Traces changing concepts of masculinity in popular Hollywood blockbusters from 1992 to 2008 - the Clinton and Bush eras - against a backdrop of contemporary political events, social developments, and popular American myths. Kord and Krimmer investigate the most common male types - cops, killers, fathers, cowboys, superheroes, spies, soldiers, rogues, lovers, and losers - and their in-depth analysis of over sixty films, from the The Matrix and Iron Man to Pirates of the Caribbean and The Lord of the Rings, from Wedding Crashers and Mr. & Ms. Smith to War of the Worlds and The 40-Year Old Virgin, shows that movies, far from being mere entertainment, respond directly to todays social and political realities, from consumerism to family values to the War on Terror.
PART I: MEN IN TROUBLE Lawlessness and Disorder: Cops and Other Serial Killers Fathers, Crises, and Nations Cowboys, Myths and Audiences PART II: REAL MEN? Superheroes, Leadership, and the War on Terror Spies, Paranoia, and Torture Soldiers from World War II to Iraq PART III: NEW MEN? Rogues, Race, and Hegemony Lovers: Men, Women, and Gender Equality Losers, Meritocracy, and Identification