In the wake of the Newtown tragedy last week, Noah Gittell wrote a thoughtful piece in defense of movie violence for The Atlantic today, with a primary focus on recent shoot-em-ups such as “Looper,” “Seven Psychopaths” and “Killing Them Softly.” His essay reminded me of a comment Harvey Keitel once made during the peak of an intense career in bloodstained, penis-flashing independent film. (Around that time, the actor’s powerhouse titles “Reservoir Dogs” and “Bad Lieutenant” were taking flak for their heavy uses of profanity and shocking depictions of rape and torture.)