Introduction
Wolf Creek is a 2005 horror film that dwells on real events that took place in Australia. Liz Hunter, Kristy Earl, and Ben Mitchell are backpackers who go into the wilderness to see a crater dubbed wolf creek. Upon visiting the site, they return to find that the car they used for the voyage will not start. Mick Taylor is a friendly mechanic who comes to their aid.
However, this mechanic proves to be an aggressive and dangerous person. Mick Taylor is a sadist with a personality disorder reserved for extremely aggressive persons. The film is full of cruelty and brutality mostly from the host, Mick Taylor. Moreover, the film focuses on serial killers preying on oblivious travelers.
The tendency of serial killers to use extreme forms of aggression on their victims is revealed in numerous journals. Particularly, Daffern, Howells, & Ogloff (2007, 100) reveal the cause of aggression in such individuals. This paper is a video reflection of the Wolf creek film.
Behaviour of Characters
Aggression characterized by extreme violence and sadistic tendencies is revealed through the character of Mick Taylor in wolf creek. In this film, the serial killer poses as a friendly mechanic concerned about the predicament facing the stranded voyagers. The character of the serial killer is depicted in a study by Daffern, Howells, & Ogloff (2007, 100-104).
According to the aforementined authors, most of individuals who perpetrate sadistic and extreme forms of aggression are loners who find solace in violence. Mick Taylor is depicted in the wolf creek as a traumatized loner who uses violence to get back at the society for failing to make it in life.
Liz is one of the serial killer’s victims who find herself tied in a shed. In an attempt to free she comes across Taylor sexually abusing and torturing Kristy. Moreover, Liz discovers Taylor’s possessions mostly stolen from kidnapped travelers.
These possessions include cars and cameras among others. After watching a playback in one of the cameras, she discovers that Mick uses the same strategy to prey on unaware and stranded travelers. Furthermore, Liz discovers that there was a footage revealing that Taylor was following them closely as they entered the Wolf creek and played a role in ensuring they were stranded.
The violence depicted in this horror film is plotted and committed by a sole individual with characteristics of aggression depicted by Richardson & Green, (2003, 10-15). The character of Mick Taylor depicts a social misfit and an outcast who resides in an abandoned countryside.
Anderson & Bushman (2002, 28-30), reveal that most potential aggressors, such as Mick Taylor, are motivated by looking at the societal circumstances that forced them to become who they are. Mick Taylor is motivated by sadistic tendencies that reveal either a troubled childhood or failed expectations.
From the movie, the serial killer finds solace in sadistic tendencies, such as the inhuman decapitation of Liz and sexual assault of Kristy. Moreover, the serial killer keeps footages of the inhuman activities to get a motivation for use in attacking the next travelers.
In the wolf creek incident Mick Taylor’s character inclines him to exercise extreme forms of aggression. According to Daffern, Howells, & Ogloff (2007, 105-107) and Rappaport & Thomas (2004, 268), there are numerous ways to classify aggressors. Concisely, aggressors are classified based on the mode of aggression, the target of aggression, and the causes of aggression.
The aforementioned classes of aggression are important determinants of the aggressor and the target of aggression. The victims in Wolf creek are vulnerable and willing to comply with the demands of the serial killer.
Moreover, they are oblivious of his motives and see him as a friendly mechanic, who can help them out of their predicament. Daffern, Howells, & Ogloff (2007, 105-107) reveal that targets of aggression play a major role in violent situations.
Through a psychological analysis, the motivations behind extreme forms of aggression, such as the one depicted by the serial killer are revealed. According to a similar psychological analysis conducted by Richardson & Green, (2003, 15), the motivations behind murderous sprees committed by the serial killer in Wolf creek are illuminated.
From the film and several reviews on the same, Mick Taylor is a psychopath and a sadist. It is apparent that the serial killer suffers from self esteem and a personality disorder that leads individuals to commit heinous crimes such as sexual assault and severe decapitation of the victim’s limbs.
From the film Mick Taylor espouses hatred for travelers visiting the historic site. Furthermore, the movie reveals that the three backpackers were not the only unfortunate travelers to fall in the hands of the serial killer. The lack of authorities in this region has motivated the serial killer to perpetrate serious crimes with impunity. No one is near to help the victims after they have been captured by the serial killer.
Moreover, the personality disorder possessed by the serial killer is exacerbated by lack of medical attention that aids in ameliorating the problem. Psychiatric interventions may have helped in addressing the problems that compelled the serial killer to perform inhuman acts on his victims.
The type of aggression revealed in the film is impulsive aggression. This form of aggression is comprehensively articulated by Anderson & Bushman, (2002, 28). These authors have helped reveal that physical or emotional aggression can lead to extreme forms of violence, such as the one witnessed Wolf creek. Interactions in Mick Taylor’s life experiences led him to become the serial killer who lacks remorse and uses extreme aggression.
Episodic or impulsive aggression is revealed by Anderson & Bushman, (2002) as the main cause of antisocial behavior. Antisocial behavior is synonymous with physical or mental forms of aggression. The perpetrator of violence in the film possesses severed a psychiatric disorder reserved for individuals who commit homicide or suicide.
As abovementioned, Mick Taylor took advantage of the absence of law agents in the location of his premises, where most of the heinous acts were taking place. Distancing oneself from the community is a revelation of the genesis of mental disorders as postulated by Rappaport & Thomas (2004).
An empirical study by these authors reveals that the gender and age of an individual is important in explaining the motivations behind extreme forms of aggression. It is apparent that Mick Taylor is a middle aged man whose social expectations have not been achieved. Lack of achievement or shattered expectations can incline an individual to engage in the crimes of the magnitude witnessed in the film.
