The question is always whether these movies serve as a warning against such impulsive, often fascistic forms of violence, or whether they inspire them. Looking at the current climate of “toxic masculinity” – misogynistic online abuse, sexual misconduct and violence (not least in the entertainment industry), strongman politicians, and gun-toting insurrectionist bros doing military cosplay – one would hardly surmise that what the world needs now is more old-school manliness.
Nobody doesn’t offer a particularly nuanced take on these issues, but its artfully orchestrated ultraviolence is cathartic, which is where these films can have a useful function. Then again, it’s a pretty reductive view of masculinity that says you’re either a castrated loser or a rampaging warrior, a sheep or a wolf, a Norton or a Pitt. Other forms of manliness are available – ones that engage the brain as well as the balls.
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