Existentialism and Contemporary Cinema: A Beauvoirian Perspective

Abstract

This edited volume explores the intersection between existentialist and phenomenological philosophy, particularly Simone de Beauvoir’s theories, and contemporary cinema. Comprising eleven essays, the collection examines American, British, and French films from 1988 to 2008 through a Beauvoirian lens. While titled "Existentialism and Contemporary Cinema," the volume primarily focuses on phenomenology, emphasizing lived experience as central to understanding cinematic representations of subjectivity and embodiment. Key themes include temporality, self-other relationships, authenticity, freedom, and bad faith. The essays delve into how these concepts manifest in films, often drawing from Beauvoir’s seminal work The Second Sex. Notably, the introduction by Boulé and Tidd discusses Brigitte Bardot’s role in challenging traditional gender dynamics through her embodiment in French cinema. Other contributions explore themes such as dance and young female embodiment in Lucile Hadzihalilovic's Innocence (2004), further illustrating how phenomenological approaches enrich film analysis. This volume offers a nuanced exploration of existentialist thought applied to cinematic studies, providing valuable insights into the complexities of human experience on screen.

(The abstract and keywords were prepared retrospectively for indexing purposes using AI-assisted tools and editorial review, based on the original article. They did not appear in the original publication.)