The wounds of nations

Swedish crime fiction became an international phenomenon in the first decade of the twenty-first century, starting with novels but then percolating through Swedish-language television serials and films into English-language BBC productions and Hollywood remakes. This book looks at the rich history of Nordic noir, examines the appeal of this particular genre, and attempt to reveal why it is distinct from the plethora of other crime fictions.

In a world defined by the flow of people, goods and cultures, many contemporary French films explore the multicultural nature of today's France through language. In a cinematic landscape increasingly characterised by multiculturalism and linguistic diversity, a number of contemporary French films are beginning to represent multilingualism as a means of attaining and exerting social power. This book is the first substantial study of multilingual film in France. Unpacking the power dynamics at play in the dialogue of eight emblematic films, it argues that many contemporary French films take a new approach to language and power. The book begins in central Paris in Polisse and Entre les murs, then travels to the banlieue in Un prophete and Dheepan. It then heads to another culturally loaded but very different space with Welcome and La Graine et le mulet, whose border-crossing stories unfold in the port cities of Calais and Sete respectively. Then, in London River and Des hommes et des dieux, the book steps off French soil, travelling to the English capital and former French colony of Algeria. It explores characters whose lives are marked not only by France, but by former colonies, foreign countries and other European states. In its depiction of strategic code-switching in transcultural scenarios, contemporary French multilingual cinema shows the potential for symbolic power inherent in French, other dominant Western tongues, and many migrant and minority languages. The book offers a unique insight into the place of language and power in French cinema today.

The Playboy magazine has always reminded its readership of the Playboy-Bond connection by commenting on its longevity and significance, especially in relation to times past. Among other things that James Bond and Playboy have in common is the fact that they are both strongly associated with the sixties. They were launched at about the same time in 1953, and are still around. This book is primarily organised around the story of the relationship between them, played out in popular culture as part of wider cultural relations. Though the chapters outline the emergence of the Playboy-Bond relationship, they also draw on relevant historical and theoretical concerns. The research presented focuses on the public version of the Playboy-Bond relationship as mediated by Bond and Playboy magazine and evident within the shifting realms of culture and the media. It also discusses how the close relationship between Ian Fleming and Playboy was publicised in print with some form of commentary. How Fleming and the Bond novels endorsed Playboy, and how Playboy endorsed Ian Fleming and Bond novels, against the backdrop of American popular culture, is discussed. After discussing Connery's Bond, the book presents some illustrative examples of this connection, especially in terms of consumer preferences, style and taste. It draws together arguments on male fantasy of 'strategic and selective "liberation" of women in order to discuss the women in Bond and Playboy. Finally, the book considers how the two remain interconnected, and as long-standing cultural icons representing the playboy lifestyle fantasy.