Cultural Analysis – Boondock Saints
My Cultural Analysis is on one of my favorite movies The Boondock Saints written and directed by Troy Duffy. The major theme throughout the whole movie that the McManus brothers follow is the will and power of God. The ultimate will of God is far greater than the laws of man. The brothers display a variety of actions through vigilantism, religion, and violence to accomplish what they believe God wants them to do. By accomplishing these acts they start to be called saints through the public eye.
Irish brothers Connor & Murphy McManus ran into trouble with some mafia gangsters. They ended up killing the mafia members. They turned themselves into the police and were released because it was determined that they acted in self defense. Then one night the brothers believed God called upon them to do a special deed for the Lord and society. The special deed is to eliminate the world from evil and corruption by killing anyone who fails to obey by the codes of behavior. The codes of behavior are do not steal, do not rape, and do not kill. They believe by killing these evil people off, the innocent people will be able to live without fear. Paul Smeckler, an FBI agent assigned to the case, is trying to figure out the killings, but the closer he got to catching the brothers, the more he is starting to believe what they are doing is the right thing to do. After the brothers heard the voice of God and the calling that he wanted them to carry out, the brothers never second guessed or felt remorse for their actions.
The Essay on Saint Anselms Ontological Argument
Saint Anselms Ontological Argument Saint Anselms ontological argument for the existence of God is based on logical inconsistence of two equally legitimate statements, which consequentially derive out of each other. Saint Anselm suggests that one cannot imagine anything greater than omnipotent and omnipresent God. If this statement is true, there can be nothing imaginable greater than God. However, ...
Vigilantism acts are what the brothers are considered to be doing throughout the movie. Everyone can admit when a horrible crime happens, but they become frustrated when the judicial service is not doing what they need to do to bring justice. At one time or another you will think to yourself why someone doesn’t just take them out if the police are not going to do it? The author Troy Duffy came up with this topic through personal experiences. He watched a dead lady get carried out of a drug dealer’s apartment. It disgusted him that the judicial system did not do enough to incriminate criminals quickly. Vigilantism can either be premeditated or meditated. Premeditated would be considered murder. Meditated vigilantism would be like acting out of rage or instinct. Both of these acts were demonstrated by the brothers throughout the movie. The first killing the brothers did is an example of a meditated killing. The brothers acted out of rage and instinct by killing the mafia members. That was the only time in the movie that it was not premeditated. The rest of the killings through the movie were all pre meditated.
Religious beliefs play a crucial role in the movie. The brothers believe they were called upon by God to fulfill his destiny of removing evil from the world. One scene showed the two brothers sleeping in a jail cell and was awaken at the same time by water dripping from the ceiling on their faces. The dripping of water on their faces symbolized they were being baptized by God. Then the brothers felt and heard the presence of God; they understood his mission and never once questioned it. This can happen when someone is a devout follower of a certain religion. When you are a devout follower of a religion, you don’t ask questions you just obey by it. The brothers believe they are on a mission from God to remove evil. These things that the brothers encounter are what certain cults believe in. For example, there is a real life cult called the Gate Keepers. The leader of this cult is awaiting trial on the murder of eighteen people. The leader of this cult said he was called upon God to kill these people and has no remorse for what he did because God ordered him to do it.
The Essay on Medieval Monastic Life God Saint
Since humankind had its first inkling of spiritual awareness, there have been certain individuals who have a greater attraction and understanding of the spiritual world than the rest of their society. These human beings bring greater levels of understanding of spirituality both to themselves and to the world. Those who partake in the monastic life of Christianity are no exception to these. These ...
The violence that occurred in the movie was provoked by vigilantism and religious beliefs. Violence can also be provoked by the society or individual lives through peer pressure or upbringing. Violence can also happen through peer pressure. Depending on the persons upbringing that is what they could be use to. Like the movie the McManus brothers’ father was in prison for multiple murders, so maybe their upbringing had an influence on their violent acts. Religion can play a role in violence because if you read the Old Testament it speaks that people who do not obey by the laws of the Lord should be dealt with by ways of death, slander, false charges, and gossip. A great example in today’s world that mixes religion and violence is the September eleventh attacks on the world trade center. The Muslim belief is that if they carry out an act and die for their country and beliefs’ that Allah will take care of them in the afterlife. Also the suicide bombers in Iraq and Afghanistan follow the same path.
Throughout the movie the brothers are considered saints by both the media and the citizens. The brothers are also perceived as being role models to people in the movie for their vigilante acts. A good example from the movie is when the brothers were released from jail after the first killing and it was ruled self defense. The newspaper and television were calling the brothers saints for their actions. In the Catholic faith, a saint is considered to be a person of exceptional holiness and a model of excellence. The holy individual usually is given the title saint after they die and are recognized for their special deed while they were alive. This definition is a little different than the movie but the citizens are seeing the brothers as saints because they are getting rid of the evil from the earth. The Catholic Church states that after they die, saints have a special relationship with God. The brothers never die in the movie, but are the only ones that God speaks to in the movie. The brothers are considered saints in a slightly different definition than the formal Catholic definition.
The Essay on Television, Movie, Video Game Violence college paper 577
VIOLENCE IN TELEVISION, MOVIES, AND VIDEO GAMES: The wrong explanation Television, movies, and video games have a great influence on the minds of today's youth. But, what exactly are the effects of such an influence? Certain people have exaggerated the effects that these media have on today's youth. Many people, including government officials, have singled out these three media sources as the ...
The Boondock Saints relates to the real world society today. At the end of the movie when the credits are showing, people were being interviewed and asked their opinion if what the brothers are doing is right or wrong. This related because everyone has different opinions on certain issues. In today’s society everyone has a voice, it just depends if they want their voice to be heard. Some of the people being interviewed believe the brothers are doing the world good by killing all the evil people, and support them. Then other people responded with negative comments saying the brothers are wrong for killing the evil people, and the brothers are stooping to the same level as the evil people they killed. One person went as far as saying the brothers just can’t just pick up a gun and start killing people and think they are doing the world a favor. Then there was a third response that some people were giving and that was they had no comment. This explains the world today. Some people want to voice their opinion to say if they think the brothers are right or wrong. Then you have the ones that have no comment at all. The author Troy Duffy’s feelings about this movie were heartfelt. He wrote the script for the movie on his own life experiences and the lack of security through the judicial system. The author tries to put you in the mind set of the brothers because there has been a time or two in our own life when the judicial system may seem to fail and we want to take matters into your own hands. There is times that I have heard or seen people doing unlawful things and were never brought to justice. I would have loved to take matters into my own hands and take care of the evil people in our society but in today’s society that is not ethical. If I would go around killing all the people that have done wrong I would be known as a murder not a saint.
