or, what you watch depends on who you are? That’s a kind of nature / nurture question. Or a “what came first?” trope. Isn’t it? Were you born a sociopath, a psychopath, or did events beyond your control make you into one? Is there such a thing as “bad seed”?
I came to this question when YouTube recommended to me the 1978 movie, Every Which Way But Loose. The recommendation I resisted for weeks because I remembered it as silly. However, I’d just watched the Netflix documentary, Chimp Empire and thought, why not revisit it? Because I recalled it featured an ape. I wanted to compare what I’d learned via the 2023 chimp doc, with that which Hollywood had shown us forty-five years ago.
Furthermore, a new John Wick movie was just released and that series (beginning in 2014) popped up on a feed. I’d not watched any of the three previous Wick flicks; but my son was a fan. And, he was coming out for a visit.
Maybe, I thought, we’d do a dinner and movie thing? so I’d better catch up.
[Funny how our mind works, isn’t it?] Let’s get into it.
It’s the same old song
or, at least, the same story. I can draw a line from chimp behavior, to a 1978 Hollywood film featuring an ape, to an ongoing current movie series featuring a sociopath. Of course, there are differences. Largely due to cultural and technological ‘upgrades’. However, progress is not a word I would use to describe all that is happening.
John Wick
In the first Wick film, the ‘bad guy’ declares to our ‘hero’, “People don’t change. You know that. The times they do.” John Wick is trying to change because of a woman. Because of love. For love’s sake. Again, the antagonist posits wisdom, “It was over a woman. Of course.” (Wick was the most ruthless assassin the world has ever known. And, he worked for the worst of people – The Russian Mafia.) He wants out. He wants to settle down with Helen – the woman he fell in love with.
The trope is: Strong, silent, tough, alpha male falls in love, turns tender (shows tender side) and desires to start a family. He also likes to rescue animals. Aww … how sweet. How cute.
Every Which Way But Loose
The trope is the same.
Chimp Empire
It’s the same story; but real and thousands of years old.
If Apes Could Talk?
However, they can’t. Nevertheless, judging by his behavior I’m pretty sure Jackson (the alpha chimp) wouldn’t have much to say. He seems very similar to Philo and John – ‘talks’ with his fists. Moreover, he’s a ‘man’ of few words.
All three are ‘men’ of action. They lead violent lives that often result in death and destruction. Tragically. Do they have a choice?
And Yet
the alphas, all three, live to fight another day. Against all odds. (Another trope.) Because they have friends, or alliances. That’s because they are the best at what needs to be done. They are competent. Which is? Something that requires “focus, commitment, and will”. According to … the laws of nature. And also story tellers and screen writers.
In other words, the strong survive. Regardless of whose story it is, or who’s writing it.
In Conclusion
I know I’m asking more questions rather than providing support to my headline. Because I’m curious as to what you think.
I know I am in a great minority as to why we do what we do. (Seventy-five percent of Americans believe in a Higher Power. And that Power guides us, but grants us free will.) The why of our behavior. (Most Americans believe in choice. I believe free will is an illusion.) I adhere to theories, beliefs, and positions that are not popular. Regarding individuals, populations, and groups.
I think we are mostly driven by unconscious motivations. In other words, Freud was right. We are, I think, mostly neurotic, or separated from our true Self. We don’t know who we are.
The John Wick series is, I think, deleterious to the health and well-being of humans. Because it gives permission, or validation to the natural inclination that ‘might makes right’. After all, that’s nature’s way.
However, I could be wrong. Maybe it’s just entertainment. Maybe I’m overthinking?
Inherent Violence
seems to be a part of nature.
Clyde, the orangutan in Every Which Way But Loose, was beaten to death by his trainer after the movie. I’m sure the dogs and horses in the John Wick movies have been treated far better. Notwithstanding, school shootings didn’t exist before The Matrix (March 1999). The Columbine massacre happened the next month. Coincidence? Theories are many, but no single motive has been agreed upon.
In Every Which Way But Loose the sound track is Country Western music – love and loss. In John Wick it’s Metal – violent and aggressive. In Chimp Empire the soundtrack is Classical and natural. The violence, in each, is different also. In the two Hollywood movies it’s often vicious but comical. In the documentary it’s shocking. The technology (cars, phones, and special effects) evolves from ’78 to 2023. Especially the weapons – from tooth and claw to machine guns and bombs. The culture (bars, restaurants, food, music, language, currency) also evolves.
In 1978 it was okay to drink and drive! It was okay to hit people who were assholes. Helmets and seat belts were not the norm. And yet … some things don’t change. Such as human nature. [look here:]
In the 21st Century, something seems to have gone wrong. People, it seems to me, have taken a wrong turn. It could be the Internet? Almost certainly, social media. People have lost touch – in every which way you can.
Post Script
Earlier I posted You Are what You Read. That idea came from a 1998 Hollywood movie. For sure, more people watch screens than read books. Reading, overall, is on the decline. Moreover, that which is being read is more often less than stellar.
I believe that writing is thinking. Writing is a way to organize and clarify the noise in your head. My question is: Where does the noise come from? From screens? From a “collective unconscious“? (Jung was right, too.)
Let me know what you think? I’m curious. Have you watched the above mentioned movies?