The Return of the Epic Film: Genre, Aesthetics and History in the 21st Century

Andrew Elliott

Published by Edinburgh University Press 2014

The Return of the Epic Film

Genre, Aesthetics and History in the 21st Century

Andrew Elliott

https://doi.org/10.1515/9780748684038

Overview
Contents

About this book

Explores the return of the ‘epic’ in twenty-first-century cinema

With the success of Gladiator, both critics and scholars enthusiastically announced the return of a genre which had lain dormant for thirty years. However, this return raises important new questions which remain unanswered. Why did the epic come back, and why did it fall out of fashion? Are these the same kinds of epics as the 1950s and 60s, or are there aesthetic differences? Can we treat Kingdom of Heaven, 300 and Thor indiscriminately as one genre? Are non-Western histories like Hero and Mongol epics, too? Finally, what precisely do we mean when we talk about the return of the epic film, and why are they back?

The Return of the Epic Film offers a fresh way of thinking about a body of films which has dominated our screens for a decade. With contributions from top scholars in the field, the collection adopts a range of interdisciplinary perspectives to explore the epic film in the twenty-first century.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	v
Figures Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Acknowledgements Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
1. Introduction: The Return of the Epic Andrew B. R. Elliott Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
Part I. Epics and Ancient History
2. Sir Ridley Scott and the Rebirth of the Historical Epic Jeffrey Richards Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	19
3. The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire and America since the Second World War: Some Cinematic Parallels Kevin J. Harty Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	36
4. ‘There’s Nothing So Wrong with a Hollywood Script that a Bunch of Giant CGI Scorpions Can’t Solve’: Politics, Computer Generated Images and Camp in the Critical Reception of the Post-Gladiator Historical Epics Mark Jancovich Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	57
5. Popcorn and Circus: An Audience Expects Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	74
Part II. Epic Aesthetics and Genre
6. Colour in the Epic Film: Alexander and Hero Robert Burgoyne Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	95
7. Defining the Epic: Medieval and Fantasy Epics Paul B. Sturtevant Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	110
8. Special Effects, Reality and the New Epic Film Andrew B. R. Elliott Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	129
Part III. Epic Films and the Canon
9. Pass the Ammunition: A Short Etymology of ‘Blockbuster’ Sheldon Hall Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	147
10. Epic Stumbling Blocks Saër Maty Bâ Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	167
11. The Greatest Epic of the Twenty-First Century? Deborah Bridge Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	188
12. The Ramayana and Sita in Films and Popular Media: The Repositioning of a Globalised Version Aarttee Kaul Dhar Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	201
Notes on the Contributors Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	216
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	219

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
Audience: College/higher education;
Pages
- Main content: 240
Illustrations
- Other: 12 B/W illustrations film stills
Keywords: Film, Media & Cultural Studies

eBook

Published: March 11, 2014
ISBN: 9780748684038