Lesley University DigitalCommons@Lesley Senior Theses College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) 2014 "Breaking Boundaries" and Exploring Identity in Three Coen Brother Films Lauren Carey Lesley University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/clas_theses Part of the Film and Media Studies Commons Recommended Citation Carey, Lauren, ""Breaking Boundaries" and Exploring Identity in Three Coen Brother Films" (2014). Senior Theses. 2. https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/clas_theses/2 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) at DigitalCommons@Lesley. It has been accepted for inclusion in Senior Theses by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@Lesley. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Carey 1 Lauren Carey First Reader: Professor Liv Cummins Second Reader: Professor Ronald Lamothe Senior Thesis in Literary Criticism 1 December 2014 “Breaking Boundaries” and Exploring Identity in Three Coen Brother Films Audiences were first introduced to sibling filmmaking duo Joel and Ethan Coen in 1984 with their debut film Blood Simple. Since then the brothers have experienced considerable commercial and critical success with their 16 films, garnering six Academy Awards wins and more than 30 nominations. Attempts at naming a definitive style or genre or subject matter is a difficult undertaking when it comes to the Coen canon, and yet it seems to be this consistent unpredictability that continues to attract critics and audiences alike. Whatever the styles or genres they are working within or the subject matter of their story, though, the brothers’ interest in telling stories in America, about Americans is always clear.