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Phallic Matters? Ewan McGregor and the Representation of the Male Body in Peter Greenaway’s The Pillow Book (1996)

Fouz-Hernández, Santiago

Authors



Abstract

This article is a study of the representation of the male body in contemporary British cinema. It starts with a short exploration of how 1990s representations of masculinity in British cinema differed from those of the previous decade. A brief analysis of Neil Jordan’s The Crying Game and of some of the recent roles of actor Hugh Grant in mainstream cinema leads to a more detailed case study of Scottish actor Ewan McGregor and his role in Peter Greenaway’s film The Pillow Book. Relevant background on both actor and director reveals an overt awareness of and interest in the male body. The film’s approach to masculinity and its focus on the male integral nude question some of the, by now, tired conceptions that have surrounded many debates on male representation, such as the emphasis on the activity/passivity binary, the (male) gaze, or narcissism.

Citation

Fouz-Hernández, S. (2005). Phallic Matters? Ewan McGregor and the Representation of the Male Body in Peter Greenaway’s The Pillow Book (1996). Men and Masculinities, 8(2), 133-147. https://doi.org/10.1177/1097184x04265989

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Oct 1, 2005
Deposit Date Jan 28, 2009
Journal Men and Masculinities
Print ISSN 1097-184X
Electronic ISSN 1552-6828
Publisher SAGE Publications
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 8
Issue 2
Pages 133-147
DOI https://doi.org/10.1177/1097184x04265989
Keywords British cinema, 1990s, Performance.