Ominous Homelands in World Cinema

Winner of the 2026 Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Coimbra International Publications Prize (Prémio Publicações Internacionais da FLUC)

Ominous Homelands in World Cinema examines contemporary films from a range of national settings that expose and critically engage with representations of “Homeland” – a term that resurfaced with renewed intensity in the United States through the establishment of the Department of Homeland Security after 9/11 and gained traction across Europe, contributing to the formation of new securitarian configurations whose impact has resonated globally.

By drawing on contemporary films from different national contexts, and relating these with emerging political discourses, this book explores some of the new meanings and images associated with ideas of home and land. The analysis also traces how notions and representations of “Homeland” in popular culture have increasingly become infused with themes of security and control, not only linked to terrorism but also progressively connected to a number of other global processes such as the so-called “refugee crisis,” the emergence of new geopolitical powers, wars and the rise of authoritarian leaders and nationalistic movements in different parts of the world.

This book will be of interest to students and scholars in media and film studies, American studies, cultural studies, critical security studies, international relations, contemporary history and global studies.