Cirrus@Austlit

'In Reel Men, Chelsea Barnett provides an original interpretation of films of the fifties, that screened different understandings of Australian masculinity, when men felt the responsibilities of breadwinner, father and husband that were not easy to disentangle or reconcile. It is part of Barnett’s innovative approach to argue that films that dealt with Australian personalities, histories and settings conveyed Australian meanings, even when they were co-produced with British or American cinema companies.' (Introduction)