Welcome to the Newschoolers forums! You may read the forums as a guest, however you must be a registered member to post. Register to become a member today!
Ive been a serious dick to you in the past, so here's some help.
Martin Scorcese wrote an essay about this...you can find some excellent citations (he was being blamed for kids murdering someone for his movie "Natural Born Killers")
“Memo to John Grisham: What’s Next—‘A Movie Made Me Do It’?” by Oliver Stone
and here's my critique.
The Movie Made Me Kill
Violence in the media does not influence violence in real life. It is a social injustice to blame our artists, directors, and writers for the violent actions committed by someone who happened to view their works. Holding filmmakers or writers responsible is an absurd philosophy that should not be tolerated in a free country.
Oliver Stone’s movie “Natural Born Killers” is at a controversial standing because one lawyer name John Grisham believes it is responsible for the murder committed by two very disturbed youths named Ben Darras and Sarah Edmondson. The two troubled teens have “histories of drug and/or alcohol abuse and psychiatric treatment” (687) which ultimately is the cause of their acts of violence. The children’s father also commits suicide after two divorces. Such devastating experiences definitely play a role in a youth’s psychological growth and well being. Sarah and Bens childhood was so disturbed that Sarah always carried a gun on her in fear that her own brother would attack her. Ben and Sarah’s childhood, and the atmosphere they were raised in, is to blame for their murderous actions. According to Grisham “Ben was quite anxious to kill someone.”(687) It is absurd to believe a 2 hours movie can stir up the hatred and uncivilized urge to kill.
The two troubled teens would have committed crimes regardless if they had seen the film or not. It is surprising they had not already murdered or robbed someone prior to the screening of “Natural Born Killers”, given the youths background. Omitting movies that depict violence would be a violation of the First Amendment. Alcohol and drug abuse may be a realistic influence for violent actions. The media just isn’t capable of creating a mass murderer.
It comes down to freedom of speech, and a work of art, or movie that depicts violence, should never be held accountable for the wrongdoings of an individual. Diverting the blame from whoever committed an act of violence is only propelling more violence, because lunatics will rent a violent movie, watch it, and believe that they cannot be held accountable.