Life imitates Art. It happens. And I think that is all there is to be said about the connection between this act and the movie character that inspired it. But not all there is to be said about why.
Some asshat in London has re-fueled the whole violence-in-media debate after indulging in his own murderous impulses. A rabid fiend of horror movies, especially the A Nightmare on Elm Street series, Jason Moore took a home-made Krueger knife glove and attacked his sleeping friend, slashing him in the face, neck and hands. The friend survived, but Moore has received life in prison for his crime. An investigator of the attack stated: “It is obvious these films influence the way people act. It gives us some concern, and unfortunately we have to pick up the pieces afterwards.”
First off let me commend this writer for calling this violent offender an asshat. It’s my favourite insult word.
Secondly, the article later mentions that this guy was also a big “fan” of serial killers, but the media wasn’t reporting THAT influence, just the focus on the Freddy Scissorhands.
This is not the first time we see this kind of media scapegoat. In the 70s it was Dungeons and Dragons being blamed for Satanic rituals and disappearing kids in sewers. In the 80s we saw Rock Music being blamed for disobediant kids (Thanks Twisted Sister) and suicides, and finally in the 0s and even still we hear movies and video games being blamed for violent behaviours.
Now I am not going to argue that these things can clearly influence or inspire some acts, like this asshat and his method of choice inspired by Krueger’s bladed glove. But really is it valid to say that it was Krueger that inspired this behaviour (or horror movies in general) or are those just feeder fish to the bigger problem?
This guy’s unhealthy attachment to serial killers and violent behaviour was likely what made Kreuger appeal to him, not the other way around.
One of my favourite XBox games is Crash Burnout. In this game you are to run your opponents off the road or force them to smash into innocent bystander’s vehicles in order to earn some turbo points to increase your chance of winning a race on the streets of major cities around the world.
Does this mean I am going to become an erratic driver? Suffer from road rage? Run people off the road because they get in my way? I WISH!! That would be so much easier than just sitting in traffic.
Oh wait. I have a brain. So I don’t do that. If I did, it wouldnt have been the result of one video game. There would be a pile of OTHER problems if I suddenly went postal.
So stop blaming Freddy Krueger for real life acts of violence. Lets look at the REAL problems and get these people some help with ALL their problems.
What do you guys think on this?
