I actually felt like an idiot for thinking about it during the movie.
I mean, it’s been over a decade and I was safe and sleeping in a dorm room when it happened, and yet when I always see cities getting blown up in movies, I can’t help but think of September 11 and the fear I felt afterwards. It wasn’t fear of cities falling or nuclear weaponry so much as I was afraid of taking the train or being gunned down on the street.
And as time passed, like the rest of America, I learned to just keep on living. But I still think about it every time I see a building fall or a patriot burn in a movie, and superhero movies are no exception. Even though Chitauri (alien robot like creature things) do destruction in New York in The Avengers, I thought about it then. Rewatching Independence Day was tough, too.
The Dark Knight Rises doesn’t even take place in New York (it’s Gotham City) but during the movie I thought about it. I mean I don’t think you see that kind of thing happening on TV for real and then just forget about it when it happens in a movie.
After I came home and wrote my review, I heard about the news–the shooting in the Colorado movie theater. I also saw the story about an aspiring reporter who died.
The shooting has raised all sorts of feelings, talk, and questions about why this would happen, and why at this type of movie. I love comic book movies, and I go to see almost all of them. Heading out to see them on opening night is a really fun tradition, kind of a mini-dose of a comic book convention where you can see people in costume and geek out with other fans.
Now this happens. While it could have happened anywhere, in any type of movie, it happened in this one. I’ll provide a welcome spoiler alert: in The Dark Knight Rises, we learn not to give in to this type of fear–even though people die.
I guess what I mean to say is that it’s just a part of life now. It happens every so often, and social media amplifies the impact. Even though I didn’t love this movie, I think you should go watch it and see it for yourself. I did like the message of the movie, which has now been forever solidified by this incident.
PS: Please stop badgering the president and the Republican nominee for remarking on this tragedy. It doesn’t matter whether Obama is running for re-election or if you agree with his policies. He’s the president. When bad things happen, it’s his job to remark on them and console the people. I’m not a Romney fan, but he’s vying for the job and people look up to him; has every right to show that he can do the same thing.
