A Postmodern Exploration of the Screened Dialogue between Past and Present and the Acceptance of Domestic Gender Performativity in Ventura Pons’ Barcelona (un mapa) (2007)
Holmqvist, Jytte LU
(2018)
In At the Interface / Probing the Boundaries
114.
p.118-128
- Abstract
- This paper explores the postmodern elements in Pons’ film Barcelona (un mapa) (2007). Of interest is the screened portrayal of the tolerant relationship between a Catalan husband and wife and the fluid gender notions adhered to by the former; a man who repeatedly engages in gender performativity within the safety of his own home and who by refraining from doing so in a public external space could be considered sexually inhibited as he may feel hindered to express himself in contemporary Spain, conscious of the social stigma that he may attract were he to embrace his dual identity. The paper additionally analyses the representation of Barcelona as a capital that can be mapped and spatially explored, the scenes depicting Barcelona’s eclectic... (More)
- This paper explores the postmodern elements in Pons’ film Barcelona (un mapa) (2007). Of interest is the screened portrayal of the tolerant relationship between a Catalan husband and wife and the fluid gender notions adhered to by the former; a man who repeatedly engages in gender performativity within the safety of his own home and who by refraining from doing so in a public external space could be considered sexually inhibited as he may feel hindered to express himself in contemporary Spain, conscious of the social stigma that he may attract were he to embrace his dual identity. The paper additionally analyses the representation of Barcelona as a capital that can be mapped and spatially explored, the scenes depicting Barcelona’s eclectic architecture, and the cinematic photo-effect as a method by which Pons connects the pre-democratic past with the global present on screen. Barcelona (un mapa) is based on Lluïsa Cunillé’s 2004 screenplay Barcelona, mapa d’ombres. Translated into English as Barcelona, Map of Shadows, the shadows from the past linger in a visual narrative mainly steeped in the present. The film’s postmodernity is reflected in its collage-like structure, with a cinematic montage challenging a conventionally chronological time pattern. Specifically, the story-line criss-crosses between past and present through regular flashbacks from times gone by and an opening scene featuring black and white footage of the decisive moment when Franco forces entered Barcelona in 1939. The viewer is then swiftly transported into a colour-tinged present. Such a non-linear narrative structure underscores the postmodernity of the film, as does the episodic plot containing lengthy and highly theatrical dialogues between two characters at a time. Rather than on external action, Pons explores the complex relationships between his protagonists and also between these characters and their increasingly postmodern urban habitat.
(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/9634123a-6dd3-4b67-b20f-2f15f0916ead
- author
- Holmqvist, Jytte
LU
- publishing date
- 2018-12-10
- type
- Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
- publication status
- published
- host publication
- The Patient-Doctor Dynamics : Examining Current Trends in the Global Healthcare Sector - Examining Current Trends in the Global Healthcare Sector
- series title
- At the Interface / Probing the Boundaries
- editor
- Holmqvist, Jytte
- volume
- 114
- pages
- 11 pages
- publisher
- Brill
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85168157643
- ISSN
- 1570-7113
- ISBN
- 978-90-04-38655-6
- 978-90-04-38656-3
- DOI
- 10.1163/9789004386563_013
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- id
- 9634123a-6dd3-4b67-b20f-2f15f0916ead
- date added to LUP
- 2024-09-05 09:11:52
- date last changed
- 2025-01-10 18:43:53
@inbook{9634123a-6dd3-4b67-b20f-2f15f0916ead,
abstract = {{This paper explores the postmodern elements in Pons’ film Barcelona (un mapa) (2007). Of interest is the screened portrayal of the tolerant relationship between a Catalan husband and wife and the fluid gender notions adhered to by the former; a man who repeatedly engages in gender performativity within the safety of his own home and who by refraining from doing so in a public external space could be considered sexually inhibited as he may feel hindered to express himself in contemporary Spain, conscious of the social stigma that he may attract were he to embrace his dual identity. The paper additionally analyses the representation of Barcelona as a capital that can be mapped and spatially explored, the scenes depicting Barcelona’s eclectic architecture, and the cinematic photo-effect as a method by which Pons connects the pre-democratic past with the global present on screen. Barcelona (un mapa) is based on Lluïsa Cunillé’s 2004 screenplay Barcelona, mapa d’ombres. Translated into English as Barcelona, Map of Shadows, the shadows from the past linger in a visual narrative mainly steeped in the present. The film’s postmodernity is reflected in its collage-like structure, with a cinematic montage challenging a conventionally chronological time pattern. Specifically, the story-line criss-crosses between past and present through regular flashbacks from times gone by and an opening scene featuring black and white footage of the decisive moment when Franco forces entered Barcelona in 1939. The viewer is then swiftly transported into a colour-tinged present. Such a non-linear narrative structure underscores the postmodernity of the film, as does the episodic plot containing lengthy and highly theatrical dialogues between two characters at a time. Rather than on external action, Pons explores the complex relationships between his protagonists and also between these characters and their increasingly postmodern urban habitat.<br/><br/>}},
author = {{Holmqvist, Jytte}},
booktitle = {{The Patient-Doctor Dynamics : Examining Current Trends in the Global Healthcare Sector}},
editor = {{Holmqvist, Jytte}},
isbn = {{978-90-04-38655-6}},
issn = {{1570-7113}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{12}},
pages = {{118--128}},
publisher = {{Brill}},
series = {{At the Interface / Probing the Boundaries}},
title = {{A Postmodern Exploration of the Screened Dialogue between Past and Present and the Acceptance of Domestic Gender Performativity in Ventura Pons’ Barcelona (un mapa) (2007)}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/9789004386563_013}},
doi = {{10.1163/9789004386563_013}},
volume = {{114}},
year = {{2018}},
}