Dirty Harry’s Place…

An insightful look at a disturbing trend:

IT WAS A BOLD move. The movie industry, long condemned as purveyors of every conceivable offense for the sake of a buck, was taking a stand. We will not abide by this rot anymore, it said, pounding a fist into its hand; the time has come to take the high ground, no matter the financial consequence. And with that, it was announced . . . James Bond would no longer smoke cigarettes. Who says show biz has no morals?

With this dust-up settled, we can nosh on the veggie platter while enjoying the latest trend in movie entertainment: child abuse. Two movies at last year’s Sundance Film Festival got the ball rolling. The first, Hounddog, starred Dakota Fanning as a 12 year-old raped by an Elvis Presley fan in Alabama during the 1950s. …

Whither this trend? Either moviemakers have decided they’ve gone as far as they could go with adults, or this is as good as any way to persuade kids to “accept their sexuality.” And if you think I’m kidding, let’s listen to Deborah Kampmeier, the director of Hounddog: “There were so many stories I need to tell in Hounddog. About motherlessness, the cycle of abuse, the triumph of this girl’s spirit and the power of female sexuality.”

Boy, she could fertilize enough crops to feed Minnesota for a year with stuff like that. Another writer/director, Alan Ball, essentially makes the same point in this year’s Towelhead, featuring a 13 year-old Arab-American girl raped by–but of course!–an American reservist. The difference here is that Towelhead is described as a “dark comedy.” You’re holding your sides, I’m sure.

Hounddog, An American Crime and Towelhead are part and parcel of the movie industry’s current favorite character, the sensitive pedophile. Kevin Bacon (The Woodsman) and Jackie Earle Haley (Little Children) are just two of the more prominent actors tackling this visionary role. … We’re supposed to sympathize with their characters because . . . um, I don’t know. I have a feeling, however, if these “heroes” were Catholic priests, the make-up department would’ve been working triple-overtime to make horns grow out of their heads.

It’s a question asked time and again: when it comes to movies, is anything really offensive? Well, just try pitching a script that portrayed Sacco & Vanzetti as a couple of two-bit, bomb-throwing thugs. Or the Rosenbergs as spies for the Soviet Union. I think you’ll find your answer pretty quickly.

I heard Dennis Prager once say that if liberals hated terrorists as much as they do cigarette smokers the world would be a much better place. I would add that you could say the same for child molesters and drug dealers. 

Back in October of 2006 I wrote a post noting this trend and would add two films I’ve seen since that loves them some child molesters: Happiness Notes On A Scandal and L.I.E.  Admittedly, if viewed in a moral vacuum both are excellent films making you wish the filmmakers would use their considerable talents elsewhere.

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