When watching movies becomes almost a professional career for me, i.e. sitting in bed and watching movies for hours on end, there are trends that I tend to pick up on. One trend that comes to mind is when a white male character comes onto screen and shows the most powerful of emotions: rage.
White male rage is a phrase whose definition is clear. The phrase appeared on SNL with a song about white male rage, and there was even a small trend on TikTok where people showcased their acting skills/screaming to lines that best fit white male rage. I’ll be doing what I do best: putting movies on a list. This edition: the most classic white male rage movies!
(Disclaimer: I will be reducing some well thought-out movies into one basic phrase. Meaning, don’t take this too seriously.)
White male rage is a phrase whose definition is clear. The phrase appeared on SNL with a song about white male rage, and there was even a small trend on TikTok where people showcased their acting skills/screaming to lines that best fit white male rage. I’ll be doing what I do best: putting movies on a list. This edition: the most classic white male rage movies!
(Disclaimer: I will be reducing some well thought-out movies into one basic phrase. Meaning, don’t take this too seriously.)
|
#5: American Psycho (2000)
When this movie comes to mind, what usually comes after is the ‘sigma male’ or people saying Christian Bale’s character, Patrick Bateman, is ‘literally them.’ No one bats an eye towards the rage that Bateman portrays. The rage itself only comes from the murder he commits. Yet that’s murder, not so much “rage” unless you include that ax scene. You know the one. So this movie takes its place at number 5. |
|
|
#4: Fight Club (1999)
Fight Club, one of the greatest movies in terms of plot twists. But there’s definitely something beneath the surface. A message of capitalistic values and the urge to break away from said values. Along with the theme of what it’s like to be a man. But that all doesn’t matter; what matters here is how much white male rage there is. A man starts a fight club for all males to release their rage, a man going against society in a fit of rage…It has the check marks of white male rage. |
|
|
#3: Whiplash (2014)
J.K. Simmons’s character is just yelling throughout the whole movie. He’s always finding something to yell about. He goes as far as throwing a cymbal. That’s the whole movie. Add some scenes where Miles Teller’s character is bleeding from his hands because he wasn’t able to hit the correct tempo on his drumset; it’s the perfect blend for male rage. |
|
#2: Prisoners (2013)
When you put Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal in a movie, you’re going to get things broken, yelling, and items thrown in a fit of rage. The movie is just a cycle of Jackman’s character yelling at Gyllenhaal’s character to find the missing girls. Then Gyllenhaal’s character is mad at himself for not being able to find them. Gyllenhaal is the staple of white male rage; almost any movie could include him breaking something and Prisoners is no exception. Having Jackman break the sink is another way of him getting a little angry.
When you put Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal in a movie, you’re going to get things broken, yelling, and items thrown in a fit of rage. The movie is just a cycle of Jackman’s character yelling at Gyllenhaal’s character to find the missing girls. Then Gyllenhaal’s character is mad at himself for not being able to find them. Gyllenhaal is the staple of white male rage; almost any movie could include him breaking something and Prisoners is no exception. Having Jackman break the sink is another way of him getting a little angry.
|
|
|
#1: 12 Angry Men (1957)
There is no better movie to show the trueness of white male rage. Even in the title itself speaks to the term. There’s 12 men (all white) and they’re angry. That’s all I have to say. |
|
With male rage movies being around for a while now, people have gotten used to that type of content and only more recently have people spoken out for the ‘genre’. With people speaking out about these types of movies, they tend to turn it to humor and point out how ridiculous the actors are with their dialogue. There was a trend on TikTok where people copied dialogue from these actors yelling.
Yet besides all the humor that comes with it, some movies end up celebrating the white male rage which leads to men looking up to role models that aren’t the best to follow. Some movies notice that white male rage shouldn’t be celebrated and paint the characters in a more villainous light.
These movies shouldn’t have characters that people look up to, it could be harmful to their own image and the people around them. But, that’s just my opinion. These movies do make for a good watch and a good reflection on why we see these types of movies repeated so many times.
Yet besides all the humor that comes with it, some movies end up celebrating the white male rage which leads to men looking up to role models that aren’t the best to follow. Some movies notice that white male rage shouldn’t be celebrated and paint the characters in a more villainous light.
These movies shouldn’t have characters that people look up to, it could be harmful to their own image and the people around them. But, that’s just my opinion. These movies do make for a good watch and a good reflection on why we see these types of movies repeated so many times.
Ariadne Rosas
