Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Kickass

So if you're like me, you occasionally need a break from your existence. And if you're like me, you don't drink. (not likely...but quick shout out to my girls in the hot chics who drink perrier club!) So if you're anything like me, you'd think sneaking off to go see a movie with friends on a Wednesday night would be just the thing.

But here's where the trouble starts.

beloved friend: we're going to see Kickass at the 3 dollar theatre.
me: Oh that looks good. But. I just read on flixter that it's pretty gratuitous in the violence department.
beloved friend: oh I haven't heard that.
my inner voice: don't do it, not worth it.
me: Cool - sure, sounds good.
inner voice: go see How to Train Your Dragon! Hubs would never watch it with you. You love animation. You can't WAIT to see Toystory 3. Why risk it?
me: what time does it play?

I hate violent movies. I violently hate violent movies. I can't watch the murderous mayhem, it churns my guts and makes me just shake. So thanks to my unfortunate ignoring of the very articulate and clear inner voice, tonight I landed myself at an incredibly violent movie.

And I'm still shaking.

There was a ton of redeeming stuff about it, in terms of production value, ideas, acting even. The parts I watched anyway, most was watched from behind my hands or with averted eyes. Perhaps it was a very good movie, but I  hated it with every cell in my overly sensitive body. Afterwards I went into the badly lit pink bathroom of the 2nd run theatre and had a good cry.

I cannot reconcile this experience sometimes, I don't know how to do this. How do you raise a kid in a world where we think it's funny or charming or fun to watch an 10 year old girl kickass with every weapon known to human kind? And I"m a fan of dark comedy, I get that, but I'm still just blown away (bazooka to the chest) that our society thinks it's neat to make a super action killer character out of a little girl. It's disgusting. And, y'all know me, I'm not one of those Mom's who wants to censor the world or what not - but SERIOUSLY - how is this okay?

One of the scenes played just like a video game, I lost track of the body count. To which I say, video games harumph. I don't play them. I don't want the boy to play them. Ever. Certainly not the gun-ee or goreee ones. How can I protect him from that? It's so ubiquitous. I'm so screwed here people. In fact today there was a war of sorts just beyond the sweetness of our font porch. Seven kids ranging in age from 4-9 were battling it out with orange and green machine guns. Foam pellets flying. The sweet 8 year old girl who comes by to walk brown dog was at the forefront with her big, creepy, cute colored gun. And what's even more upsetting? She looks like she knows how to carry the damn thing. As if I know what that looks like.

As we drove home I thought about his sweet blonde head asleep in the crib. The sound of the ocean plays in his room and tiny little butt is pushed up in the air under a crocheted blanket his grandmother made for him. In the morning we will pick him up and he will smile his blindingly sweet smile at us. His white soft arms will wrap around us, he may touch my cheek with an open palm as he's done lately. We'll read him books about a little red barn with all of the animals, nothing about the genetically modified crops in the fields or the terrible slaughtering practices in the other barn. Or the killing going on in theatre's nationwide. I don't know how to reconcile the worlds.

But on the porch I saw the battle going by while the little one joyfully yelped and barked the sounds of learning a language. At least I could just inhale his sweet baby skin and dream of the billions I could make if there was some way to bottle his smell.

(what I see when I am lying on the padded porch with the BHB - this is sorta cliche California, right?)
sweet faced dude 

Here are some sun-soaked porch pictures. Today was the first day I saw him successfully stack the legos himself. Clearly the kid is a genius.

And I prayed he didn't notice the guns, no doubt he'll ask me for one soon.

Yours in-between worlds,

4 comments:

  1. Ah! Jane! Why are we not movie buddies? I hate hate hate hate hate violent movies. I stupidly went to the theatre to see Million Dollar Baby and not only did I HATE the movie, I spent the whole time with my eyes shut and my ears jammed between my knees so I wouldn't have to hear the gore. I'm more of a TV fanatic than a film buff, but there are a number of shows I've cancelled the season pass to because they're just too violent: all Law and Orders, all CSIs, 24, etc.

    I could talk for HOURS (seriously, you'be like, "JJ, okay, I got it, can we talk about something else now?") about the oddness of American's comfort with both super gory blood/guts and casual non-realistic gunfights that imply mass deaths without showing them BUT unending fear of a little bit lady boob or pubic hair. Like people are all freaked out about moms bfing in public but then they go home to watch some CSI dude excavate semen out a prostitutes eye socket and that's fine. Assholes.

    This has long been #1 on my list of Reasons to Leave the United States. Also, reason #1 to Reform the Movie Rating System and reason #1 to Just Walk Around With My Boobs Out Like A Crazy Hippie All The Time In Protest of Bizarre and Unhealthy Cultural Standards.

    ReplyDelete
  2. JJ - you're a genius. The whole time I was writing this post I was thinking, JJ would kill this topic with her big brain. I so love you and totally, ottally agree.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ha, JJ! I love you and your big brain. I would love to hear you talk about this. I don't watch those shows either, because I really object to their casual victimization of women and their overly graphic portrayal of violence. It desensitizes stupid people (not us). Same thing oftentimes with the evening news!

    I do let Five watch some violent cartoons--he is exploring superheroes, mortality, etc. and I would rather have conversations with him about these themes than try to censor. I can't put him in a bubble, unfortunately!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Amen. I cannot watch violent movies and will be one of those mothers who won't have any toy guns in my house... looking forward to all the tantrums I'm going to get from my boy when he realizes that half of his friends have them....

    ReplyDelete