Carnage. Roman Polanski, 2011.
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Edition screened: Sony Blu-ray, released 2012. English language. Runtime approximately 80 minutes.
Summary: Recurring discussion of abandoning a hamster.
John C. Reilly’s character recounts several times how he released the pet hamster outside their apartment building. This action is generally condemned by the other characters. The final scene shows the hamster sitting in the grassy park, content and safe.
I am fed up with this exact inexcusable thing, this overused, dull-witted contrivance in story-telling. The comedic plot of Carnage is not about the hamster, but about a conflict between two couples which escalates into uninhibited expression of juvenile behavior. The writer concludes the movie with a shot of the hamster safely sitting in the park, thus putting a happy ending on the debacle and relieving tension about the fate of the animal. This is a huge problem in both our news and entertainment media because the hamster will not be fine. It will be ripped apart by a dog, or hit by a car, or bludgeoned to death by morons.
Stop teaching the lie that domestic animals will be ok on their own. The bunny you got for Easter cannot survive on grass, and she either starved to death or was killed by a fox or dog. The puppy your father ditched somewhere was not taken in by some nice lady. It died alone and afraid, or worse.
Our sub-genre of the entertainment industry called The News Media wallows in similar detrimental irresponsibility. Time and again we hear the story of the dog that walked 1,500 miles to get back home; the cat that was locked in an abandoned apartment for a week until found by a real estate agent; a cruel or neglectful act that sent some mangled animal to the hospital, then the legless deformed creature returns ‘to his family.’ Always, the anchor ends the story with a sappy smile and we’re supposed to be happy. I am not happy that the 1% fluke survival rate gets 100% of the attention. I am not happy that a national population raised to intentionally betray and abuse animals who depend on us for their lives is rewarded with happy endings and big smiles that the little critters are ok in the end. Knock it off.