Back to the Grindhouse: Neo-Exploitation in Contemporary American Cinema Open Access

O'Brien, Mike (2011)

Permanent URL: https://etd.library.emory.edu/concern/etds/tb09j594t?locale=en
Published

Abstract

This thesis examines contemporary examples of exploitation films in American cinema. Discussing these films as neo-exploitation, I consider the ways in which certain directors are appropriating styles and themes from 1970s exploitation cinema. I argue that in doing so, the directors are intentionally using references to a film period and type in order to comment on their own contemporary moment. While the films I analyze may seem like gratuitous cinematic spectacles, I contend that they are in fact deeply layered films and proceed to discuss them critically.

Table of Contents

Neo-Exploitation: An Introduction...1

Enter the Grindhouse...7

Contemporary Blaxploitation and Pastiche in Black Dynamite...27

Robert Rodriguez's Visual Vocabulary of Violence...54

Conclusion...80

Works Cited...83

Filmography...88

About this Master's Thesis

Rights statement
  • Permission granted by the author to include this thesis or dissertation in this repository. All rights reserved by the author. Please contact the author for information regarding the reproduction and use of this thesis or dissertation.
School
Department
Degree
Submission
Language
  • English
Research Field
Keyword
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor
Committee Members
Last modified

Primary PDF

Supplemental Files