Silence of the Lambs
I’ve seen parts of “Silence of the Lambs” three or four times now (only once in the R rated version). I know that the acting is terrific and the “production values” are great and that it has other qualities that people in the know prize about movies. My concern has to do rather with why we are attracted to a movie like this in the first place. I can’t help feeling that at least part of the attraction lies in the sick nature of the plot. I’m not saying that somebody is going to go out and kill somebody because of the movie or that in watching it we get to do terrible things vicariously. We certainly want the good guys to win. I think the attraction is more subtle than that. However, I am willing to entertain the notion that no matter how subtle the attraction is, to yield to the temptation to watch it may be wrong. There is certainly no “message” to the film that I could find -- nothing that would justify lacerating our senses as it does. I realize that there are plenty of movies that are produced purely for their “entertainment value” but this film (and others like it) seem to produce in us a wrong kind of fascination. Here are some legitimate questions: Why do we want this in our heads even for two hours? Is the very impulse that makes us want to see it, wrong? Should such an impulse be resisted EVEN IF there are no other long or short term behavioral consequences to viewing it? Perhaps so.
posted by unca | 6:35 PM
7 Comments:
Unca, is there something in fallen (and I lay my cards on the table as I say "fallen") human nature that delights in evil? If so, does this bent find its way into our preferences in entertainment? If the interest we have in a story like Silence of the Lambs is due to part of our fallen existence, then is the interest we have in a story like The Bridges of Madison County actually any different? Paul says that the command, "Thou Shalt Not Covet" produced within him every form of covetous desire because of his fallen nature and the principle of sin that prevailed whithin him. Do the commands "Thou shall not murder" and "thou shall not commit adultery," or even the unregenerate conscience that says these things are wrong make them in some way appealing to us? Why is the "Bad Guy" in a story always more interesting?
I think that there is a draw or an interest in evil in general. 9 out of 10 folks would find a study of Demons far more interesting than a study of Christ (CS Lewis suggested this is why we are told so little about devils).
Some like Neil Postman argued persuasively there is no value in TV or film as it doesn't require any response or discourse, though you have written about Silence of the Lambs and I have responded, so maybe Postman was just a BIG EGGHEAD!
Why do we want this in our heads even for two hours?
In my opinion people have different tastes on what entertainment is and what is entertaining. Some people like rollercoaster’s and some people hate rollercoaster’s I think it’s the same with movies. Going to see a movie that will test and play with your emotions or put your emotions on a rollercoaster ride is very entertaining and exhilarating to a lot of people. Then there are people who say “why would I see a movie like that? I want to have good time and feel good when I go to the movies” These are the folks that will just go on the merry-go-round.
Is the very impulse that makes us want to see it, wrong?
I guess it would depend on the type of impulse you have. It’s like any thing else in life. If you sit in your room alone and do nothing but watch Silence of the Lambs and can recite all of Hannibal Lector’s lines and will eat nothing but liver this would not be healthy. If you like psychological horror movies for the “rollercoaster” effect I would say it’s pretty harmless.
I have met people that are very sweet and wouldn’t hurt a fly and then I find out they have seen all of the Halloween and Friday the 13 movies and vise versa.
Should such an impulse be resisted EVEN IF there are no other long or short term behavioral consequences to viewing it?
I think I kind of answered this when I answered the previous question.
Note: My rollercoaster analogy is assuming that you are an adult. I might allow my 10 year old daughter to ride a rollercoaster but I wouldn’t allow her to see Silence of the Lambs for obvious reasons.
i think you've articulated very well something that i've wondered about for a while, while occasionally indulging in things like SotL anyway.
i don't like certain images in my head. i don't enjoy slasher movies. i worry that exposure to certain behaviors might affect my subconscious. i usually close my eyes if the really gory stuff comes on.
that said, i also agree with blogball that it might not be necessary to get our panties in too big a bunch about a scare flick (or novel, or play, or whatever).
it's all a pretty slippery gray slope. is hitchcock okay, but tarantino not? is some hitchcock bad and some good? where's the balance between thought-provoking or mind-broadening and just plain crap? and are we being unrealistic and stupid to create a little cocoon of non-violence around ourselves? we can't cry every time a furry animal gets killed, or we wont' be able to function in the world.
it'd be possible to insulate ourselve from violence/cruelty to such a degree that any violence at all paralyzes us -- maybe that would be doing ourselves a disservice in that it makes us more vulnerable and weak.
are these legitimate concerns? is eva mendez the most beautiful model/actress onscreen today, or do J-Lo's assets (har) win her the top spot?
these are the questions that beg to be answered. especially if the J-Lo one involves a lot of research.
The older I get, the more circumspect I am about what I watch. Of course, there is nothing wrong with entertainment, but I think, as Christians, we should seriously consider what we are putting into our minds. Paul says in Philippians 4:8, "Finally, brethren, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever, things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy -meditate on these things." Somewhere in Romans Paul states, "But I want you to be innocent about what is evil and knowledgeable about what is good." Maybe I sound too simple here, but it seems to me that Silence of the Lambs is something that one wouldn't call "good" or "praiseworthy." In scripture, we see battles and are told of beheadings, etc. but it is nothing like the grotesque violence in Silence of the Lambs. I never saw it but have been told by many just how gruesome it is. You can still see "psychological" thrillers without the graphic violence and perversion present in Silence of the Lambs. Oh, I don't really know what to say about J.LO:)
Anonymous, your last comment is interesting since it was the passage from Phillipians that got me thinking about this in the first place!
Just a quick follow up with more of a non-secular response.
I guess it comes down to how seriously we take a form of entertainment.
With Halloween coming up some Christians do not participate because it was a pagan holiday and they conceder it harmful and immoral for their kids to participate. Some Christians consider it completely harmless. Some Christians participate but they will not let their kids dress up like devils, ghosts, witches etc. Three different views and different impulses to resist and probably different opinions on what is noble, just, and pure.
As a Christian myself (and this is just me). I just think there is much more to us than the movies we watch or the books we read or the masks we wear.
I certainly agree that our forms of entertainment are just a small part of who we really are. This is why this is so confusing to me. I also know that people can get caught up in this kind of debate to the exclusion of much more important things. The Halloween example is a good one because it presents much the same issues. So anyway, I'm still thinking about this. For the record, I'm not trick or treating this year.
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