French link murders to cult film - 'Scream' blamed for outbreak of teenage violence

The Observer ^ | June 9, 2002 | Paul Webster

[Bubba_Leroy]

A picture of a cartoon camel causes kids to smoke, but a 2 hour movie filled with explicit and repeated acts of violence has no effect on them whatsoever.

Right.

[Paul Atreides]

the influence of the Scream horror film trilogy has sharpened fears about the impact of screen and video game violence on the young

And here I thought the French had a anything-goes attitude when it came to entertainment.

[EggsAckley]

Personally, I'm glad to see people finally making this connection, between video violence and teenage violence.

There is a new video game out (can't think of the name,) in which the scene is a typical, large shopping mall. The "players" are armed with automatic weapons, and points are awarded by how many "shoppers" the shooter kills. This was released a few months ago, and now that school is out and kids have time on their hands, I'm waiting to see just how long it will be before some moronic teenagers decide to act it out, for real.

[EggsAckley]

And here I thought the French had a anything-goes attitude when it came to entertainment.

They traditionally have, but I think we're starting to see the French finally starting to shift toward the right.

[Governor StrangeReno]

first amendment mental illness input-output sanction bump

[weikel]

Only a very disturbed person would commit murder because they saw it on scream and such a person will eventually commit murder anyway. I'm surprised anyone who calls themselves conservative would believe crap like violent movies and videogames cause violence. Thats soccer mom BS.

[GeneD]

"Scream" is brought to you by THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!

Let's all sing! M-I-C, K-E-Y....

[Cicero]

Who also brought you "Priest," and "Nothing Sacred." Good family entertainment--not.

[maxwell]

And Kids.

Scream sucked major A$$. I got dragged to see the first one but held out against the next 15 or whatever sequels, I am proud to say.

[Faraday]

The effect of American movies on French society is indisputable. Look what happened to their foreign policy ever since the Jerry Lewis films were embraced by the French in the '50s.

[EggsAckley]

Only a very disturbed person would commit murder because they saw it on scream and such a person will eventually commit murder anyway. I'm surprised anyone who calls themselves conservative would believe crap like violent movies and videogames cause violence. Thats soccer mom BS.

First of all, I'm NOT a mom, and I couldn't care less about soccer. And it's NOT B.S. From the article:
he had pulled out the Scream mask from his shoulder bag just before he started stabbing her.

This seems to be an indication that the teenager, Julien, was INDEED influenced by the film. Sure, maybe he had an innate propensity for murder, and maybe it WOULD have shown up later, but in this case, his fascination with the film cost a young woman her life. Even if his propensity for murder DID emerge later in life, without that film, THAT particular young lady would still be alive.

I'm trying to be polite and diplomatic here, despite the fact that your comment was rather rude and caustic, stating that a true conservative could not believe that film violence can be influential to causing violence. You're painting with a mighty broad brush stroke here.

[hgro]

Lets see, who was it that invented the guillotine??

[weikel]

I still don't believe we should censor movies because some wacko copycatted what he saw in Scream. Plus maybe if he didn't see it in Scream later in life he would have found a better way to kill more people.

[VOA]

France's third teenage murder in two years linked to the influence
of the Scream horror film trilogy has sharpened fears about the impact of screen and
video game violence on the young.

LOL! If this film was inciting impressionable young French-persons to commit "American-Style"
violence, there'd be at least a thousand or more of these murders, just on regular demographics!


(Flashback time!)
Reminds me of when some of the European countries (Sweden?, U.K.? etc?) were complaining
about the "American-Styled Violence" of Stallone's "Rambo" films.

I loved it when Jay Leno said "Hey, maybe if we dressed Rambo up in a soccer uniform,
these Europeans would be a bit more comfortable with the violence!"

[Bonaparte]

You see, the movie "made them do it." Before we had movies, the dime novels about gangsters and gunslingers "made them do it." In fact, if you go all the way back to Cain, the devil "made him do it." I know that you see where that kind of thinking leads, but I also realize that others don't --

Nobody's responsible for his choices.
We're all just programmable automatons.
Therefore nobody can be punished for crime...
And the state alone should make our choices for us.

Right out of the Marxist playbook.

[elbucko]

"I'm surprised anyone who calls themselves conservative would believe crap like violent movies and video games cause violence. That's soccer mom BS."

No, that's not "soccer mom BS", but the traditional conservative belief that we can and should protect our kids from that which would harm them.

I for one, do not embrace the notion that children have constitutional rights. That is, the right to expression, firearms, vote, drink, etc. They are a "Protected Class", and as such are ENTITLED to be fed, clothed, housed , and educated until they are adults, at which time they are ready to assume the full rights and responsibilities that the constitution protects.

The idea that those under 18 have "rights" to view such movies as "Basketball Diaries" I find absurd and is one reason why our schools and society can't find its moral a$$ with both hands. Children have (or should have) protection, adults have "rights". Conservatives are NOT LIBERTINES!

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

If the movie did realy influnce these teens, then you would see tons of French teenagers doing bad acting to make tons of money.

[Libertarian_4_eva]

The idea that those under 18 have "rights" to view such movies as "Basketball Diaries" I find absurd and is one reason why our schools and society can't find its moral a$$ with both hands. Children have (or should have) protection, adults have "rights". Conservatives are NOT LIBERTINES!

The question is do you want a mom or dad to censor those items or the government? You also run the risk of having marxists use this same exact argument to censor talk radio and attack conservative books and ideas. Just look at all the activity around "hate-radio" in the media when some nutjob kills an abortion doctor or a gay man.

Those who are quick to give the government power to censor the media better watchout because their forms of media will be next.

[elbucko]

"Those who are quick to give the government power to censor..."

In my post I mentioned CENSORSHIP. It is, IMHO, the right and duty of every parent to know and understand what a free market society is producing to entertain their kids. The sort of video junk that helped precipitate Dillon and Klebold, as well as psychotropic drugs for children, should be the jurisdiction of the parents.

[elbucko]

"In my post I mentioned CENSORSHIP."

That should read: In my post I never mentioned CENSORSHIP