In the interests of transparency: I've always liked the original Star Trek, but never got into the later ones. Oh, I'd watch an episode here or there if it was on and someone else was watching, but as good an actor, for example, as I knew Picard to be, I just liked the original ensemble acting: Kirk, Spock, Bones, Uhura, Scotty, Sulu, and Checkov, plus the occasional guest star. Saw all the movies with them, too. My favorite, the number I forget, but the one in San Francisco, with the whales.
Tonight, I'd give the new movie about three stars out of four (this may be more generous than a non-original-Star Trek fan might be). In fact, I have my reservations how much someone who had never seen the original series would like this movie. (Anyone have a thought on this?) Loved seeing Leonard Nimoy in a great supporting role. A few quibbles: the new Spock's voice, the new Checkov's hair, a bit more "Raiders of the Lost Ark" scenes and last minute rescues than I needed. But a good origin/creation story, with some nice twists.
So why am I p*ssed off? Because of the coming attractions. And because I've been following the unfolding Wesleyan University stalker/murder story for the last two days...
You may have seen that story. A single, pathetic, psychopathic loner with a few guns not only murdered a woman whom he'd previously harassed at NYU two years ago, but terrorized an entire community for two days, until he turned himself in.
What does that have to do with the coming attractions? Well, as always when I go to a movie I want to see, the coming attractions are so over-the-top with shootings, explosions, and other violence that it literally makes me feel sick.
I'm not saying that I never watch that stuff. But the more I am sickened by real life violence, the less I want to watch fantasized, glorified, hours of it on the big screen. I don't even like to watch Star Wars movies anymore.
And I certainly don't want to play shooter or fighter video games.
I know that some of you like that stuff. And I don't want to sound judgmental. But does it really, truly, in your heart of hearts -- when you have taken the defensiveness and denial from your arguments -- seem healthy to spend lots of time and attention on that type of stuff? Or seem healthy to allow your children, or our culture's children, to do that?
At Wesleyan University. Could be your college, your high school, your town. One guy, a couple of guns, a lot of lives ruined, even more traumatized, and a whole lot more disrupted. And this was nothing compared to Columbine. Or Virginia Tech. Or what happens in Iraq, Darfur, Afghanistan...
Can it really help for us, as a culture, to spend time -- sometimes lots of it -- with pursuits that glorify the guns, explosions, violence stuff?
Do you indulge in such (perhaps guilty) pleasures?
Do you not?
What do you think?
UPDATE: As I said in response to Kaelri's thoughtful and honest comment below:
I should have said, I am not against all depiction of violence. Only that which glorifies it or sensationalizes it without doing anything of use. An anti-Nazi or anti-war movie probably NEEDS some graphic violence to make its point. So do many detective movies. I liked The Bank Job, and that had violence in it, but for a purpose...
Also Please see updated poll, separating out observing vs. participating...Hmmm, guess I don't know how to update a poll. Any suggestions?