Items related to Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11: Horror, Exploitation,...
Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11: Horror, Exploitation, and the Cinema of Sensation (War Culture) - Hardcover
Saw, Hostel, The Devil's Rejects: this wave of horror movies has been classed under the disparaging “torture porn”. Since David Edelstein coined the term for a New York magazine article a few years after 9/11, many critics have speculated that these movies simply reflect iconic images, anxieties, and sadistic fantasies that have emerged from the War on Terror. In this timely new study, Aaron Kerner challenges that interpretation, arguing that “torture porn“ must be understood in a much broader context, as part of a phenomenon that spans multiple media genres and is rooted in a long tradition of American violence.
Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 tackles a series of tough philosophical, historical, and aesthetic questions: What does it mean to call a film “sadistic,” and how has this term been used to shut down critical debate? In what sense does torture porn respond to current events, and in what ways does it draw from much older tropes? How has torture porn been influenced by earlier horror film cycles, from slasher movies to J-horror? And in what ways has the torture porn aesthetic gone mainstream, popping up in everything from the television thriller Dexter to the reality show Hell's Kitchen.
Reflecting a deep knowledge and appreciation for the genre, Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 is sure to resonate with horror fans. Yet Kerner's arguments should also strike a chord in anyone with an interest in the history of American violence and its current and future ramifications for the War on Terror.
Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 tackles a series of tough philosophical, historical, and aesthetic questions: What does it mean to call a film “sadistic,” and how has this term been used to shut down critical debate? In what sense does torture porn respond to current events, and in what ways does it draw from much older tropes? How has torture porn been influenced by earlier horror film cycles, from slasher movies to J-horror? And in what ways has the torture porn aesthetic gone mainstream, popping up in everything from the television thriller Dexter to the reality show Hell's Kitchen.
Reflecting a deep knowledge and appreciation for the genre, Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 is sure to resonate with horror fans. Yet Kerner's arguments should also strike a chord in anyone with an interest in the history of American violence and its current and future ramifications for the War on Terror.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Review:
"By focusing on the concept of sadism and drawing on holocaust atrocities, Kerner offers original insights into the relationship between torture porn and American culture in the post-9/11 period."--Steve Jones "author of Torture Porn: Popular Horror after Saw "
"This remarkable contribution to the scholarship on today's most reviled film cycle expertly demonstrates the continued relevance of trenchant cultural criticism, from Saw to Bush and beyond."--Mattias Frey "University of Kent "
"Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 is an important work in film studies."--Cinema Journal
"Aaron Michael Kerner's Torture Porn in the wake of 9/11 offers a rich and provocative account of the possible cultural and political merits of films representative of the genre."--Women's Studies
"Kerner views [torture porn] with a clear, cold eye, continually drawing readers back to his central point, which is that viewers are complicit in the creation and reception of torture porn films. This offers a bleak signpost to what one can expect in the shared stakes of cinematic representationalism."--Choice
About the Author:
"This remarkable contribution to the scholarship on today's most reviled film cycle expertly demonstrates the continued relevance of trenchant cultural criticism, from Saw to Bush and beyond."--Mattias Frey "University of Kent "
"Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 is an important work in film studies."--Cinema Journal
"Aaron Michael Kerner's Torture Porn in the wake of 9/11 offers a rich and provocative account of the possible cultural and political merits of films representative of the genre."--Women's Studies
"Kerner views [torture porn] with a clear, cold eye, continually drawing readers back to his central point, which is that viewers are complicit in the creation and reception of torture porn films. This offers a bleak signpost to what one can expect in the shared stakes of cinematic representationalism."--Choice
Aaron Michael Kerner is an associate professor in the cinema department at San Francisco State University, USA. He is the author of Film and the Holocaust: New Perspectives on Dramas, Documentaries, and Experimental Films.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherRutgers University Press
- Publication date2015
- ISBN 10 0813564034
- ISBN 13 9780813564036
- BindingHardcover
- Number of pages268
- Rating
Buy New
Learn more about this copy
£ 127.95
Shipping:
£ 3.19
Within U.S.A.
Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace
Stock Image
Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 Format: Hardcover
Published by
University of Chicago press
(2015)
ISBN 10: 0813564034
ISBN 13: 9780813564036
New
Hardcover
Quantity: > 20
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: New. Brand New. Seller Inventory # 0813564034
Buy New
£ 127.95
Convert currency
Seller Image
Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 (Hardcover)
Published by
Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick NJ
(2015)
ISBN 10: 0813564034
ISBN 13: 9780813564036
New
Hardcover
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. Hardcover. Saw, Hostel, The Devils Rejects: this wave of horror movies has been classed under the disparaging label torture porn. Since David Edelstein coined the term for a New York magazine article a few years after 9/11, many critics have speculated that these movies simply reflect iconic images, anxieties, and sadistic fantasies that have emerged from the War on Terror. In this timely new study, Aaron Kerner challenges that interpretation, arguing that torture porn must be understood in a much broader context, as part of a phenomenon that spans multiple media genres and is rooted in a long tradition of American violence. Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 tackles a series of tough philosophical, historical, and aesthetic questions: What does it mean to call a film sadistic, and how has this term been used to shut down critical debate? In what sense does torture porn respond to current events, and in what ways does it draw from much older tropes? How has torture porn been influenced by earlier horror film cycles, from slasher movies to J-horror? And in what ways has the torture porn aesthetic gone mainstream, popping up in everything from the television thriller Dexter to the reality show Hells Kitchen? Reflecting a deep knowledge and appreciation for the genre, Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11 is sure to resonate with horror fans. Yet Kerners arguments should also strike a chord in anyone with an interest in the history of American violence and its current and future ramifications for the War on Terror. Saw, Hostel, The Devil's Rejects: this wave of horror movies have been classed as "torture porn". Critics have speculated that these movies reflect iconic images, anxieties, and sadistic fantasies that have emerged from the War on Terror. Aaron Kerner challenges that interpretation, arguing that "torture porn" must be understood in a much broader context, as part of a phenomenon that spans multiple media genres and is rooted in a long tradition of American violence. Shipping may be from our UK warehouse or from our Australian or US warehouses, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780813564036
Buy New
£ 147.99
Convert currency