"The most popular film studies accounts of male spectatorship suggest that it is sadistic, "active," phallic. This sort of spectatorship was originally understood as a spectator position. It was not occupied by a male person. Rather, it was constructed by the film text. Over time, though, understanding of that position has changed. Now, the male spectator has begun to be conceived of as an actual male in the audience.

It is difficult to continue to believe in the machismo of that male spectator when consideration is given to the fact that the love story is a significant element in such a variety of Hollywood genres. Surely a man in love is normally mastered rather than mastering. He is, as Roland Barthes has claimed, "feminized" by love. If the spectator identifies with the on-screen male, then it must to some extent be with a hero that is troubled, insecure, and anxious."--BOOK JACKET.