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Recommended: Violence in films
The two movies, Gun Crazy and Bonnie and Clyde, hinge around the notion of violence. The major themes that these movies address are violence, and general crime. Each movie indicates some elements of order and elements of chaos. This explains why the classical narratives and Hollywood genres address the issue of chaos and order as they prevail in society. Comparing the two elements, it is evident that Bonnie and Clyde draw much from Gun Crazy in many aspects. There is mass shooting in both the movies, which is an indication of violence that exists in their respective societies. The characters become entangled in criminal activities with different motivations. There are various factors which trigger the pairs in both the movies to carry out crime in the society. This study seeks to prove that classical narratives and Hollywood genres are structured along the lines of conflict between order and chaos through their inherent themes within their social and ideological contexts.
Gun Crazy portrays the idea of chaos in distinct ways. As a young person, at the age of 14, Bart Tare robs a hardware store and makes away with a gun. The issue of robbing a store represents existence of chaos in the society since stealing is not a virtue but a vice that exist in the world. A later marriage between Bart and Laurie triggers the genesis of the existence for chaos portrayed in the movie (Lewis, 1950). After the marriage, the couple runs out of money and as such, Anne gives Bart a stark choice. It is either he joins her in a career of crime or she abandons him. Both these characters are the epitome of chaos. In Bonnie and Clyde, chaos begins to occur when the two stars meet at an episode when Clyde is attempting to steal Bonnie's mothers car. Bonnie ...
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...ly towards eliminating chaos in the society and establishing order.
Ultimately, it is clear that classical narratives and Hollywood genres are structured along the lines of conflict between order and chaos, the law breakers cause chaos as per the genres, while the police and the FBI in each case take to implement order by arresting the people who bring about chaos. Unruly civilians also carry out crime in order to establish chaos. The authority represented by police and FBI implement order by following lawbreakers in order to ensure that they are sentenced as appropriate.
References
Lewis, J, H, dir, 1950, Gun crazy, Retrieved from, http://viooz.co/movies/19511-gun-crazy-deadly-is-the-female-1950.html /. (Accessed February 26 2014).
Penn, A, dir, 1967. Bonnie and Clyde, Retrieved from, http://www.sockshare.com/file/21CFED1064F7D713# (Accessed 27 February 2014).
In “The Thematic Paradigm,” University of Florida professor of film studies, Robert Ray, defines two types of heroes pervading American films, the outlaw hero and the official hero. Often the two types are merged in a reconciliatory pattern, he argues. In fact, this
1. Sobchack’s argument pertaining to on -screen violence that she wrote thirty years ago was that any violent acts portrayed in movies back then was to emphasize the importance of an element in a story, an emphatic way of engaging the viewers and forcing them to feel what the movie was about. It gave them a sense of the substance of the plot which would allow them to feel for the characters and yearn for good to overcome evil. In other words, the effort made to engage audiences through depictions of violence created violence that was artistic and well done, or as Sobchack writes, violence was “aestheticized.” Violence was incorporated into film in a stylistic way, and even though violence in all forms is offending, twenty five years ago when it was seen in film, it had a greater impact on audiences because it had meaning (Sobchack 429).
In the article “The Thematic Paradigm” exerted from his book, A Certain Tendency of the Hollywood Cinema, Robert Ray provides a description of the two types of heroes depicted in American film: the outlaw hero and the official hero. Although the outlaw hero is more risky and lonely, he cherishes liberty and sovereignty. The official hero on the other hand, generally poses the role of an average ordinary person, claiming an image of a “civilized person.” While the outlaw hero creates an image of a rough-cut person likely to commit a crime, the official hero has a legend perception. In this essay, I will reflect on Ray’s work, along with demonstrating where I observe ideologies and themes.
Case one was in August of 1906 when John asked Polly Hutchison’s parents for permission to ask for Polly’s hand in marriage. They were all very excited about this “and a bit relieved after Jack’s dramatic announcement, that if he wasn’t allowed to marry Polly, he would blow his brains out” (8). People who have a stable mental state do not threaten to commit suicide, especially when it is hardly necessary. In another instance, Simmie mentions Jessie having to hide John’s guns; “she had hidden his service revolver more than once when he threatened to kill himself,” (110). A new wife having to hide her husband’s service revolver to prevent him from committing suicide is not normal and is just another reason Sergeant John Wilson is insane. As well, while John is fantasizing about a life with Jessie he considers how great his life could be if Polly “conveniently died”(56). Luckily for Polly, John decides not to proceed in that direction right away because many people in Regina know Polly, but he never once states murder would be wrong. John having thoughts of harming him or others for personal benefits is not a healthy mentality to
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"A Loaded Gun," is a piece by Patrick Radden Keefe, which published on February 11 and 18, 2013 on The New Yorker weekly magazine. This piece revolves around Amy Bishop, a neuroscientist working at the University of Alabama, Huntsville city. On the day of February 12, 2012, at the conference room of the Shelby Center for Science and Technology, Bishop used a 9-mm rifle killed three colleagues and wounded three others. The question is how does a person with a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. D) from prestigious university of Harvard, with a cozy family-a husband and four children, with no criminal record turn into such a cold-blooded killer? Does Bishop's tenure ended is the main reason that leads to the crime, or because of her "gun accidents" that
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Manson criticizes the media’s actions and comments about how bullied children could turn these two criminals into their new idols. He wants the reader to see that publicizing violence has only made matters worse and not to “expect the end of the world to come out of the blue- it’s been happening every day for a long time” (Manson 421). For Manson, he see understands that incidence of violence has not increased, it’s the spread of the knowledge that has
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