Do you agree that “Kindness is the real Punk Rock”?
Michael A. Burstein: I am the last person to be considered an expert on what constitutes “punk rock,” but it always seemed to me it was about rebelling against social norms and authority. We seem to be living through an era where being unkind has become something of a social norm, embraced by far too many people. So treating people kindly, being nice to each other, displaying sympathy and empathy…yeah. That’s the real punk rock.
Peter Briggs: I think it’s the stupidest line of dialog in the film. Is society, or American Society anyway (which the rest of the world is looking at in horror at the moment) subverted to the point that kindness is mocked? I don’t believe it is. Kindness should be a Universal Constant. I just think the braggarts and the assholes have the loudest voices right now. “Up is down, and down is up.” The horror of this film, is that its depiction of people being rounded-up and incarcerated by an Elon Musk-ish led Luthor, and the whole premise of societal norms being trampled on, is weirdly prescient on James Gunn’s part. He couldn’t possibly have seen what was coming in America, or even abroad, when he was writing it. But the movie is eerily on-point as an allegory for a lot of real-world events.
You want to talk actual Punk Rock, look at the lyrics to British Punk band Oi Polloi’s “Let The Boots Do The Talking”, which commemorate the real-life 1936 punch-up battle in Cable Street in Britain, between common folk and infamous British Nazi Fascist sympathizer Oswald Mosley. “When we see the fash, we let the boots do the talking”, shout the lyrics. I’ve seen actual Punks in real life genuinely and kindly walk little old ladies across the road; there’s the Universal Constant in action. But we British also know how to deal with fascism. So does Superman. We let the boots do the talking.
Alex Grand: Considering that trolling is becoming mainstream, then yes, kindness does become the punk rock rebellion. I hope that lesson sinks in to current culture.
Josh Marowitz: Peter, YES, American Society is subverted to the point that kindness is mocked. Look at the cretins that 30-something percent of eligible voters put into power. Those people and their voters call empathy a virus.
And even among good people, there’s an underlying sense that you shouldn’t trust people, you shouldn’t be too vulnerable with them, you shouldn’t be too generous — because what’s in it for you?
I liked the line a lot. It certainly worked in the context of the way that Lois was talking about punk rock, as being a person who goes against the grain, who defies conventions. The British Punks — power to them! I wish we had some of that energy over here in the States! — are working on an entirely different level than the way Lois is talking about punks here.
The exchange is also a great defense of Superman as a character. For how many years now, we’ve been told that Superman’s a stodgy, boring, static character, that all of these other characters out there are cooler and hipper and edgier and whatever. This film comes along and makes him a punk rocker. It totally flips the script on his critics.
Will McGuire: It’s funny because Lois’ point in the initial discussion was that she came from this anti-establishment background: she’s cynical, she’s tough, she doesn’t suffer fools. She has a moment in the third act where she sees the fictional pop punk band poster in Clark’s childhood room and the lightbulb kind of goes off– he’s willing to be vulnerable, to love what he loves openly, and to meet people halfway and find what’s loveable in them.
Of course, we’re cynical because we don’t want to be made fools of, taken advantage of, lied to again. We’re all tough, too clever by half, and too world weary to fall for it again. Superman is willing to be vulnerable, to put himself out there not because he cannot be emotionally hurt but because he’s strong enough to take it and keep seeing the best in the world. He’s not kind because he’s naive to how bad the world can be– he’s kind because he refuses to allow the badness of the world to alter him.
It very much reminds me of Frank Quitely’s first cover for All Star Superman that depicts Superman completely at ease watching from a cloud. Superman ought to inspire in us a moral fortitude and belief in one another that inspires us to positive action. That’s the myth. That’s believing a man can fly.
In the sense that that fundamental openness and kindness represents a revolt from the prevailing virtues of society, it is punk rock as hell.
Robert Greenberger: No. That dialogue made no sense to me.
Jon Bogdanove: That line made perfect sense to me.
