The Following Film Contains Strong Language
We say them when we’re surprised. We say them when we’re angry. We say them when we’re in pain. We use them against people to insult and hurt and provoke. Irrespective of our own usage offensive language is an inescapable part of our cultural existence, and short of isolating ourselves we will inevitably be exposed to its disruptive power.
There are unwritten rules of decorum that tell us when and where it is inappropriate to swear, so as to preserve the moral fabric of society. There are also accepted instances where swearing is tolerated and perhaps expected. We learn from a young age that being foul-mouthed in public is undesirable and frowned upon, but we’re also told it’s not our place to castigate someone in their own home if we don’t like what they’re saying. A person’s use of profanity comes with clauses.
In filmmaking, strong language has been the subject of censorship and indicative of changing standards in society. Words that were once obscene and unimaginable coming from a character’s lips have since become second nature to screenwriters’ vocabularies. Conservative critics point to this growing ambivalence and tolerance as a sign of moral decline in wider society, whereas others view its increased prevalence as cause for celebration, citing freedom of expression and the necessity of language to grow and change with the times.
The use of controversial and obscene language in film can be both considerate and provocative. It would be unfair to dismiss every film where a character says “shit” or “fuck” as immoral. It would also be misguided to believe that every utterance of these words has a meaningful intention behind it. As with real life the use of profanity in filmmaking comes with its own set of clauses.
(Note: I debated whether or not to use the words in question in my analysis uncensored — for the purpose of clarity I have. It is not my intention to upset anyone or cause offense by writing them intact.)
Shock and Novelty
Many screenwriters and filmmakers are provocateurs. In the same way films may depict violence and objectify women, for example, offensive language can be exploited in order to outrage viewers and generate controversy. Marketing and publicity may be designed to stir conservative groups into boycotts and condemnation, which in turn will motivate the films’ intended audiences to see what all the fuss is about. Sometimes the entire concept of a film is built upon its scenarios or characters being vulgar and obscene.
In the trailers for the 2016 computer-animated Seth Rogen film Sausage Party, the biggest selling point of the sentient, anthropomorphic characters was their filthy and un-childlike language. The jokes begin and end with hotdogs, potatoes and other foodstuffs saying disgusting things for shock value. People were first and foremost interested to see the movie for the novelty of seeing walking, talking, swearing food on the big screen. The movie itself does have a somewhat-intriguing debate concerning the dangers of organized religion, of which nothing was mentioned in its months of media campaigning.
Also look at the trailers and advertising for the 2016 ‘comedy’ Dirty Grandpa — once again the selling point of the movie was its gross language and crass content, but with the added novelty of seeing acting juggernaut Robert De Niro as a sleazy widower, whose abrasive language is the big comedic payoff. Who needs witty and insightful comedy when you can have Robert De Niro saying “fuck” a lot?
Discrimination
While it may not appear so at first, the use of derogatory language against minorities can serve a thematic purpose. Discriminating language targeted against people on the basis of their color, nationality, ethnicity, faith, gender, sexuality, physical appearance and mental health is rampant throughout society. Screenwriters and filmmakers want to address this intolerance directly through their storytelling, and the language of hate is an unfortunate requisite.
In period settings derogatory terms and slang loan add an authenticity that can highlight the prejudices of the past, whether referring to Jews, Africans, homosexuals or any other marginalized group. To remove those words would be to deny and revise the dark chapters of our history on account of our modern sensitivities. As uncomfortable as we may be hearing terms like “spade”, “wop” and “fag” we need to understand and respect why they make us uncomfortable. It would be wrong to gloss over the lives of those who suffered in the past because of our personal unease.
Modern-day characters in mainstream film who use discriminating language are wholly depicted as remnants of a bigoted past, whose words and beliefs are incompatible with the 21st century. Many of the stories that confront prejudice in modern society would be incomplete without the divisive and hateful words that have endured (and in some cases resurfaced) into the present. Film has a duty to capture the ugly realities of contemporary life, and not shield them from our eyes and ears.
Absurdity
No word is inherently bad or harmful — the only reason any word causes offense is because we’re taught they’re offensive. If a word is stripped of its meaning it no longer has power.
Taking the usage of profanity to its extremes in a film weakens its emotional impact. When curses such as fuck and shit are constantly being used as nouns, verbs, and adjectives in dialogue it no longer shocks us — it descends into ridiculousness. Comedies that approach offensive words in this way highlight the plasticity of language, and how overexposure can desensitize us until words lose any of the gravitas they once had.
As masters of biting social commentary, Trey Parker and Matt Stone have used film and television to probe and critique issues of censorship and public decency for the last 20 years. In their 1999 film South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut the sheer amount of “naughty language” numbs viewers within the first 15 minutes, and subsequently makes us question the extent to which we should be offended. Kyle’s mom, outraged by the potty-mouthed comedians Terrence and Philip, rallies America’s parents into a crusade and eventual war against Canada in order to protect their children from bad language. Of course, this over-the-top response would never really happen, but the parents’ actions raises the question about how far outrage can possibly go. What measures are we prepared to take to safeguard society from obscene content?
For Trey Parker and Matt Stone, people take things too seriously and saying bad words isn’t going to destroy society.
Subversion and Substitution
In contrast to the exposure therapy of films like South Park and Team America: World Police, screenwriters and filmmakers may choose a less direct approach to curse words and insults, providing an amusing or more palatable alternative. Dialogue can play against our expectations, and allow characters to ‘say something without really saying it’.
With subversion the audience is led to suspect something offensive or rude is about to be uttered, then surprises us with completely different. The filmmakers give us a knowing, metatextual wink. In the first Shrek movie a chorus line of animatronic singers greet the ogre and his friend, Donkey:
“Welcome to Duloc, such a perfect town
Here we have some rules, let us lay them down
Don’t make waves, stay in line
And we’ll get along fine
Duloc is a perfect placePlease keep off of the grass,
Shine your shoes, wipe your… face”
We all know what the chorus line should have said instead of ‘face’, but the change makes the lyrics even funnier, and without saying what we assume was the original line. In Jon Favreau’s Elf Buddy calls himself a “cotton-headed ninny muggins”, much to the shock of his elf colleagues — to our ears they respond as if he’s said something far worse. (We can only imagine how they would react to actual swearing.)
In films not set in contemporary times, such as science fiction and fantasy stories, it may feel odd for characters to use language too closely associated with our own. Screenwriters may choose to invent or reuse old curses and insults that the characters treat as offensive but mean nothing to an audience. Using this technique dialogue can have conflict but not leave us feeling dismayed. In Marvel’s The Avengers Loki calls Black Widow a “mewling quim”, a medieval curse word that few people had ever heard of (but then looked up later). Considering that Asgardians speak with medieval affectations it does not feel out of place, and the studio didn’t have to worry about the censors asking for the line to be cut before the film’s release.
The simplest explanation for the presence of offensive language in film is that people use it in real life — its purpose in dialogue is to sound true to life. It’s not expressly used to cause upset or to raise awareness, but because it’s commonplace. Perhaps the most important aspect of using obscenities is the context in which they are used. Language in film is an indispensable tool needed to tell stories. As unpleasant as our language may be at times it would be unreasonable to remove it from our art and our culture. For better or for worse obscenity is part of us — we just have to know when, where, how and why to use it.
Coming soon: Taking Back the Reins
