There has been a influx of media in the last few years and San Luis Obispo High School students have become more and more comfortable with heavy or taboo topics, especially in television and movies.

Have we been so intensely bombarded violence, sex, and gore that we have become desensitised to mature topics, or is it perfectly reasonable for every story to be told?

In all honesty, this is a question of an artist voice’s place and the definition of taste.

“The craziest piece of cinema that I probably have ever seen would be the movie “Get Out”. You could say I get pretty easily scared from even unintentional thriller movies such as the old “Jurassic Park” movie. So definitely “Get Out” wasn’t my idea of a fun movie night, however, my friends somehow convinced me it would be exciting,” said senior Katherine Fricks.

It is a question of necessity, does the gratuitous violence or harsh language serve a purpose or is there for shock value?

It depends on the viewer.

We all have our tastes and limits, because that is a natural right in human nature, but we also have to focus on the moral impact and the safety of viewers.

Media today is free.

Everything that was ever written, filmed, or spoken is just a few clicks away; truthfully age ratings have never stopped anyone.

So is it just every man for themselves in the vast sea of content?

“Art is art and it should be what the artist wants. I believe that experimental and strange art can be great and really interesting. But for example one of the things I draw the line at movies and TV with onscreen rape/sexual assault. Those things being used as a plot device rather than actually being seen as something that can be really hurtful and traumatic just awful. It’s hard to justify and at the end of the day and always it feels gross and exploitative. You can push what can be made and what is a form of artistic expression without making real traumatic events seem less horrible then they actually are,” said senior Carmen Silver.

What are our limits?

We all know “A Clockwork Orange” or even “Schindler’s List” movies which contain very rough content, but now there are TV shows and movies like “Deadpool” and “Breaking Bad” which strive to push the limit.

Is that warranted?

Everyone can make their own decisions, and decide what is too much. Yet with the slow evolution of media and what is acceptable under age ratings systems, eventually what is considered mature content could shift into a teen rating. 

Another man’s trash is another man’s treasure, and in the end this is what content is.

We all have different opinions and tastes; some people may love gore, and twisted stories while others may simply enjoy mellow romantic comedies.

When it comes down to it, the times are changing, so we have to ask ourselves the question; Are we going to change with it?