Manufactured images can supersede actual memories or shape our perceptions.We know Alex Garland’s"Civil War," which imagines a modern domestic conflict taking over the United States, is only fiction, but it continues to resonate with Americans’ anxieties as we head into another polarized presidential election. The movie doesn't offer a clear explanation for the civil war, focusing instead on its occurrence and the profound impact it has on those involved.
Probably the most ethically problematic example: 2006's"Flight 93." Was this film an attempt to help our nation heal from 9/11 or a crass attempt to profit from misery? I'm not sure of the answer since I couldn't bring myself to see the film; so suspicious and put off was I by itsOf course, the ethical considerations involved with whether to bring trauma to life or not present not a binary but a spectrum of answers.
What good comes of our work? How will it change the conversation about mental health or trauma? How does it help people heal ?Now, as dean of the Media School at Indiana University, I am similarly asking our students to ponder, whether it be via journalism or filmmaking :And I challenge you, as audience members, to think of the same things as you watch movies and TV, especially movies like"Civil War" that reference actual...