See the mix of sex and violence?
The Sandy Hook school massacre has made me more sensitive to the ubiquitous image of guns in movies and popular culture. I was in the BART with my son today, and was disturbed by the movie poster for Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters.
Here's the link. More thoughts below the squiggle.
No wonder disturbed young men turn to violence to solve their problems or express their rage. It's part of our cultural fabric. Don't get me wrong -- I like movies and tv shows that depict violence. But I'm beginning to question that -- the need to be titillated by ever more shocking violence to be entertained.
The Hansel & Gretel movie poster is particularly disturbing because it mixes a children's story with adult violence, with a dash of sex appeal. It normalizes violence in a way that is unsettling and likely to contribute to our culture of violence.
Has anyone ever seen the movie The Fast Runner? If you have not, it's worth a rental. What struck me about this indie film is how the main character rejected violence even when he was being hunted and betrayed. When his tormentors were discovered, they were turned out of their tribe. No revenge. No violence. Just justice.
I'm probably whistling in the wilderness, but I do wish we could upend this culture, question the desire for revenge and gun slinging. As a mother, I don't want my son to grow up with so much violence as normal, as reflexive, as first resort, as entertaining. He already does a lot of gun play with his Lego and Halo toys. He's not likely to hurt a fly -- but some other kid who is watching violence movies will.