Kurt

How’s that for a thesis? Many of the movies I was able to think of were in complete contrast to Parenti’s ideas. There are plenty of films and television shows that are totally opposite of Parenti’s views, such as Superman, The Natural, Erin Brockovich, The and Simpsons. In Superman, Clark Kent, a farm boy from the country is the “good guy� fighting the evil Lex Luthor, the big city millionaire who is out to destroy everything. In The Natural, Roy Hobbs, an unknown middle-aged batter overcomes criticism from other, seemingly more talented baseball players and other people of that ilk to become one of the greatest pitchers of his time. In Erin Brockovich, she is seen as a slutty single mother who can’t amount to anything because she won’t clean up her appearance but shows everyone how capable she is when she wins a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Pacific Gas & Electric Company. In The Simpsons, Mr. Burns is seen as the evil billionaire who destroys playgrounds and runs over small animals in his extremely expensive limousine and those who work for him are seen as the “working people� who are just trying to earn a living for their families. Really, the “hero� concept in any movie or TV show opposes Parenti’s idea of a less desirable, less moral “working man.� In hero films, the hero is generally some poor to middle class person who appears to be the least likely candidate to come out and save the day. However, at the end of almost every hero film, the one you least expected in the beginning is the one who comes out on top and defeats the evil mastermind genius with all the money and the nice car. It’s all the same and it’s odd that Parenti didn’t realize how many films and TV shows have this same concept.