Natural Born Killers Essay, Research Paper

The Tie between Violence, Adolescence, and Directors Many controversial issues have risen since the release of Oliver Stone’s Natural Born Killers. Many people believe that because of this movie children have been given the ideas of mass murder, insane outbreaks, immoral decisions and so on. Oliver Stone has been held morally responsible for many children rebelling against ethical standards because of his directing and his role in making the violent yet shockingly true film Natural Born Killers. Violence has become an immense part of today’s society, and should not be encouraged any further; but it is unfair to place blame on individual TV shows and movie producers. The movie Natural Born Killers may have implications of violence, and on the surface of it may even lead kids to believe violence is okay, or ‘cool’. The intent of Oliver Stone’s film was not about advertising violence, he was trying to make the viewer see past what the media dishes out to the public, telling us to look into the lives of the individuals who commit the crimes, and to then analyze individual situations and finally to make distinctive judgments. If taken the time to look into human development, it is clear that such acts of murder and violence start at birth and can not be gained by watching one movie. A viewing of such entertainment could trigger acts, but definitely not initiate them. Forceful acts and thoughts start in the home at birth when authoritarian parents try to control their children, rather than guide them. Often these children end up either running away from their problems/parents, or by acting on them. Kids who rebel often turn to other alienated children and then together these cliques dismiss societal rules, feeling that no one else cares for them and therefore disregard rules themselves. Children such as this could be triggered by this movie, but again there is no way it could initiate the problem. Stone’s intent on making Natural Born Killers, was to reach millions with his mockery on TV, violence, media, and the gullibility of American people. He was a genius in knowing how controversial this film would become, and he still chose to remain making this film because he had a message which he wanted to be heard. The ‘episode’ with Mickey and Mallory only becomes such a wide known fact because of how many viewers TV reaches, and also by how quickly it is dispersed to the public. It is presented as a ‘top story’ on the news because it is what American people watch and prey on. Stone had to have known that many people who viewed this movie would miss the main theme, and that too is another one of his satires. Stone’s way of over exaggeration is what manipulates the documentary. The exaggeration of a lot of things such as the high’s Mallory and Mickey go through and the ending of the film are what make the film unrealistic. He suggests use of the realistic mode by choosing to depict real life. Stone uses scenes which everyone can relate to, yet he also takes some things and manipulates them so that the viewer would know it to be untrue; such as when Mallory shoots a hole through the journalists hand. Granted, much of Stone’s film is very destructive and implies negative ethic, but it is a satire, and should be viewed as such. Children who are not old enough to find the depth in this film should not be watching this movie in the first place. Natural Born Killers is a movie full of hidden messages, it mocks the fact that Mickey and Malorey were able to attract such crowds, and in truth is mocking the adolescence who think they are ‘cool’, and understand these two

crazed killers. Adolescence is a time when children are looking for a self identity, they are confused and often times try out many before actually finding one which fits them. It is sort of like a game for a few years, where children in their early teens may even hang around with three or four different crowds, and with each one of these, they may act differently. It is a normal procedure for young adults, yet they must be watched closely at these times to make sure they do not fall into the wrong crowd, and develop negative virtues. American children watch an average of three to four hours of television each day. Television as well as movies can be a powerful influence in developing value systems and in shaping behavior. Unfortunately, much of today’s television programming is violent. TV and movie violence have an immediate impact on children, they become “immune” to the horror of violence, they begin to accept violence as a way to solve problems, and they imitate the violence observed. Even a child growing up never watching a day of television in their life, are capable of viewing guns as being okay, if the parents commence this. In order to solve the problem of violence and hate which has encompassed our lives in the twenty first century, society has to listen to Stone and find the source of these problems. Children have to be educated on the harm of violence; but before educating children, we must begin with the parents. Children are capable of deciphering things on their own, but to get such corrupt thoughts as to imitate Mickey from Natural Born Killers by shaving your head and then going off and killing people, there must be a deeper initiation. Parents and older people are the best educators for our children, they are the ones who are respected, admired and imitated. It is a harsh society to raise children in today and this makes parenting very difficult, but parents need to make sure children are able to fathom between life and the movies; if not, then the parents are to blame. Violence is what sells, and Oliver Stone is only as guilty as all the TV producers and video game manufacturers. He wrote this film in expectations of delivering a message of how filthy the media is, not without the intent that this film would be a big hit centralizing the theme of violence. Stone tried to clear up explain his intent at a high school presentation: “Stone clarified his rationale behind directing Natural Born Killers in such a sensational manner, explaining that his motive was to “regurgitate” what he was seeing in the media in 1994. “Two ice skaters push each other on the ice and it [makes] front pages in all newspapers what a dumb thing.” When asked how he would respond to critics who felt that Natural Born Killers was responsible for “copycat” crimes, Stone played on a common anti-gun-control argument, declaring, “My movies don’t kill people, guns kill people.” This retort was greeted with an enthusiastic roar of support from the audience” (www.bxscience.edu). The famous quote does ring true, and it is parents who need to realize how crucial education is before it is too late. Placing blame on society in itself for the violence which has taken over America is one thing, but blaming specific individuals is completely different; it is only a scape goat. Parents need to pay close attention to what their children view, they need to set limits on how many hours of time they spend in front of the TV, and they need to point out that violence in real life causes pain or death. Hopefully when this happens, people can finally sit back, laugh, understand the intellectual satire which Stone has directed, and be proud of the children they have raised.