What's the Problem With Hit-Girl?
- Thread starter MovieBob
- Start date
Very true. I didn't mind her existance at all
I hated that last scene where she beats up the typical school bullies though. Even though it went off-screen and you just heard punches, I thought "This isn't a 'ha! that'll teach 'em' moment, it's a 'holy crap, she hospitalised them!' moment". She didn't adorably take care of them, SHE'S AN ASSASSIN, she probably broke one in half and strangled the other with his own intestine
I hated that last scene where she beats up the typical school bullies though. Even though it went off-screen and you just heard punches, I thought "This isn't a 'ha! that'll teach 'em' moment, it's a 'holy crap, she hospitalised them!' moment". She didn't adorably take care of them, SHE'S AN ASSASSIN, she probably broke one in half and strangled the other with his own intestine
Is it a taboo worth breaking down though? I mean ideally noone would be violent, or at least not kids.Furburt said:
Kids are fucking annoying and really stupid, violent ones are even worse!
I have no problem that she's a girl being violent, just kids in general xD
This attitude has existed since lead or sidekick female comic book characters began with Wonder Woman.
Funny story about her tho, if you look at the fist 50 issues of Wonder Woman she is a strong woman who can take care of herself, but i found it hilarious than all the people complaining about her lack of femininity and that she wasn't a traditional homemaker, missed that every book had Wonder woman being captured and placed in a BDSM pose by her captors
One of her weaknesses was if you TIED HER WRISTS TOGETHER she would loose all free will and would obey commands, and they were angry that she wasn't 'womanly'.
Funny story about her tho, if you look at the fist 50 issues of Wonder Woman she is a strong woman who can take care of herself, but i found it hilarious than all the people complaining about her lack of femininity and that she wasn't a traditional homemaker, missed that every book had Wonder woman being captured and placed in a BDSM pose by her captors
One of her weaknesses was if you TIED HER WRISTS TOGETHER she would loose all free will and would obey commands, and they were angry that she wasn't 'womanly'.
Why don't more people get this?!Furburt said:
Seriously, has anyone been on Xbox Live recently, maybe visited 4 Chan?
Children seem about as innocent as Satan!
That's why the character of Hit Girl herself doesn't shock me, I'd probably just be grossed out by gore like the "ewww, blood" person I am.
Equality means that children, males and females are all the same, right?
Apparently we in the West stand for all this self-rightous equality... where is it right now?
Not that I think children should be running around with uzis trying to keep muggers from touching their mother's fine bodies or something, but children aren't completly helpess or stupid (though some are, but that goes for adults, too), I mean, they turn into full grown people pretty quickly.
I think you need to look at Hit Girl on a bare-bones story level, especially in respects to the comic.
Knowing that Big Daddy has chosen to sate his ego by wanting to fight against injustice, and his inability to trust anyone other than his daughter, he felt it necessary to train her to be able to defend herself. It's not as though with the people he was after all she'd need was a bottle of mace and a mobile phone, he wanted her to be relentless; a force to be reckoned with, and of course, a heir to his beliefs.
If you look at it, it's just a very alternative approach to parenting. Macabre, yes, but necessary. Big Daddy made a selfish choice, but it cost him, but at least he left his daughter with the necessary tools to survive.
On a side note, I was not a fan of the movie. A lot of the changes were completely unnecessary, and Hit-Girl didn't come across as well as she did in the comic. Also, where was Dave's relationship with his father? And how can a character who narrates the story be left so unexplored? Why turn around the origin of Red Mist? It's confusing overall because considering the length of the film, they could've fit the original story into this, instead they chose to make Dave an all around winner, and Big Daddy's actions just.
F*cking Hollywood...
Knowing that Big Daddy has chosen to sate his ego by wanting to fight against injustice, and his inability to trust anyone other than his daughter, he felt it necessary to train her to be able to defend herself. It's not as though with the people he was after all she'd need was a bottle of mace and a mobile phone, he wanted her to be relentless; a force to be reckoned with, and of course, a heir to his beliefs.
If you look at it, it's just a very alternative approach to parenting. Macabre, yes, but necessary. Big Daddy made a selfish choice, but it cost him, but at least he left his daughter with the necessary tools to survive.
On a side note, I was not a fan of the movie. A lot of the changes were completely unnecessary, and Hit-Girl didn't come across as well as she did in the comic. Also, where was Dave's relationship with his father? And how can a character who narrates the story be left so unexplored? Why turn around the origin of Red Mist? It's confusing overall because considering the length of the film, they could've fit the original story into this, instead they chose to make Dave an all around winner, and Big Daddy's actions just.
