Contemporary Italian Cinema: Politics & Spectacle

Introduction to Italian films from the past twenty years. Emphasis on the sexual, political and cultural politics of late-twentieth and twenty-first century Italy. Analysis of variations in cinematic style and in thematic content in works by Marco Bellocchio, Marco Tullio Giordana, Daniele Luchetti, Matteo Garrone, and Paolo Sorrentino. Critical texts from film and cultural studies. English; films in Italian with English subtitles; readings in English. Mandatory evening film screenings.