Heroes in our modern day are not builders or explorers, rather they are killing machines who sit around doing nothing until other people (who are more in love with killing) hatch an evil plan that involves killing. That basically sums up every superhero film I’ve seen, including the ones I like (Watchmen/The Dark Knight) and the ones I don’t like (every Marvel film ever)
Villains are the only characters in modern films who actually have values that can be emulated. They’re usually anti-social, industrious, and selfish. My kind of people. Of course they always turn out to be murderers in modern flicks, because that’s just about the only way Hollywood can brand a character as universally evil. They have to be industrious and selfish and rich so that the masses can feel la revolucion for 90 minutes, but then again the entire audience might not be feeling that vibe (Steemit Anarchocapitalists). In order to make a character universally condemnable, that character needs to be more than a capitalist, they need to be a murderer to boot.
I don’t blame the actors, or even the writer/director. I suppose ‘blame’ is a harsh word given that I do not claim the right to dictate the content that flashes across the silver screen. That being said, this pattern of story telling has occurred across thousands of films and therefore must be the result of someone’s volition…
The producer. The producer secures financing for a film, and it is audience appeal that drives the worthiness of an investment in a film. Producers know that the masses don’t want a hero that reminds them of their greedy capitalist bosses, they want a hero that reflects their values… but since they have no values what we’re left with are these empty shells (superheroes) that stand for nothing, have no ideals, and who pretty much only leave the couch when the villain commits and action. Their only value is a non-value given that it’s pretty much impossible; being at the right place at the right time to prevent a negative event from occurring.
That was why I actually liked watchmen. Even though the characters let 50+ million humans die in the end, at least they had some principals and ideals. Dr. Manhatten valued world peace, and so he was willing to take the blame for Veidt’s crime, while Rorshach couldn’t live with the lie because it violated his code of ethics. At least this was a piece of entertainment that had a point other than; “killing humans is wrong (except when the gov’t does it) and having plans is evil (because having volition is evil).”
(Quick side note: I have mountains of respect for successful Hollywood producers, they're art lies in chasing the $, not in determining what philosophical content will tickle my overly discriminating tastebuds. The story telling landscape of Hollywood is a reflection of the values of viewers, those whose wallets democratically determine the most common content at the theater.)
That’s why the films I write and produce feature heroes that have to make decisions beyond “Do I kill the villain who so villainously killed a bunch of innocents” or “Do I save the hot babe or do I save the world?” My heroes and villains emulate reality, not fantasy, and they all stand for something.
I’ll be sharing footage from both my previous and upcoming films right here @escapehatch, an evil bunker built deep below a secret volcano, where great stories sit in cryo-chambers waiting to be read. Don’t keep them waiting any longer!