MovieChat Forums > The Act of Killing (2012) Discussion > Unethical!

Unethical!

posted 8 years ago by maia_england
3 replies | jump to latest

I read every comment on here, and not one person mentioned the unethical situations the filmmaker placed people in. Those women and children who were recruited as actors in the village scene were obviously completely traumatized by the filming. The neighbor who recounted the gangster murdering his step-father, and then sat there and was faux strangled my them, the grandchildren who pleaded with the gangsters not to take and kill their grandfather; they sobbed well after the filming was wrapped up. I found the film fascinating, but was putting these people through this trauma for our own entertainment/knowledge ethical? I don't think so.

[–] SloppyJ30 7 years ago

The filmmakers wanted these mass murderers to put together scenes that would depict the realities of what they did in the "commie" massacre. The way they chose to do so was up to them. It needed to be honest and unfiltered or it wouldn't have worked.

The trauma they inflicted in the re-enactment was childs' play compared to what they actually did. If I learned one thing watching this movie it's that the concept of ethics and morality are not universal.

So, was it uncomfortable to watch? Of course. Was it "entertaining"? Of course not. Was it honest? Yes.

[–] oewnaynailf 7 years ago

I agree, OP. They were used and (re)traumatized as a means to an end.

[–] joshaou 7 years ago

You could say the same about using child actors in any movie with upsetting scenes. It's not like those children were reliving what actually happened to them.