National allegories in film. The viewers’ perspective

Abstract

Cinema has created new forms of collectivity, namely identity-political and affective connections between the viewers and the state, nation, and the power of history. The article discusses this connection using the “state genre” neologism. This enables the Author to place the film genre within the socio-political hierarchy and in the context of film production and reception. Based on feminist theories of spectatorship, an attempt is then made to capture a viewer’s perspective as part of community formation. In this context, Teresa de Laurentis’ narratological approach is of interest, as it describes the process of building identity through the image. As an affective figure, the allegory also seems relevant, as it enables the viewers to attain some perspective on the projected images – or to modify their opinions, as they perceive the images to form an allegory. The viewers allow for this process to happen, and to be overpowered by the images (this is conditioned, among others, by the dissolution of gender semantics). The Oscar-winning blockbuster Saving Private Ryan (USA 1998) is presented as an example.