Spanishness in the Spanish Novel and Cinema of the 20th-21st Century is an exploration of the general concept of “Spanishness” as all things related to Spain, specifically as the multiple meanings of “Spanishness” and the different ways of being Spanish are depicted in 20th-21st century literary and cinematic fiction of Spain. This book also represents a call for a re-evaluation of what being Spanish means not just in post-Franco Spain but also in the Spain of the new millennium. The reader will find treatments of some of the crucial themes in Spanish culture such as immigration, nationalisms, and affiliation with the European Union as well as many others of contemporary relevance such as time, memory, and women studies that defy exclusivist and clear-cut single notions of Spanishness. These explorations will help contextualize what it means to be Spanish in present day Spain and in the light of globalization while also dissipating stereotypical notions of Spain and Spanishness.

Reflecting on a series of ethical and moral questions significant to contemporary Spanish culture, Cristina Sánchez-Conejero analyzes several issues related to sexuality in gender as they're portrayed Spanish film.

The first few minutes of a film orient the viewer, offering cues for a richer, more nuanced reading. With this premise, the author provides many insights into the history of Spanish language film, encouraging an enhanced understanding of the Spanish/Hispanic canon commonly taught in courses on film. The author explores El espiritu de la colmena (1973), La historia oficial (1985), Fresa y chocolate (1994), El crimen del padre Amaro (2002), Abre los ojos (1997), Te doy mis ojos (2003) and Carlos Saura's flamenco trilogy--Bodas de sangre (1981), Carmen (1983) and El amor bruno (1986), among others.

The book explores post-Franco Spanish film’s tacit or explicit, but always resolute, essays from 1975 to 2000 to make over Spain’s national, in fact post-national, identity.

Across a broad spectrum of media, markets, and national contexts, self-reflexivity continues to be a favored narrative mode with wide ranging functions. In this book Amago argues that, in addition to making visible industry and production concerns within the film text, reflexive aesthetics have a cartographic function that serves to map the place of a film (geographic and cultural) within the global cinemascape, and thus to bring into sharper relief images of the national. Focusing on films in the contemporary Spanish context that in some way reflect back on themselves and the processes of their own production, that purposefully blur the distinction between reality and fiction, or that draw attention to the various modes of cinematic exhibition and reception, Amago proposes ways in which these movies can be employed to understand Spanish national cinemas today as imbedded within a dynamic global system.

Women's Narrative and Film in 20th Century Spain examines the development of the feminine cultural tradition in spain and how this tradition reshaped and defined a Spanish national identity. Each chapter focuses on representation of autobiography, alienation and exile, marginality, race, eroticism, political activism, and feminism within the ever-changing nationalisms in different regions of Spain. The book describes how concepts of gender and difference shaped the individual, collective, and national identities of Spanish women and significantly modified the meaning and representation of female sexuality.

Historical Dictionary of Spanish Cinema covers Spanish cinema, its treasures its constant attempts to break through internationally, reaching out towards universal themes and conventions, and the specific obstacles and opportunities that have shaped the careers of filmmakers and stars. This book contains a chronology, an introduction, an appendix and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 200 cross-referenced entries on titles, movements, filmmakers and performers, and genres (such as homosexuality, nuevo cine español or horror). This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Spanish cinema.