Whose story should be told?
01/21/08 13:15
Now that
I know how to jack with my web site, I'll be doing it
all the time . . . the ego of having a forum!
I went to see SWEENEY TODD on Saturday night, and I was left with a few questions. I'll spare you the summary and attendant criticism (what a lot of blood!) except to say it was worth about $5 of my $7.50. When I did some research, I discovered Sweeney Todd is a historical figure (first appearing in literature around the mid-nineteenth century, which seems obvious from the film), and there are people who believe a real person did what the movie says he did. Thank you, Wikipedia.
So here's my question: do all people deserve to have their stories told? Is it worth it to tell the story of a revenge-obsessed man who butchers people so that his downstairs neighbor can feed them to the unsuspecting public? What's the moral of the story--don't get sucked in by revenge? You can't go home again? Don't serve people in pies? There's a series on Showtime called DEXTER, about a serial killer. My friend Royce. and many critics, say it's excellent--you want him to succeed. Excuse me? Isn't our society screwed up enough without glorifying people like Dexter and Sweeney Todd?
I sound like a complete square. Essentially, this is a fiction question, but it does have moral implications, because how do I teach my kid not to be violent and/or like violence when these characters are all over? And I paid to see them? I need to turn in my role model badge. The most excellent movie recently? NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN--and killing abounds in that film. If I adored that film, and the character of Anton Chigurh, who am I to dislike Sweeney Todd? Who am I to use Stephen King (his writing and his writing advice) in my creative writing classes? All of this is his fault, isn't it (I know it's not, but there are people who probably blame him instead of Poe and his ilk)?
There's a scene in SWEENEY TODD where he runs his fingers over photos of his wife and baby daughter, leaving streaks of blood on the glass. And I thought, "this won't end well." And it didn't. I know that one of the purposes of tragedy is to say "There but for the grace of God go I," but . . . . people like Sweeney Todd & Mrs. Lovett? It's so over the top that we KNOW we won't have it happen to us.
Maybe I'm not questioning society, just myself. My spiritual side says to love all, serve all, and not glorify gratuitous violence--and that's what I'm trying to teach my kid. Then here I am, loving NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. What does that say about me? Do I really want to know? Maybe I'm just keeping the alligators fed, as King says. We all have to take care of the alligators in the basement, so they don't escape.
Eeek.
I went to see SWEENEY TODD on Saturday night, and I was left with a few questions. I'll spare you the summary and attendant criticism (what a lot of blood!) except to say it was worth about $5 of my $7.50. When I did some research, I discovered Sweeney Todd is a historical figure (first appearing in literature around the mid-nineteenth century, which seems obvious from the film), and there are people who believe a real person did what the movie says he did. Thank you, Wikipedia.
So here's my question: do all people deserve to have their stories told? Is it worth it to tell the story of a revenge-obsessed man who butchers people so that his downstairs neighbor can feed them to the unsuspecting public? What's the moral of the story--don't get sucked in by revenge? You can't go home again? Don't serve people in pies? There's a series on Showtime called DEXTER, about a serial killer. My friend Royce. and many critics, say it's excellent--you want him to succeed. Excuse me? Isn't our society screwed up enough without glorifying people like Dexter and Sweeney Todd?
I sound like a complete square. Essentially, this is a fiction question, but it does have moral implications, because how do I teach my kid not to be violent and/or like violence when these characters are all over? And I paid to see them? I need to turn in my role model badge. The most excellent movie recently? NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN--and killing abounds in that film. If I adored that film, and the character of Anton Chigurh, who am I to dislike Sweeney Todd? Who am I to use Stephen King (his writing and his writing advice) in my creative writing classes? All of this is his fault, isn't it (I know it's not, but there are people who probably blame him instead of Poe and his ilk)?
There's a scene in SWEENEY TODD where he runs his fingers over photos of his wife and baby daughter, leaving streaks of blood on the glass. And I thought, "this won't end well." And it didn't. I know that one of the purposes of tragedy is to say "There but for the grace of God go I," but . . . . people like Sweeney Todd & Mrs. Lovett? It's so over the top that we KNOW we won't have it happen to us.
Maybe I'm not questioning society, just myself. My spiritual side says to love all, serve all, and not glorify gratuitous violence--and that's what I'm trying to teach my kid. Then here I am, loving NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. What does that say about me? Do I really want to know? Maybe I'm just keeping the alligators fed, as King says. We all have to take care of the alligators in the basement, so they don't escape.
Eeek.