Full Description
This book provides wide-ranging commentary on depictions of the black male in mainstream cinema. O'Brien explores the extent to which counter-representations of black masculinity have been achieved within a predominately white industry, with an emphasis on agency, the negotiation and malleability of racial status, and the inherent instability of imposed racial categories. Focusing on American and European cinema, the chapters highlight actors (Woody Strode, Noble Johnson, Eddie Anderson, Will Smith), genres (jungle pictures, westerns, science fiction) and franchises (Tarzan, James Bond) underrepresented in previous critical and scholarly commentary in the field. The author argues that although the characters and performances generated in these areas invoke popular genre types, they display complexity, diversity and ambiguity, exhibiting aspects that are positive, progressive and subversive. This book will appeal to both the academic and the general reader interested in film, race, gender and colonial issues.
Contents
1. Introduction.- 2. The Natives Are Still Restless: Black representation in whitened Africa from Tarzan to Mandela.- 3. A King Among Bit Players: Noble Johnson and the art of racial ambiguity.- 4. Also Known as Rochester: Eddie Anderson, black stardom and World War II.- 5. Tall and Black in the Saddle: How African-American cowboys rode out of the shadows and into the sunset.- 6. Due afro-americani a Roma: John Kitzmiller, Woody Strode and remoulding stereotypes in Italian popular cinema.- 7. Bond and Blackness: Challenging racial schism in the 007 universe.- 8. Leaving the Overlook: Black heroism and white nightmare in The Shining.- 9. Saving the World for White Folks? Will Smith racializes science fiction as black man and man in black.
