
As you may have read by now, Jim Carrey - star of the upcoming Kick-Ass 2 - has distanced himself from the movie. In a series of tweets, he said:
I did Kick-Ass 2 a month b4 Sandy Hook and now in all good conscience I cannot support that level of violence. My apologies to others involved with the film. I am not ashamed of it but recent events have caused a change in my heart.
I think the Comic Outpost put it best on their Facebook page: "Nothing wrong with Jim's stance on violence. EVERYTHING wrong with his timing."They go on to explain that choosing now to come out against violence (and presumably not promoting the movie) is hurting everyone else who worked so hard on the film by drawing a negative light on the picture. Which is a self-serving, ill-timed move.
As the father of a little girl myself, it's easy for me to agree with Carrey. I'm not that comfortable with the level of violence in the entertainment world when I think about what my daughter might see. But that's not unexpected - parenthood puts a new lens on things. However, the anxiety I feel around my daughter and violence has recently started effecting my inner geek.
A few years ago, I lived happily with my double standard. "I'd hate for my daughter to see Kick-Ass, but I can't wait to see it!". But now it's even starting to bother me some. I think the fact that I'm 40 and have seen 3 decades worth of violent films gives me some perspective. It's not like the violence is adding all that much for me anymore - you've seen 1,000 buildings blow up, you've seen em all!
For the most part, we go to movies to escape. And when the screen is reflecting the violence we see in the news...well, that's not really much of an escape, is it? I don't think Hollywood is the cause of the violence. But I also think it wouldn't hurt to tone it back a little...at least for a while. I also know that that will likely never happen - sex and violence sell!
And as I write the above, I know full well I'll be paying to go see Kick-Ass 2 in the theaters. I guess I'm part of the problem. And a hypocrite to boot. Sigh.
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