This course takes a look at some of the dramatic, ironic, and comedic films about Italian ethnic identity. Studying films from the silent era to the present, we will consider how filmmakers represent an Italian identity outside of Italy. Our approach to these films will be on the interplay between cinematic style/formal structure and narrative/representation. Our study will mostly focus on examples from Italy and the United States (given the wealth of examples from those two national cinematic traditions) but we will also consider film from other parts of the Italian diaspora (e.g., Argentina, Switzerland). Films we will consider include: The Black Hand, Emigrantes, Rocco and His Brothers, Wild is the Wind, A View from the Bridge, Mafioso, The Godfather, Bread and Chocolate, True Love, Big Night, Mean Streets, Goodfellas, My Cousin Vinny, Do the Right Thing, Lamerica, Nuovomondo (Golden Door), My Name is Tanino, and The True Legend of Tony Vilar.

Required Reading: All required reading materials will be provided in digital format. All readings are in English. No knowledge of Italian is required.