Blood and Guts

Violence, for me, is almost a necessity. I love violence in movies. And anytime I hear a big speech about how these types of films corrupt our youth, I can’t help but release a deep sigh. In my everyday life, I am not a violent person, when I see real life violence on T.V. or in person, I hate it. There is a difference between movie and real life violence, and I think I am able to make this distinction. Most people can make this distinction too, but it is the small percentage that can’t separate the two worlds and create problems. What I like about violence in film is that it contributes to the realism. The more realistic the violence, the more powerful the film can be. It is nice to watch these physical feats, like in Casino Royal, The Bourne series, and nearly every Asian movie. To watch a bad guy get beaten to a pulp, and not feel sorry for him, because you know it is fake. I hate saying it is cathartic, but that is pretty much what it is. And as great as violence in film is, nothing is worse than a gross misuse of this tool. There needs to be a compelling story line that makes the violence plausible and realistic, otherwise the violence holds no emotional weight. My earliest memories of film include, every Jackie Chan movie created. I would go to the video store in my little town every weekend and rent one, all in the order laid out on the shelf. So I do not completely hate films that use violence as the main vehicle to progress the plot, but most of his films have a decent story. I am saying we shouldn’t condemn violent films because they can often prove to be the most emotion moments of the movie. We have had violence throughout human history, we don’t need to ignore it but just know how to distinguish what is okay in a film, and what is okay in the real world.