O'Brien, Martin and Tzanelli, Rodanthi and Yar, Majid and Penna, Sue E. (2005) The spectacle of fearsome acts: crime in the melting p(l)ot of Gangs of New York. Critical Criminology, 13 (1). pp. 17-35. ISSN 1205-8629
Full text not available from this repository.Abstract
This paper explores the multi-layered representations of violence and crime in the recent Hollywood film Gangs of New York [Scorcese (2003) Miramax]. We use our exploration of this film to suggest that popular culture, even through its most mainstream products, can be seen as a critical criminological space where alternative views of law, crime and the state are made available. Rather than understanding Hollywood movies simply as vehicles for disseminating conventional mores, we suggest that they can furnish ritical (and complex) points of view on law and crime and that the project of a critical criminology can be strengthened by engaging more forthrightly with these ubiquitous cultural forms.