” is now on the shelves. An in depth look at the shift in the representation of male gender roles after 1989 when Argentina adapted to a free market society, the book focuses on films where male characters experience a loss of power and how this loss is reflective of social changes within the culture.
Rocha examines popular films by directors: Marcelo Pineyro, Aldolfo Aristarain, Hector Olivera, and Bruno Stagharo. The common thread beyond relative financial success examined is that all films examined demonstrate male characters who are emasculated in one way or another.
“In most of the films I studied fathers either died or are defeated,” Rocha shared.
Initial inspiration for the book came from studying the ideologies in American westerns, and how these representations are a reflection of the values held by the society at the time. Because most of the work on masculinities in cinema focuses on Mexican and Brazilian culture, Rocha hopes her book will help to fill an existing research gap.
“Cinema has a lot of offer,” said Rocha, “it’s not just entertainment.”
Filed Under: Foreign Languages & Lit
