I'm gonna pull the whole thing down. I'm gonna bring the whole fuckin' diseased, corrupt temple down on your head. It's gonna be biblical.

Clyde as a hero* appeals on so many levels. A civilised man betrayed by the promises of civilisation. He's forced to become a vigilante to attain justice. He is the dad doing anything for his family. Sickly self-righteous; the monster that is birthed by monstrosity, with its heart a black vortex birthed from the abyss it has too long gazed upon.

* (well, meant to be the villain of the piece but I'll call him a hero because that's how I see him in a twisted way)

The problem with this movie was not that it didn't go far, but that it did not go far enough. I'm surprising myself saying this. Even though there was destruction and violence, there wasn't enough. Well, not quite. The system itself did not pay nor did it change. It did not get enough scrutiny or involvement. I'm not sure whose fault it is, where in the chain of Hollywood production things weren't adequately addressed. The system is impersonal, yet this movie personalised and focused on the personal interactions. We did not see the corrupt temple collapsing in and on itself. We did see hints of the corruption of complacent bureaucracy; obsessing with targets and creating enough rules that you'll find one to suit you if you find one that suits your agenda.

The personal interactions themselves left something to be desired in terms of substance, rather than style. The style itself was brilliant. Our hero was by turns insolent and tragic. He taught his lessons in perfect time with instances of hypocrisy and negligence; giving a way out if the lesson was learned although he did not expect it to be learned either.

Yet: Our vigilante father did not face much of an adversary. We didn't know anything about his thoughts or his background. In order for his opponent to remotely measure up, Clyde had to commit an error that was grossly out of character. What chessplayer doesn't watch their king?

This movie was a tragedy in so many ways. So many suffered for an end that simply was in teaching a man a lesson that is learned too late. Even this change is an optimism that is confined to the realms of Hollywood and an optimism we didn't see realised in the contexts of the actual film; we didn't actually see the change ensuing from the hero's terrible actions played out on screen.

It did strike me that Clydes of the world exist. They are losing their families everyday:

They[mothers] will continue to run off with the kids and there will be nothing the children’s fathers can do about it.
[...]
In fact, if there is anything men should have learned from the lessons of the past half-century or so, it is that in the absence of vigilance and stern oversight, government and politicians can only be counted on to betray us.

Noone is doing anything about it. Noone is seeing it as the same thing, not even the dads themselves (and that's where they're different from our hero.) Noone will. Noone even knows how.

Deal with the human being in front of you, not their ID number. Know the rules, then resolve to break them when it matters. Retain your humanity; it's not only a duty to yourself but it protects the humanity of every other human being around you.