Positive and Negative Themes Found in Superhero Films

Abstract

Superhero films have become incredibly popular. The objective of this study was to determine the positive and negative themes found in a select number of superhero films. A total of 30 superhero films were analyzed. The average numbers of positive and negative themes were 19.4 and 29.5 mean events per hour for all included films, respectively. The most common positive themes were "assisting others/protecting the public," "positive relationships with family/friends," and "teamwork/collaboration." The most common negative themes were "acts of violence/fighting," "use of guns/knives/lethal weapons," and "bullying/intimidation/torture." Based on the superhero films included in our study, the number of negative themes, especially acts of violence, outweighs positive themes. Although an exposure to positive themes found in superhero films may be beneficial to the development of children, pediatric health care providers should counsel children and their families in an attempt to limit their exposure to violence.

Violence Depicted in Superhero-Based Films Stratified by Protagonist/Antagonist and Gender

“…In a recently published study examining positive and negative themes depicted in a selected number of superhero-based films, the authors concluded that the prevalence of negative themes, especially acts of violence, outweighed positive themes [11]. These acts of violence often included physical altercations, use of guns/knives/lethal weapons, bullying/intimidation/torture, murder, and demonstrating excessive anger.…”

Themes in Superhero-Based Television Shows: An Opportunity for the Development of Children and Adolescents Through Co-Viewing and Active Mediation

“…These themes are similar to those depicted in a published study analyzing themes depicted in superhero-based films. There was a 60% overlap of the 10 most common positive themes and a 70% overlap of the 10 most common negative themes when comparing superhero-based films and television shows [6]. Common positive themes found in our sample of superhero-based television shows, and not in their sample of superhero-based films, included "honesty," "justice/karma -getting what one deserves," and "forgiveness/not holding a grudge."…”

“…A recently published study examined the positive and negative themes depicted in superherobased films [6]. Based on their sample of 30 superhero-based films, the authors determined that the most common positive themes were "assisting others/protecting the public," "positive relationships with family/friends," and "teamwork/collaboration."…”

Themes Depicted in Top-grossing Rated-R Films Released from 2012 to 2017

“…The authors developed a data collection instrument that was composed of a predetermined list of positive and negative themes adapted from two previously published studies [11][12]. The data collection instrument enabled each of the five reviewers (AW, JL, KL, MM, KS) to independently document each event associated with a theme.…”

“…Although there have been a few recently published studies examining the thematic content in top-grossing films released from 2005 to 2015 (limited to general audience (G), parental guidance (PG), and PG-13 rated films) and superhero-based films (excluding rated-R films), there have been no studies analyzing the content of top-grossing rated-R films that children and adolescents may have access to [11][12]. The objective of this study is to determine the positive and negative themes depicted in a select number of top-grossing rated-R films released from 2012 to 2017, and to compare the event rates between film genres.…”