Abstract
Martin Scorcese made the short experimental film The Big Shave as a class project at NYU in 1967 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nv2MJbmDVyo). While easily read in a conventional symbolic manner, this paper explores the affective impact of the film as centered around claustrophobia, disorientation, and horror. Despite Scorsese’s intention to produce an anti-Vietnam war protest short, an affective analysis of The Big Shave does not reveal cracks in the facade of authoritarian texts, but rather reifies them because of how powerfully it works on the body. As such, this study offers an important caveat when considering the affective turn in critical cultural studies.
Presenters
William CummingsProfessor, Humanities and Cultural Studies, University of South Florida, Florida, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
SCORSESE, FILM, VIETNAM WAR, AFFECT, AFFECTIVE TURN, CULTURAL STUDIES
