Then, Schindler notices a small child, wearing red, walking calmly amidst the chaos. The fact that the movie was shot in black and white made this little girl stand out all the more.
There she was, walking down the street, while death and chaos reigned supreme, and innocents were being slaughtered like cattle. Then she walks out of sight and is not seen again until later in the movie, when Schindler spots a small red bundle of a girl lying dead in pile of human bodies, ready to be either burned or buried in a mass grave.
This is the kind of think Spielberg wants us to remember. And remember we must.
That is because the violence in this movie, and in "Saving Private Ryan" is not gratuitous. It has a purpose and, though devastating to watch, it actually makes us better people to watch it.
But these days, my tolerance for gratuitous violence is at historically low levels. And modern films are better than ever at delivering violent content and messages. I think of movies where the violence is senseless and ceaseless; basically a parade of human carnage. Movies like "American Psycho," "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," and series like "Friday The 13th," "Nightmare on Elm Street," the "Alien" series, and on and on and on!
And each movie tries to be more frightening, more violent, and more offensive than the last, just to capture the hearts and minds of the increasingly hardened audience. Not that Spielberg is necessarily taking that approach with "The War of The Worlds," but, overall, the trend is clear; how many humans can we kill in a single movie?
And I've found that, with each passing year, my tolerance for the mass-murder-movie experience grows less and less. Which, in my opinion, is a good thing.
With all that said, the jury's still out on whether or not I'll show up for "War of The Worlds." It is scifi after all.
David Flanagan
Viewpointjournal.com
Article comments
1 - RJ
Oh, this is one movie I am amped for!
I must admit to being a bit infatuated with "end of the world" movies. I absolutely loved Independence Day, for example.
Does this say something bad about me? Or our culture (these movies generally do quite well as the Box Office...?
2 - -E
I don't think that a hardened heart against violence in movies means you will be less concerned about violence in the real world. I love films like Pulp Fiction and Boondock Saints. The unforgiving violence is a source of humor in them. In real life? I've been known to cry just thinking that people have to suffer from [insert whatever people suffer from] or even suffer from it on a regular basis.
What do I think that means? I think it means that parents, teachers, guardians, role models, and every adult has to make sure they teach that very thing- that being ok with death or pain in a movie doesn't mean it is "no biggie" in real life, but quite the opposite. I think these movies provide people with a sort of release where it is ok to see it and not have to react emotionally. It is an escape from reality in that sense. That way, when you go home and turn on the 10 o'clock news you have just that much more in you to be able to handle the world and react accordingly.
3 - Steve S
I love horror, sci-fi, battle epic, military, thriller, espionage, action and hitchcock films! I also love to read Clive Barker and HP Lovecraft and can hold my own against veteran Doom players, armed with only a chainsaw. But I also care still enough about lives that I'm willing to be called a ranting fool for trying to save them.
I guess it's different for everybody. I get caught up and emotional in the sweeping epics and great cinematography and in tragic love stories.
4 - Eric Olsen
very thoughtful David, and the thinking viewer does have to reconcile the often tossed off mass violence of film and TV as "entertainment." I agree entirely that Savign Private Ryan and Schindler were in no way gratuitous and forced you to FEEL the loss.
We picked up the original Star Wars trilogy DVD sert over the weekend, and I was reminded that the destruction of an entire planet by the Death Star was perhaps the most massive act of murder in screen history, yet it carried relatively little emotional weight, which bothered me quite a bit.
5 - DrPat
Should this be in Video? Maybe as a secondary category, at least?
6 - David Flanagan
DrPat: Good point, I've updated the categories to include a few video categories like "horror," "scifi," and "movies."
RJ: I loved ID4 too. I still like the movie. I wasn't a Dad yet when that movie came out, but I think of the scene where the First Lady is dying from internal injuries in a hospital bed and she wants to see her daughter so that she can say goodbye. That was a moving scene in an otherwise shallow action epic.
As scifi goes, ID4 is first rate. Not much there in the way of plot and character development though. With that said, Spielberg is a master at character development, as he has demonstrated over and over again. I thought "Minority Report" was a fascinating movie, not the greatest scifi flick I've ever seen, but one in which we got to know the characters and the motivations of the characters.
War of The Worlds will likely be a powerful movie, and I'm worried that the mass slaughter side of the movie is going to very tough to deal with. It gets too depressing for me sometimes.
Anyway, thanks to everyone for your great comments.
David