Moreover, Mick Taylor engages in extremely aggressive and violent tendencies because of the tender age of his victims who cannot resist his advances. Ostrov, Woods, Jansen, Casas, & Crick (2004, 355) reveal through their study that gender of the aggressor plays an important role when extreme forms of violence or aggression occur.
Particularly, the abovementioned study indicates that male offenders tend to use extreme forms of aggression characterized by violent and sadistic behaviour. On the other hand, female offenders tend to use verbal forms of aggression. In the film, Mick Taylor decapitates his victims, and this is a physical form of extreme aggression.
Daffern, Howells, & Ogloff, (2007, 103) have elaborated on the main causes of the unfortunate happenstance in Wolf creek. These authors use their study to classify aggressive and antisocial tendencies culminating in injury of the perpetrator.
Despite relentless attacks from the victims, Mick Taylor is focused on causing grave bodily harm to his victims. Although the motivation behind the behaviour of the serial killer is not revealed in this study, studies by various authors have revealed that personality disorders lead an individual to commit severe crimes oblivious of the ramifications.
The study by Daffern, Howells, & Ogloff (2007, 107) and Rappaport & Thomas (2004, 268) reveal the character of the aggressor and victims of aggression in the Wolf creek. The study also reveals how high levels of aggression lead to violence witnessed in the film. The film elucidates a form of aggression christened impulsive aggression.
Daffern, Howells, & Ogloff (2007, 107) provide a concrete explanation of the nature of this form of aggression. They state that impulsive aggression is prompted by autonomic arousal via provocation. The serial killer must have been provoked by the behaviour exhibited by the travelers.
The serial killer exhibits emotions of anger from the numerous interactions with his victims. Similarly, Rappaport & Thomas (2004, 268) help reveal the motivations of the serial killer in the Wolf creek. The perpetrator of the crimes in the film uses exaggerated aggression because of the perceived isolation by the society.
The personality of the Mick Taylor in wolf creek can be addressed through the intervention of psychiatrists. According to Rappaport & Thomas (2004, 261), psychosocial treatment and therapy for cognitive behaviour can help cure the personality disorders similar to those exhibited by the serial killer in the film. Optimal treatment for extreme aggression can be achieved through the aforementioned interventions.
The perpetrator of killings and severe decapitation in Wolf creek has a characteristic that can be termed as negativism in the psychology domain. Criminals with this personality trait are extremely violent because of negativity emanating from perceived neglect by the society.
Mick Taylor exercises impunity and precision in his inhuman acts because of the notion that the society was not interested in what was going on in his neighbourhood.
Aggressive Behaviour in Group Situations
Although the film reveals aggression perpetrated by an individual, the magnitude of this form of aggression surpasses that committed by groups. In the movie, Mick Taylor perpetrates the crimes on his own. According to Ostrava, Woods, Jansen, Casas, & Crick (2004, 357), pro-social and aggressive behaviour may also occur in loners who exhibit severe personality disorders.
The victims in this film formed a clique that was too frightened by their predicament that they sought help from a stranger with dire motives. Most of the serial killers often carry out their acts on their own and have similar personality disorders. Psychological problems make them loners.
From Liz’s discovery, the serial killer had perpetrated similar crimes. Anderson & Bushman (2002, 32) reveals that psychopaths like Mick Taylor are aware about their activities and harbor no remorse. Prior to the happenstance in wolf creek, the serial killer had carried out similar crimes on travelers.
Meier & Hinsz (2004, 552), replicate a study by Ostrov, Woods, Jansen, Casas, & Crick (2004, 357) in which they reveal the role of individuals or groups in the perpetration of heinous crimes. The serial killer was an irresponsible person motivated by lack of vigilance in his locality.
Lack of responsibility is indicated by Meier & Hinsz (2004, 552) as a major reason for why most of individuals perpetrate extreme forms of aggression. These severe forms of aggression often culminate in the loss of life or grievous bodily harm of the victim or the aggressor.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Wolf creek depicts the worst form of aggression and violence that can happen to innocent travelers. The film shows extreme, inexplicable, and gross violence perpetrated without a genuine cause. This film focuses on the predicament of three travelers who sought help from an ostensibly good mechanic.
Various authors can help to explain the motives behind the use of excess aggression by the serial killer depicted in the film. The authors of the aforementioned journals have articulated the form of aggression witnessed in this film.
By focusing on the victims and the serial killer’s inclination towards aggression and violence, the film elucidates the role of the target of aggression in a crime. The victims in the film made a grave mistake by seeking help from a stranger in a deserted region.
References
Anderson, CA & Bushman, BJ 2002, ‘Human aggression’ Annual Review of Psychology, vol. 53, no. 1, pp. 27-51.
Daffern, M, Howells, K, & Ogloff, J 2007, ‘What’s the point? Towards a methodology for assessing the function of psychiatric inpatient aggression. Behaviour Research and Therapy, Vol. 45, no. 1, pp. 101–111.
Meier, BP, & Hinsz, VB 2004 ‘A comparison of human aggression committed by groups and individuals: An interindividual–intergroup discontinuity,’ Journal of Experimental Social Psychology , vol. 40, no. 1, pp. 551–559.
Ostrov, JM, Woods, KE, Jansen, EA, Casas, JF, & Crick, NR 2004, ‘An observational study of delivered and received aggression,gender, and social-psychological adjustment in preschool:“This White Crayon Doesn’t Work… ”, Early Childhood Research Quarterly, Vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 355–371.
Rappaport, N & Thomas, C 2004, ‘Recent Research Findings on Aggressive and Violent Behaviour in Youth: Implications for Clinical,’ Journal Of Adolescent Health, Vol. 35, no. 4, pp. 260–277.