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I was watching The Daily Show episode for the 22nd, and the guest star was Liam Neeson, who is an excellent actor with one of those Voices You Don't Mess With. Unfortunately, his latest film (or at least its advertising campaign) doesn't appear to be worthy of its star; called Taken, it's a thriller about an ex-spy whose teenage daughter is kidnapped and who wages a one-man war to get her back. And all of the trailers and promotional clips I've seen have focused damn near exclusively on footage of a tearful teenage daughter on her cell phone with her father, scared out of her mind before being grabbed by unseen attackers to have God-knows-what done to her.
While the movie itself (from what I've read) is less about torture-porn as it is about Neeson's one-man war against the mysterious assailants, the sheer exploitative nature of the promos (why don't we ever see movies about 16 year old boys being kidnapped/tortured/raped? I guarantee you they're just as insecure and emotionally vulnerable) has grated on me severely every time I've seen them.
So why is Jon Stewart awesome? Because apparently it does the same for him (although, given that he's a parent himself, I'm sure part of his reaction comes from that angle too). But, being the classy guy that he is, he limits himself to a comically exaggerated "o.O" face and an "I don't like this movie" before talking to Liam Neeson about...horses.
ETA: Embedded player removed because the formatting was screwy. You can find the episode here if you'd like to have a look.
Having written all this out, it's striking me that a large part of my emotional reaction may have less to do with the cultural aspects as the personal. Specifically, that the father figure in my life since about age 13 has been largely undependable and later absent, and therefore the idea of being completely dependent upon such a one disgusts and frightens me more than it might someone else. It might explain the sheer viscerality of my reaction, which seems a bit strong for something as sadly common as a stereotyped female character in a mainstream Hollywood thriller.
While the movie itself (from what I've read) is less about torture-porn as it is about Neeson's one-man war against the mysterious assailants, the sheer exploitative nature of the promos (why don't we ever see movies about 16 year old boys being kidnapped/tortured/raped? I guarantee you they're just as insecure and emotionally vulnerable) has grated on me severely every time I've seen them.
So why is Jon Stewart awesome? Because apparently it does the same for him (although, given that he's a parent himself, I'm sure part of his reaction comes from that angle too). But, being the classy guy that he is, he limits himself to a comically exaggerated "o.O" face and an "I don't like this movie" before talking to Liam Neeson about...horses.
ETA: Embedded player removed because the formatting was screwy. You can find the episode here if you'd like to have a look.
Having written all this out, it's striking me that a large part of my emotional reaction may have less to do with the cultural aspects as the personal. Specifically, that the father figure in my life since about age 13 has been largely undependable and later absent, and therefore the idea of being completely dependent upon such a one disgusts and frightens me more than it might someone else. It might explain the sheer viscerality of my reaction, which seems a bit strong for something as sadly common as a stereotyped female character in a mainstream Hollywood thriller.
