How far do the two films you have studied for this topic present similar messages and values ?

In both films Badlands and Natural born killers they had the same message of the American dream, which is that you can be rich and famous. In Badlands Kit doesn't have the best career opportunities as others, he starts out as a bin man and then he works at a cattle ranch. This shows that he doesn't doesn't have the American dream but wants it because he dresses and does his hair like James Dean. In Natural born killers Mickey is first a butcher and then goes to prison, he also wants to be famous but he is influenced by not just films but television and music as well. Both men believe that if they can't achieve fame the right way they will achieve it through other ways, even Kit says that he wants to be an outlaw.

Also the media plays a big part in our the main characters are influenced. In Badlands Kit is influenced by James Dean who is a film star in the 1950's, he was seem as the first teenage heart throb and everyone love him at the time. The girls fancied him and the men wanted to be him because he was cool and handsome. Kit dresses like him and does his hair like him also in certain scene Kit trys to react in a cool way like getting out a cigarette and leaning on the fridge after killing Holly's father. This is more naive then Mickey's influence. Mickey has a lot more media to be influenced by for example rock music and violent films. Natural born killers highlights different media texts in different parts of the film for example in the diner scene Mallory puts on grunge music and starts dancing, the lady behind the counter switches the channels on the television before turning it off. When the two men come in one man flirts with Mallory and then makes BEEP BEEP sounds at her which shows that even cartoons such as Roadrunner have a violent influence on it audience. This is shown through Mallory attacking this man and then Mickey shooting his gun and the bullet stopping before hitting the women in the head.

Also that fact that in both films the main men hardly show any emotion for what they have done. Kit is to concerned on being cool and looking after Holly. Where as Mickey see it as a game, this is shown in the diner scene when they are picking which person to kill and save. It is only when they kill someone that showed them kindness to they feel remorse, in Badlands Kit puts the body in a train carriage so it would be out of the sun and goes behind it to kick out and rant at himself. In Natural born killers Mickey goes outside of the hut and sees horrible faces, Mallory covers the body in a blanket and then they both get bitten by rattle snakes.