Introduction
God Bless America is one of the films that has garnered much attention since its release in 2011. It is a dark comedy film, which features the aspects of black humor and political satire. Jeff Culotta produced the film through Darko Entertainment. It was written and directed by Bobcat Goldthwait, an American comedian. The film features starring as Joel Murray, Melinda Page, Mackenzie Brooke, and Tara Lynne. It was distributed by Magnolia Pictures.
God Bless America is one of the most vicious reflections of the American pop culture. The film is a relentless, tasteless, and a violent look at a man’s response to the dying culture of America. It reviews how people have incorporated senselessness and tailored disrespect in a positive trait that it becomes only logical to snuff out those who impact it. The paper will discuss and present an opinion as to whether mass killing is the best way to restore reasonableness and compassion in the American Society.
The Plot of God Bless America
The film God Bless America features an unemployed, cruel, and a possibly terminally ill young man named Frank from Syracuse. He is angry with how the United States has fallen into a state of rudeness based on the pop culture, TV, talk radio, and internet influences. He is also irritated because his life is becoming unpleasant with many unforeseen things besieging him. Frank perceives that committing suicide is the best way to solve his hardships, which makes him lose his senses. However, he changes his mind when he watches a reality show highlighting a spoilt teenager named Chloe. He travels Chloe’s school in Virginia where he shoots her at point-blank range. Roxy, Chloe’s fellow student witnesses this murder. However, she comes to the same realization as Frank that the country is on the verge of decline because of evil, spoilt, heartless, and selfish people.
The two become friends, and they agree to get rid of all rotten citizens, who make the country a ruthless place to live. Frank explains to Roxy that he is angered by the bad people committing blatant cruel acts against their fellow men. Roxy proposes that they kill Chloe’s parents. They both agree. Frank shoots Chloe’s father while Roxy stabs Chloe’s mother. It is from here that the two get more serious with their killing spree. Eventually, Frank receives a call from his doctor who reveals that the initial medical results were mixed up. He stated that Frank could be suffering from hypertension and modest stress rather than terminal cancer. Excited that he could not die soon, Frank escapes to France accompanied by Roxy intending to escape prosecution for the murders they had committed. One day, while dining at a hotel, Frank discovers that Roxy’s family was not what she had described when he saw Roxy’s parents searching for her on television. Different from what she had termed her family as, her mother and father were typical Americans living in a middle-class neighborhood. Roxy confesses that she had lied to Frank, and this makes them divide. Agitated, Frank goes to an illegal firearm shop where he buys a rifle. He then proceeds to the American Superstarz Studio where he assaults and kills all cast members while holding several judges and contestants hostage. Later, he makes an honest speech in front of the cameras about how irrationality and selfishness are promoted in the American Society and television. When the security personnel arrives, Frank and Roxy shoot all the judges, audience, and contestants. Later they are gunned down by the police.
Themes
Murder
Murder is one of the leading themes that Goldthwait presents in his film God Bless America. Throughout the movie, killings are witnessed. Among the notable examples of the slain include the Westboro Christians, Chloe and her parents, the teenagers in the theater, the judges, and audiences. Frank and Roxy executed the murders.
Revenge
Frank is on a revenge mission against the cruel, selfish, and the mean in the society. He is revenging on behalf of the oppressed, and people who are recipients of evil acts of others. He is seeking for an American society where people show compassion for each other.
Cruelty
The film passes messages that depict mercilessness and heartlessness. For instances, the film shows that all Christians are evil and deserve to die. Also, the movie claims that all fans of reality shows are also bad and ought to die. Overall, the film is against the dumbest, meanest, shallowest, and the loudest. As such, the film promotes acts of mercilessness.
Evil
The theme of evil prevails throughout the film. At first, Frank is seen engaging in an unpleasant conduct with a woman at work. Also, evil is seen when Frank plans to murder himself and his neighbors. Moreover, seeing that people are cruel to their fellow men is an indication of deep-rooted evil.
