The Clown Image In Superhero Movies

The research object of this paper is the clown image in Hollywood superhero movies in the 21 st century.This paper mainly analyzes the construction of clown image in Hollywood superhero movies from the outside to the inside by means of close reading of text and combining research methods such as mythology,archetypal criticism and psychoanalysis.The paper is divided into three parts.The first part firstly discusses the artistic origin of the clown image,that is,how the clown image gradually evolved from the comic image to the scary image in the early comics.Secondly,from the perspective of genre film writing method,this paper discusses the generation of character traits of the clown image and the method of establishing the clown image.The second part explores the character archetype of the clown image and the mythological narrative produced by Hollywood superhero movies in which the clown image is an important role.It explores the deep meaning of the clown image according to the theories of mythology,archetypal criticism and anthropology,and discusses how the clown image as an "anti-hero" was established.Based on prototype analysis,this paper first analyzes the prototype of the clown from the narrative structure of myth and the scapegoat mechanism in myth,then analyzes the three levels of symbolism of the clown as the "anti-hero" image,and finally concludes the triple metaphor of the clown image,that is,the negation of good,violence and power.The third part focuses on the analysis of the aesthetic acceptance of the clown image,that is,the special aesthetic pleasure generated by the alternative aesthetic characteristics of the clown image and how it causes the audience’s emotional identification,and then analyzes how the clown,as the alternative hero image,reflects the social reality and the public psychology of the United States.The anxiety produced by terrorism and social disorder projected populism,white supremacy and identity crisis in American society,which led to the popularity of films with political thriller themes.Finally,the paper discusses the type innovation value of the clown as a super villain and anti-hero to Hollywood superhero movies and its value in the level of commercial entertainment.Clown image is complex and diverse,it is not only the image text for commercial entertainment,but also contains rich critical and speculative expression.The complexity and diversity of expression not only lie in the two different art forms of comic and film,but also in the difference of nature and value orientation between mainstream films and small-budget independent films,or commercial films and "cult" films.Through the induction of similar films in the 21 st century,At the end of this paper,the author discusses how the existence of films such as Joker has blurred the political entertainment tendency caused by the above contradictions and confused the two different aesthetic purposes of seriousness and entertainment.However,its positive significance lies in that the clown image presents the contradiction of images in the process of constant reconstruction in Hollywood superhero films.While expanding the richness of its connotation,It also deepens the speculative value of the clown image.