Right or Wrong? (Making Moral Decisions)

Today’s Saturday Short is “Right or Wrong? (Making Moral Decisions), a morality play brought to you by the state of Georgia…and they’re playing “Dixie.” Not a great way to make your case for “morally right,” Georgia.

“Most of us think we know what is right,” the title card says. “But do we? Here are some situations which involve moral decisions. Test yourself. Decide what you think is right–and why.”

We find ourselves in a dark alley outside the Kastner & Co. warehouse. A security guard is on duty inside, limping along while he hums to himself. Outside a gang of boys begin throwing rocks at a window. The watchman quickly limps over to the window. He peers outside just in time to see a boy holding a rock. The guard yells at them and they all scatter.

Watchman Limpy hobbles over to the phone. He starts to dial the police, but pauses. The ghost of the boy he saw hovers over his shoulder. That was Charlie Green’s boy! Shame that he slipped up, hanging with a gang of toughs like that. Maybe he didn’t really see who it was. He hangs up the phone. No, if he doesn’t alert the police, young Green might get into worse trouble later on. Besides, it’s his job. He’s literally required by his bosses to call the police if someone causes damage to the warehouse. The lure of a steady paycheck decides him. The watchman calls the police.

The narrator pipes up. “RIGHT OR WRONG,” he intones. “The watchman made his decision.” It is, the narrator insists, a moral decision because it will have an effect on other people and make them choose between right or wrong. The film will not judge these people. It will just hint strongly at what it believes the correct choice should be. The main job of judging will be on you, the viewer.

A police officer knocks on the door of the Green home. Mrs. Green opens the door. “Harry Green live here,” the officer asks. Zoom in on Mom: is Harry in trouble? Should she let the cop in? Should she ask for a warrant or at least time to call a lawyer? No, just let him in to arrest her son.

In the police station, Mr. Kastner is glaring at the detective in charge of the case. “The boy has no criminal record,” the detective says. Besides, he’s scared silly. What if he replaces the window? Mr. Kastner is having none of this foolish compassion. He was woken up at one in the morning so he will press charges. Someone has to pay for interrupting whatever he was doing that required that scarf. Besides, they can use Harry to get to the whole Gang of Toughs that’s been vandalizing the area.

But Harry won’t talk, the detective says. Who cares, lock him up, Kastner replies. He leaves in a cloud of arrogance, leaving the detective to work on Harry.

“Get him to talk,” the detective thinks. “Get tough with him. Scare him. No, he’s already scared enough.” Besides if he threatens the kid he will make a gangster out of him. So he calls Harry into the office to have a little heart-to-heart.

Harry slumps in. “You’re in a spot, boy,” the detective says. You’re going to be charged with VANDALISM. Do you know what that is? WILLFUL and MALICIOUS DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY. Siddown, boy. Listen, Kastner’s out for your blood. But if you turn in the others, he might go easy on you.

“I didn’t break any window,” Harry squeaks. “Who did?” the detective asks. Harry sits silently. The camera zooms in on him. He can’t tell on his friends. That would be squealing. Better to go to juvie to protect the rest of them. Surely they would do the same for him, right? Right?

The detective gives up. He tells Harry that his mother has asked Mr. Barker from their church to pick Harry up. He’ll bring Harry back in the morning for another bout of questioning. Mr. Barker arrives an undetermined time later. He wakes Harry up and walks him back to his house. On the way they pass the Kastner & Co. Warehouse. As they crunch the broken glass on the ground, Mr. Barker asks Harry to confess. “I didn’t break any windows,” Harry grumbles. “But someone did,” Mr. Barker says. They walk on.

At Mr. Barker’s house, Harry sits on an uncomfortable house while Mr. Barker tries to be hospitable. Mr. Green will come by in the morning to get Harry. Oh boy, that’s something to look forward to! He once again tries to get Harry to tell who he was with that night. Harry insists it isn’t right to squeal on your friends. Oh well. Since he won’t come clean, Harry will have to sleep on the uncomfortable couch. But Mr. Barker will leave him a thought to fall asleep on: Is it right to hide a lawbreaker from justice?

Harry beds down on the couch while the narrator sums up his lousy day. Harry’s problem is far from solved. It’s not up to the film to solve the problem though, but you the viewer. Apply your morality to Harry. Judge him according to your standards rather than the facts of the case. Judge him! JUDGE HIM! JUDGE EVERYONE! JUDGE JUDGE JUDGETY JUDGE!