A Review of God Bless America
The American culture is seemingly a society declining to the bottom. From a real life observation, reality television stars such as the Kardashians celebrate materialism, pettiness, and unearned celebrities. The Tea-Party led Republicans have intensified a contagious strain of conservatism characterized by demonization, meanness to the needy, intentional ignorance, and ideological stubbornness. So many Americans seem overly contented in what they are told while waiting for the next freak show or celebrity meltdown. I agree with the film’s message of dumbing down all fanatics of reality shows. People should be discouraged from surrounding their entire lives with reality TV shows and films. They should not be fooled by television shows such that they forget that there is another world to explore.
The American Society is reportedly full of uncompassionate, mean, and selfish people. For the heroes in God Bless America, the solution appears simple as it entails merciless killing of all perceived offenders. The product is a movie that is partly an intense liberal revenge fantasy. The film so profoundly emphasizes the sins it seeks to criticize. There are many other types of films that portray the subject of mass killings, but God Bless America is exceptional as it shows a huge attack on gun owners. The movie is passing the message that the gun owners in the US will eventually become psychopathic killers. In fact, the film proposes that all ignorant, disrespectful, stupid, and cruel people should be killed for no reason. In one of the scenes, Frank and Roxy are in a movie theater watching a documentary entitled My Lai Massacre. Here, they shoot two young people for talking loudly on their cell phones. Over the last few years, there have been increased cases of shootings in theaters. Also, the FBI have been releasing warning messages about possible shootings in theaters. I would critic the message passed by the film as it appears to encourage gun owners to shoot indiscriminately.
Nowadays, one might meet his death for a simple act of disrespect or ignorance against another person or a purported gun owner. People have continued to get gun licenses with the aim of saving lives. However, in our perverted and bizarre world, people are more likely to misuse their powers, as well as their guns. People can go deep to abuse and start killing others. Today, people are more likely to die from gunshots rather than bee stings or car crashes. I view this as very wrong and inhuman, and it is unguaranteed to say that society will restore its purity and compassion. What Goldthwait fails to understand is that the community is made up of different kinds of people, and not all people are good. A community can have preachers and thieves at the same time. However, killing all criminals does not mean that the people remaining as pastors will be too good for an upright community. It is likely that they will have some faults. As such, using mass killings is not the solution.
Needless to say, God Bless America is seemingly one of the darkest black comedies. The audiences in the film seem enthusiastic about all the murders committed by Roxy and Frank supposedly. The audience is either gratified, distressed or unease from the ridiculousness of the violence. However, I believe that the laughs and thrills went away very quickly. Responding to the American culture’s meanness, vapidity, and lack of compassion should not be in the cold blood as the film shows. The producer deserves a credit for making such a movie, but the message is wrong as it encourages people to be worse than their enemies by executing acts of revenge.
Despite the message passed by the film regarding mass killings as a way to restore compassion among people in the society, I believe there is more. Besides being an entertaining movie, it seems that it was intended to change the public opinion towards accepting a ban on all firearms.
Conclusion
This paper has relied on the movie entitled God Bless America. The paper has questioned the primary subject of mass killing as a solution to the meanness, selfishness, and uncompassionate people in the American. Too many scenes in the film present mass murders for people committing small mistakes. For instances, one man meets his death for a mere mistake of irresponsible parking where he takes up two parking lots. Frank and Roxy view this as a sign of selfishness. In another scene, Frank and Roxy kill young men for talking loudly on their cell phones. Their decisions to kill are incoherent, and their actions can be taken as irresponsible and subject to capital punishments. To answer the question, this paper holds that mass killing of all rude, mean, selfish, and uncompassionate people is not the best solution to make the community a better place to live. In fact, God Bless America is too exceptional as it messages about mass killings are too open. For this reason, the movie has been regarded as the darkest of all black comedy films. Although the film can be criticized for promoting mass murders, it can be appraised for passing the message of discouraging people from investing all their time in reality shows and films. In fact, the movie encourages people to remember that there is another world to explore. Also, the film can be seen to change the public’s perception about a ban on guns.
