Germany, Italy, and Spain: Eroticism and Desire under European Fascism

Abstract

Introduction. Cinema as Desiring-Machine
Endika Rey

Discussion
Alejandro Montiel, Vinzenz Hediger, Marta Muñoz Aunión, Raffaele Pinto, Gino Frezza

Conclusion. The shadow of the bodyEndika Rey

This text offers some reflections on the treatment of eroticism and desire in cinema under German, Italian and Spanish fascism. Censorship and repression under the dictatorships were integrated into a pre-existing cultural and moral framework where female sexuality was ultimately conditioned by a derealisation of the face through the mask. This body turned ghost is both privative and productive because the star system controlled but also satisfied the desires of the masses. Different types of femininity were constructed based on the particularities of each country and regime, but several similar codes were also used to create an ideal image of the woman. With the end of fascism, this constrained eroticism would be redirected to include forms such as pornography, although the boundary between the two concepts has been blurred and identity structures are still under the influence of patriarchy and commercialism. The history of the cinema of desire can help us to read the body and face of female figures in the modern era.