Daredevil: Cut Man (2015)
Written by Drew Goddard
Directed by Phil Abraham
Starring (in this scene): Charlie Cox as Daredevil
Chef’s Note: There has been much written about this scene, which is not surprising.
That said, among the many commentaries and hot takes, there is not a single mention of the apple. The microwave, yes – but not the apple. And that is a bit surprising, given how it sets up the scene so simply, and so potently, even for someone who has no idea what might be going on.
We see a man carrying a tray of what looks to be cold cereal in a bowl and an apple. He enters a door at the far end of a hallway and we hear a child cry out for his father, in misery and fear. The man responds in a foreign language and a clipped and harsh tone and then emerges, munching on the apple.
What kind of man would do such a thing – steal food from a child in obvious distress? The answer is immediate and obvious: a bad man, a man of casual and cold cruelty. And likely, the men he is with are also pretty bad.
When they start getting their bells rung by a masked guy dressed all in black, we need little in further justification and feel little in the way of sympathy.
All because of the apple – we know they had it coming.