French Sports Films: Visions of Masculinity

Examining French sports films from a cinematic and socio-cultural perspective, this book takes a close look at the characteristics that separate French sports films from Hollywood sports films and sports films produced in other countries and asks what those characteristics can tell us about wider French culture and society.

Focusing in particular on depictions of masculinity in French sports films and how they have evolved over time, this book argues that recent decades have seen a shift away from focusing on macho males towards a greater exploration of male vulnerability, depictions that go beyond the outcome of sporting contests and relate to wider issues such as what it means to be a man, partner, father, or son. It also argues that many of these films have offered only superficial engagement with issues concerning women’s participation in sport and considers the extent to which race, ethnicity, and social class have also shaped the French sports film.

Filling a significant gap in the literature on French cinema and the study of sports films in general, this is fascinating reading for anybody with an interest in sport, cinema, or French history, culture, and society.

Jonathan Ervine is Senior Lecturer in French and Francophone Studies at Bangor University, UK. He is a specialist in aspects of contemporary French society and culture such as cinema, sport, and comedy. Much of his research focuses on debates about diversity and social cohesion in France.