Violence in fictional movies and TV series
Posted: Sun Jun 05, 2022 7:38 am
There's a poll y'all can answer.
I'm getting increasingly tired of the increasing realism of violence in fictional movies and TV. I've always been turned off by it, even as a kid. I remember one of my friends and my brother playing a video game called "Phantasmagoria" when I was maybe 10, and I just left the room.
I think violence and gore have a place, and it is important, within reason, to not shy away from it nor sanitise it when it relates to real-life situations. I think that sensitive use of awful images is justified to show what is happening in the world (for example, to sway public opinion).
But I think somehow the appetite for explicit portrayals of violence, torture, etc., in fiction is strange. And the fact that it is becoming more and more mainstream I think is difficult to interpret. It might speak to a growing desensitisation to such stimuli, like people are increasingly exposed to violent images. What was shocking in the 70's no longer has the same impact, and the escalation continues.
The problem for me is when I see violence, gore, torture, and such, there are different ways I can process that. In a purely fictional setting, if there is very explicit gore, I cannot really process this happening to a person or character, especially if they suffer (rather than just die), I will almost always resort to telling myself that these are just special effects and it's not really happening, which just removes the immersion. I mean, isn't the other option just to take it at face value, and watch someone being tortured for entertainment?
If the setting is based on a real-world story, I guess it can be justified to show the horrors of what really happened.
I don't know. I just don't want to be subjected to violent images on a whim, and in my opinion, there's something gratuitous about how graphic violence is being increasingly used in movies and TV.
I'm getting increasingly tired of the increasing realism of violence in fictional movies and TV. I've always been turned off by it, even as a kid. I remember one of my friends and my brother playing a video game called "Phantasmagoria" when I was maybe 10, and I just left the room.
I think violence and gore have a place, and it is important, within reason, to not shy away from it nor sanitise it when it relates to real-life situations. I think that sensitive use of awful images is justified to show what is happening in the world (for example, to sway public opinion).
But I think somehow the appetite for explicit portrayals of violence, torture, etc., in fiction is strange. And the fact that it is becoming more and more mainstream I think is difficult to interpret. It might speak to a growing desensitisation to such stimuli, like people are increasingly exposed to violent images. What was shocking in the 70's no longer has the same impact, and the escalation continues.
The problem for me is when I see violence, gore, torture, and such, there are different ways I can process that. In a purely fictional setting, if there is very explicit gore, I cannot really process this happening to a person or character, especially if they suffer (rather than just die), I will almost always resort to telling myself that these are just special effects and it's not really happening, which just removes the immersion. I mean, isn't the other option just to take it at face value, and watch someone being tortured for entertainment?
If the setting is based on a real-world story, I guess it can be justified to show the horrors of what really happened.
I don't know. I just don't want to be subjected to violent images on a whim, and in my opinion, there's something gratuitous about how graphic violence is being increasingly used in movies and TV.