Masculinity at the Movies

Masculinity at the Movies takes a deep dive into masculinity in film and how Hollywood movies continue to produce and promote masculine stereotypes that place boys and men in constraining identities and dysfunctional patterns of behaviour.

From classic film stars to those of the present day, this textbook unpacks the development of the main male stereotypes in film – villains, heroes, and oafs – and how movies can develop healthy new male representations. Alongside Hollywood studio productions, it delves into Black, Native American, Latino, and Asian representation as well as LGBTQ masculinity. Going beyond the present, it proposes what healthy masculinity at the movies looks like and where Hollywood should set its sights to create more progressive models of masculinity for the 21st century.

Masculinity at the Movies will provide students of gender studies, media studies, and cultural studies with new insights into stereotypes of men in contemporary film.