Tag: Seán Crosson

Neil Archer rethinks the discussion of sport as a cinematic subject in his new book Sport, Film, and the Modern World (Peter Lang Publishing). Arguing for the vitality of the sports film as distinctively ‘modern’ genre, the book looks at its innovative potential to capture twentieth- and twenty-first-century sport in all its complexity. Prominent sport film scholar Seán Crosson is our reviewer, and while not uncritical, he finds that Archer’s book overall offers an insightful analysis of recent work and an ultimately convincing central argument for the importance of sport cinema.

Academics in various disciplines are writing about sport. Sport in Society is a multi-disciplinary and inter-disciplinary forum for academics to discuss the growing relationship of sport to significant areas of modern life. The Forum Editor’s pick from the current issue: Beyond the Noise: the cultural (or subcultural) politics of Irish surf films by Stephen Boyd (open access).

The Oxford Handbook of Sport and Society, edited by Lawrence A, Wenner (Oxford UP), features leading international scholars’ assessments of scholarly inquiry about sport and society. Divided into six sections, chapters consider dominant issues within key areas, approaches featured in inquiry, and debates needing resolution. Our reviewer is Richards Giulianotti, who edited the Sage four volume set The Sociology of Sport in 2012, and he finds that this new collection, some unnecessary omissions notwithstanding, is a welcome addition to the existing list of handbooks in the field.

Sport and film have historically been key components of national cultures and societies. Seán Crosson’s Sport, Film and National Culture (Routledge) is the first collection dedicated to examining the intersection of these popular cultural forces within specific national contexts. Garry Whannel, one of the world’s leading experts on the cultural analysis of media sport is our reviewer, and he is unequivocally enthusiastic; a few minor comments don’t affect the general coherence, focus and readability of the book.

Gaelic games, including Gaelic football, hurling, Gaelic handball and rounders, are the most popular sports played in Ireland, and form an important part of Irish cultural identity. In his book Gaelic Games on Film: From silent films to Hollywood hurling, horror and the emergence of Irish cinema (Cork University Press), Seán Crosson traces the Gaelic games through a hundred years of filmic representation, a journey that our reviewer Dilwyn Porter found most enjoyable.

Christer Ericsson Örebro UniversityPhilip Dine & Seán Crosson (red) Sport, Representation and Evolving Identities in Europe 369 sidor, hft. Bern: Peter Lang Publishing Group2010 (Cultural Identities Studies, Vol. 19) ISBN 978-3-03911-977-6The...