Jewish film characters have existed almost as long as the medium itself. But around 1990, films about Jews and their representation in cinema multiplied and took on new forms, marking a radical rupture with the past. With a new generation of Jewish filmmakers, writers and actors at work, contemporary cinemas in Hollywood and the rest of the world have been depicting a multiplicity of new Jews, including tough Jews, brutish Jews, gay and lesbian Jews, Jewish cowboys, skinheads and superheroes, Jews in space and so on. Grounded in the study of over 300 films from Hollywood and beyond, ‘The New Jew in FIlm’ explores these new and changing depictions of Jews, Jewishness and Judaism, providing a wider, more representative picture of the subject than has hitherto been attempted. This is a compelling, surprising and provocative book, whose chapters explore masculinity, femininity, passivity, agency, religion, as well as a departure into new territory including food and bathrooms. Its concern is to reveal how the representation of the Jew is used to convey confidence or anxieties about Jewish identity and history, as well as how it engages with questions of racial, sexual and gender politics. In so doing, ‘The New Jew in Film’ also provides a welcome overview of important Jewish films produced globally over the last twenty years.

Studying Film is an all-encompassing guide to cinema and film which explores the key concepts, terms and events that have shaped film study and criticism, all of which is illustrated by reference to classic and contemporary movies from around the world, from The Great Train Robbery to Pulp Fiction via Un Chien Andalou and Cinema Paradiso. This accessible introduction to the study of film aims to stimulate students’ enjoyment and understanding of a wide range of different types of film, and to give them an awareness of the nature of cinema as a medium, as an art form, and as a social and economic institution. Contemporary film is seen in context by tracing its development from 1895 to the present, exploring film production in a variety of countries in a range of styles, and placing film next to other media.

Everything you wanted to know about Jews and Sex but were afraid to ask! ‘Go forth and multiply’ was the first commandment in the Bible. From King David to adult movie star Ron Jeremy, Jews have prided themselves on their liberal attitudes towards all things sexual. But what do we really know about the relationship between Jews ans Sex? This collection of original esssays starts to answer that qustion. Featuring a range of writers from the United States, Europe, Israel, South America, and Australia, this book features new writing on Judaism and Sexuality including topics such as Pornography and the Adult Film Industry; Sexual Propaganda; Woody Allen; Erotic Theology; Homosexuality and Judaism; Sex on the Stage; Lesbian Yiddish Poetry; the Jewish American Princess; Sex and the British novel; Sex and Art and more.

The postwar period in America witnessed a tremendous consumer boom that introduced thousands of new items into the mass market. The contributors to Containing America challenge our conceptions of Cold War culture by examining a range of such products – clothes, food, television, magazines, radio, and other forms of entertainment – in order to shed light on how Cold War discourses actually influenced the practices of ordinary behaviour. Their essays address very different sectors of American society – in terms of race, class, ethnicity, sexuality and gender – thus emphasising the multiplicity, diversity, and differing nature of the voices that emerged in cultural production and consumption during the 1950s. Containing America points out directions for further research and provides a fresh approach for scholars, students, and others interested in the culture of the Cold War of the 1950s.