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Examples Of Escapism In 9/11

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For the general public, a major draw for going to see a film was the escapism from the hardships and negative emotion of the ‘real world’. There were many different forms of escapism that Hollywood took major advantage of in the years proceeding 9/11. A major form of escapism were films about monumental struggles between light and darkness which were extremely popular during those years. Many argue that Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003) was so popular due to this need for comfort in stories about the good vs the bad. War had changed: it was originally nation vs nation but now it was subtler, with the enemy possible even being down the street or your next door neighbour. Nobody knew who the terrorists were and many wanted …show more content…

This is almost the direct opposite approach that The Avengers took which perhaps conveys how much the public’s emotions changed in those seven years between 2005 and 2012. One of the major shifts since 9/11, evident in both The Dark Knight Trilogy and the slew of Marvel Studios films such as The Avengers and the Iron Man Trilogy (2008-2013), are that superheroes are now longer unstoppable gods, but instead are presented as flawed, traumatised and unsure about themselves who suffer setbacks and defeats yet nevertheless continue to do what is necessary for the safety of the world. This is an overt reference to the post-9/11 mind-set of moving on and still doing what must be done against terrorism. This is most exemplified in Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel (2013) in which, instead of being presented as an idealistic, patriotic God, Superman is instead portrayed as a naïve and damaged human who just happens to have these extraordinary powers. Furthermore, Zod, the antagonist, causes much destruction in Metropolis, which very much resembles

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