F*cking Hollywood...
Great article, Bob. I will admit that i only ever read parts of the book Kick-Ass (i say parts because i really do detest Rob Liefeld's art,) and from what i read of it, i wasn't to offended. If anything, i thought it was pretty awesome. I mean think about femal superheroes:
Wonder-Woman: she can kick ass, but shes still kind of just sex appeal. she is also an adult, which makes people believe she is less vulnerable than a child.
Cat-woman: see wonderwoman
Starfire/Raven/Mary Marvel/ any other female members of the Titans: i dont really have much to say about this, but they do kick ass, and they are vulnerable, but they aren't 11.
which brings me to hit-girl: she can kick ass, but in the eyes of many parents, shes everything that people see as what their children will turn into when exposed to violence.
Wonder-Woman: she can kick ass, but shes still kind of just sex appeal. she is also an adult, which makes people believe she is less vulnerable than a child.
Cat-woman: see wonderwoman
Starfire/Raven/Mary Marvel/ any other female members of the Titans: i dont really have much to say about this, but they do kick ass, and they are vulnerable, but they aren't 11.
which brings me to hit-girl: she can kick ass, but in the eyes of many parents, shes everything that people see as what their children will turn into when exposed to violence.
If parents bring their children to see this and their daughter wants to be hit girl, they ony have them selves to blaim for bringing them to a movie with a swear word in the title.
To much information!! *brain explodes from all the text that I read through for some strange reason*. As a fan of anime anyone can be anything so I am not shocked at much. I find it funny how contradictory the American public is......
There likely are a lot of parallels to anime characters when it comes to Hit Girl but we may end up seeing a more PG 13 version of her from western sources in a few years if the Avatar: The Last Airbender movies pan out (not that I'm hopeful of that) in the form of Azula. She shares a lot of the unexpected levels of violence with Hit Girl albeit without blood and cursing. Still a young, sociopathic female who is more than willing and even eager to use violence as the first option though.
And holy crap, I had forgotten about Baby's Day Out but I loved that movie when I was younger. The slapstick comedy in it was incredibly well executed and likely amplified due to it being caused primarily by a toddler. I'm tempted to watch that again now but it likely wouldn't hold up quite as well as nostalgia is making it seem.
And holy crap, I had forgotten about Baby's Day Out but I loved that movie when I was younger. The slapstick comedy in it was incredibly well executed and likely amplified due to it being caused primarily by a toddler. I'm tempted to watch that again now but it likely wouldn't hold up quite as well as nostalgia is making it seem.
I was actually wondering what Bob's thoughts on the reviews of Ebert and other critics were. Interesting to read. I still haven't fully formed my opinion about Hit Girl (other than that I though she was awesome), but I agree with Bob that she's a character that resists a comfortable middle ground. There's something very right and very wrong with her.
One thing that I am sure of is my wife's reaction. When we were leaving the theater she told me that every girl should be made to watch Kick Ass so they can see a genuinely strong young female character. My wife is also awesome.
One thing that I am sure of is my wife's reaction. When we were leaving the theater she told me that every girl should be made to watch Kick Ass so they can see a genuinely strong young female character. My wife is also awesome.
Hit-Girl is nothing new. Evil young girls have exsisted for ages already, and you see them in multiple movies/games/anime/manga/books. Fun? I guess. Revolutionary or "finally breaking the taboo"? Nah.
Very nice article, Bob!
I think the taboo exists primarily because we want to delude ourselves into thinking that children aren't capable of violence, although that is clearly false. How many times have you seen a child step on insects for fun, or torture small animals for the same reason? Face it, humans are animals, and pretty damn violent animals at that (wars, etc). We are able to function, because we band together in society. We attempt to suppress our violent tendencies, but they still exist. The character of Hit Girl is just an extreme vision of what we truly are (from what I can gather, I haven't had a chance to see the movie yet).
Anyway, if some kid imitates her behavior, there is something seriously wrong with that child and its parents. Blame stupid people, not movies/media/games/books/playdough.
I think the taboo exists primarily because we want to delude ourselves into thinking that children aren't capable of violence, although that is clearly false. How many times have you seen a child step on insects for fun, or torture small animals for the same reason? Face it, humans are animals, and pretty damn violent animals at that (wars, etc). We are able to function, because we band together in society. We attempt to suppress our violent tendencies, but they still exist. The character of Hit Girl is just an extreme vision of what we truly are (from what I can gather, I haven't had a chance to see the movie yet).
Anyway, if some kid imitates her behavior, there is something seriously wrong with that child and its parents. Blame stupid people, not movies/media/games/books/playdough.
