The New Extremism in CinemaFrom France to Europe

Abstract

Explosive images of sex and violence in films by directors such as Catherine Breillat, Gaspar Noé, Michael Haneke and Lars von Trier have attracted media attention for the ways in which they seek to shock and provoke the spectator into powerful affective and visceral responses. This book, devoted to the new extremism in contemporary European cinema, critically interrogates this highly contentious body of work and demonstrates that these films and the controversies they engender are indispensable to the critical task of rethinking the terms of spectatorship. Through critical discussions of key films and directors, it sheds new light on cutting-edge debates in film studies regarding sexuality, violence and spectatorship; affect and ethic; and the political dimensions of extreme cinema.

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