Look, I love Batman—but let’s face it—Batman is simple. He’s mainstream. He’s accessible to everybody and easy to understand and write for. That’s why he’s so popular! In a world where brooding, grim, gritty vengeance fantasy and solipsistic self-indulgent anger is considered the standard male power fantasy, Batman is mainstream pop.
I don’t mean to slag Batman. Batman is cool. Everybody loves Batman. But that’s exactly my point.
Batman rose in popularity as the world got darker. During that same period, Superman’s popularity declined. Mainstream comics nerds thought he was uncool, boring. They preferred the rage-catharsis of characters like Batman, Wolverine, The Punisher, etc. Even David S. Goyer—the man they hired to write Superman in the Snyderverse DCEU—openly admitted he didn’t like Superman and just couldn’t “get” him.
Batman was DC’s best selling franchise. As a result, for a while DC tried to make all of their properties darker, grimmer, more Batmanesque. Hollywood followed suit. Geek shame tainted wave after wave of comic-book movies. No one—not even Superman—wore bright colors. They took the inestimable Henry Cavill, and had him play a grim, brooding Superman. The Kents came across as xenophobic Trumpers.
So, for the last four or five decades, with very few exceptions, grim, brooding darkness and geek-shame have been the mainstream, pop tune of superhero lore.
That makes kindness, compassion and altruistic goodness subversive! Superman—the real Superman, the way we characterized him and the way James Gunn and David Corenswet portrayed him—was entirely counterculture to what was going on in the mainstream. That’s why “Kindness is the Real Punk Rock” hit home.
People don’t like where this wave of toxic Objectivistic, self-indulgent macho brooding has taken our culture since Ronald Regan’s era began. They don’t like the look of where we’re going to end up if we keep at it.
We’re ready for the punks, like Superman, to take over. At least, that’s what the world’s reaction to this movie seems to be. That line “Kindness is the Real Punk Rock” indicates that James Gunn read the room correctly, and responded accordingly. It says he knew exactly what was needed and what he was doing.
And BTW—This is not to dis Batman. I am just advocating that we need to balance the dark with the light. Without light, shadows can’t exist!
Also, in case anyone with Gunn’s ear is reading this—this is my pitch to cast Henry Cavill as Batman!
Jerry Ordway: Kindness is punk rock? He’s just saying being kind doesn’t mean you’re weak. And people nowadays can still be kind, but it’s not a trendy virtue. It’s Gunn’s version of Donner’s Clark saying “swell” and Lois making fun of it. And then Clark’s comeback line. It doesn’t bother me. Am I the only one who expected the usual Gunn curated jukebox soundtrack in the film? I was disappointed there, as the only bit of score that I loved was the guitar version of the Williams Superman theme, which played well in the teaser trailer, and then we only heard it in the end credits. Where is Donavan’s “Sunshine Superman” or whatever?
Lenny Schwartz: I thought that line was beautiful and it humanized the whole story.
Vito Delsante: Of course I do. As a former punk rock/hardcore/DIY scenester, it was always the aesthetic. A person fell in the mosh pit, you pick them up. You look out for the little guy, especially when there was some asshole who used the pit as an excuse to throw real punches. That’s punk rock. That’s kindness. That’s Superman.
Thomas Lakeman: I would say that unkindness is the real yacht rock.
Andre Bennett: Don’t speak ill of yacht rock!
But yes, I agree with Clark. In a world where selflessness is laughed at and cynicism reigns, trusting and caring about people is kind of punk.
I also think that this is going to end up like The Empire Strikes Back, where the line “No, I am your father,” is mistakenly quoted throughout eternity. If Superman actually said, “Kindness is the real punk rock,” the line might have sunk like a sack of cinderblocks.
The actual exchange is far more poignant, when Lois chides him for being so trusting and thinking so much of people. “Maybe that’s the real punk rock.”
It’s perfect. There’s a reason the new Superman has become a cultural moment, and this is it.
Todd Sokolove: “Punk rock” as the inversion of popular/status quo – yes. In the traditional sense, not really. Thomas is right, Superman is and will always be Yacht Rock. “Biggest Part of Me” by Ambrosia would have been a more fitting end credit song.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login