USA Today Finds OWS Theme in Movies, Ignores Villainy
Although
things are relatively quiet in Zuccotti Park these days, the
anti-capitalist fervor of Occupy Wall Street hit the silver screen in a
big way in 2012.
USA
Today noticed this trend on Aug. 16, saying “in movie theaters, the
voices of the 99-percenters are just starting to get loud.” USA Today’s
Bryan Alexander labeled Batman’s Bane “the ultimate occupier” and
mentioned protests in upcoming movies "Cosmopolis" and "Arbitrage." Richard
Gere’s character in "Arbitrage," “represents the 1% poster boy to the
dissatisfied,” according to the story.
Of
course with the many celebrity 1-percenters who joined the OWS protests
against capitalism, it was only a matter of time before that became the
focus of Hollywood films. But USA Today didn’t criticize the Occupy
movement, on screen or off. Alexander’s story ignored most of the ugly
realities associated with the Occupy protests including arrests, threats
toward police and allegations of rape. The closest Alexander came to
admitting any of that was when he wrote: “The crowds in the film
vandalize Pattinson’s limo, brandish a dead rat and cause mayhem. But
like the real occupiers, the Cosmopolis protests fizzle.”
Not only did Alexander fail to include any critics of the movement, he didn’t even label fictional Bane as a villain.
In "The Dark Knight Rises," Bane and his cronies act much like occupiers,
but armed with heavy artillery set on getting the masses to overthrow
the rich and powerful. Some scenes were reminiscent of the French Revolution, as rich people were ripped from their homes and their possessions trashed. But Bane was not the hero of the film, he’s the
antagonist and when he takes over Gotham City he reigns with fear,
manipulation and violence (and secretly promises destruction with a
timed nuclear bomb).
