Killers, killers, everywhere we look. War in Ukraine and Russia, in Gaza and Israel, an ongoing slow-motion war in America of white supremacists and Christian Nationalists against brown and black bodies. Those are battlefields in which individuals have blood on their hands, but their violence is inspired, influenced, and enabled by systemic corruption.
And there’s another American battlefield on which everyone is losing with no sign of relief: Men we have failed by providing insufficient mental health care are lashing out with violence, using the weapons of war we hand over to them to commit mass killings. It’s enough to make you wonder: Gee… what in the world might we do to change this?
I have a suggestion: Look at this graphic and vote carefully. (Post by film critic Melissa Tamminga used with permission.)
In order to understand such any of these horrific trends of violence and address them with wisdom and conscience, we need great art about violence to help us see more clearly.
Looking for my review of Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon? I’ve posted a substantial essay offering some first impressions at Give Me Some Light, my Substack journal. (Everyone can read the opening paragraphs, but the full review is available only to paid subscribers for now.)
Did you know that David Fincher — director of Seven, Fight Club, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Zodiac, and Gone Girl — has new film in theaters right now for a very limited time?
If you’re content to wait for a streaming option, The Killer will be on Netflix before you can announce “The return of Michael Fassbender!” I didn’t wait. I went straight to the theater, and I’ve posted a first-impressions review at Give Me Some Light. This one is free for all to read.
