Whether or not film violence has any correlation with violence in real life, film legend Robert Redford thinks that it’s time the movie industry has a conversation about it.
While opening this year’s Sundance Film Festival in Utah, Redford addressed the topic of gun control and urged other filmmakers to reconsider the way they depict violence in their movies.
“I’m thinking back [to] when we started Sundance, back in 1980, and I remember, Reagan was shot at that same year,” Redford told reporters at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival press conference. Per MSN :
“I remember there was talk about gun control coming up then. Now it’s 30 years later. I think it’s absolutely not only appropriate but overdue to have a dialogue … When I was driving along the street the other day in LA, I saw two billboards where guns were featured prominently … with a pleasant, happy-looking young couple … My thought was: ‘Does my industry think guns will help sell tickets?’ … It seems like a question worth asking my own industry. And maybe there’s a reason, maybe yes [is the answer to the question].”
CNN reports that Redford also swung back at a conservative Utah group that last week suggested the state should reconsider its funding of the Sundance Film Festival due to this year’s “obscene” film lineup.
“Sometimes the narrowest mind barks the loudest, and we’ve over time come to ignore it,” said Redford. “We’re also offering a wide spectrum of choices. It’s up to the audience to choose … So I would just say to these people — we either ignore them or remind them that it’s a free country and maybe they should look at the Constitution.”
What do you think? Should Hollywood tone down the gun violence in films, or do you think there’s no correlation between film violence and real world violence?
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