It’s A Violent World! Who Can We Blame?

In the wake of the recent shootings, near misses, and the ever present weapons debate, there has been a lot of finger pointing. It is only natural that angry and frightened reactions will lead to half-baked attempts to bring reason to these tragedies.

There have been a number of studies that claim to find a link between graphic violence and it’s impact on individuals in the real world. This may seem initially conclusive based on the occasional ‘copycat’ crimes that make the headlines, however it’s a step too far to conclude a film is genesis of ‘evil’. The potential for malevolent behaviour surely must come from a much deeper, and more complicated place in the human psyche.

In a recent interview with Quentin Tarantino (see below), the Channel 4 News presenter Kirshnan Guru-Murthy probed the veteran director for his take on the aforementioned topic. Tarantino’s reaction was perhaps a little too heated, but must have been expected from the experienced news anchor. The question of ‘responsibility’ has been thrown around a lot lately in reference to some kind of duty held by studios and directors to not only entertain, but to educate and act as a ‘moral compass’ for the masses. Is it really the responsibility of a film director to censor their creative vision based on the assumption that they could otherwise unhinge an already troubled mind?

It’s important to remember that violence is nothing new. The world has always been a violent place. Where do you think Tarantino and his predecessors got their inspiration!?

Photo credit: Silvio Sousa Cabral

Tagged Films, Guns, Kirshnan Guru-Murthy, Moral compass, Quentin Tarantino, Responsibility, Violence