In The Violent Woman, Hilary Neroni brings psychoanalytically informed film theory to bear on issues of femininity, violence, and narrative in contemporary American cinema. Examining such films as Thelma and Louise, Fargo, Natural Born Killers, and The Long Kiss Goodnight, Neroni explores why American audiences are so fascinated—even excited—by cinematic representations of violent women, and what these representations reveal about violence in our society and our cinema. Neroni argues that violent women characters disrupt cinematic narrative and challenge cultural ideals, suggesting how difficult it is for Hollywood—the greatest of ideology machines—to integrate the violent woman into its typical narrative structure.
Table of Content
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part One: The Development and Background of the Filmic Violent Woman
1. Complementarity and Its Discontents: An Overview of Violent Women in American Film
2. Expressions of Masculinity: The Traditions of Violence in American Film
3. Female Murderers: America’s Recurring Nightmare
Part Two: The Violent Woman on the Contemporary Screen
4. Romancing Trauma: The Violent Woman in Contemporary American Film
5. Violent Women in Love
6. Femininity on the Front Line: Portrayals of Violent Women in Recent Military Films
7. Conclusion: The Long Kiss Goodnight
Endnotes
Index
About the author
Hilary Neroni is Associate Professor of English at the University of Vermont.
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