The conflict which came to be known as the ‘War on Terror’, instigated by the administration of President George W. Bush in 2001 and continued by his successor Barack Obama, was the first war of the twenty-first century and an event of profoundly global reach and implication. While the majority of its military operations were undertaken in Afghanistan (2001–14) and Iraq (2002–11), this volume turns its attention to another vitally important front of the war, the films produced by the American film industry in the first decades of the new millennium. Now, more than fifteen years after the events of 11 September 2001, it is clear to see that these films not only function as a uniquely telling and resonant cultural battleground in which conflicting ideologies were projected for all to see, but were also able to shape the cultural imaginary of post-9/11 America in a range of compelling ways. While the ‘War on Terror’ was officially brought to an end by President Obama in 2013, it is one that is still fought in the films about the conflict which continue to be made today.

This edited collection is an attempt to interrogate and explore the complicated relationship between film and society in these turbulent ‘War on Terror’ decades. It seeks to make a contribution to the remarkable body of work which already exists that examines the symbiotic exchange between national identity and the politics of cinematic representation (see Kracauer 1947; Wood 1986). How far films are able to reflect and influence the cultures and times in which they are made remains a matter for continued debate, but what is clear is that much of the cinematic output of the post-9/11 era is deeply immersed in the tumultuous environment which saw the films produced.

The authors of this volume, many of whom are the foremost scholars in their field, have already made considerable contributions to the study of American film and culture.