A New York novelist, Jennifer, travels to the countryside to work on the manuscript of her new book. There she attracts the attention of four neanderthal degenerates. The gang has about as many brain cells between them as a toe nail clipping and are misogynist enough to make Mel Gibson and Charlie Sheen look like a feminist club for men by comparison. They decide to attack and rape Jennifer, which they successfully achieve in one of the most infuriating scenes this reviewer has even watched. When they are done their dirty deeds they send one of their crew to return to the house and finish off Jennifer, whom they have beaten and left for dead. However, the spineless git hasn't got it in him to as much as touch her without his buddies egging him on, so he lies to them, claiming he has killed her, and they take off.
But Jennifer isn't dead at all. In fact, she soon begins to regain her strength, and prepare her revenge. Soon her attackers will each get what hey deserve, as she reduces them one by one to a pathetic, sniveling mass - terrified, helpless, and about to die.
I Spit On Your Grave, also known as Day of the Woman, has been attacked, condemned, and banned since its original release in the late 70's. As a result of its graphic and disturbing content it has been declared obscene. It has also been condemned as sexist.
Is it graphic, disturbing, and obscene? You bet. But it doesn't glorify rape, misogyny or violence against women. What makes this movie so troubling to people is that it depicts misogyny, sexism, and the violent results of such ideologies in an honest way - brutal, horrifying, cruel. Rape is constantly portrayed in pornography as erotic, yet these sexist propaganda films are not banned. It is bizarre, if not telling, therefore, that this movie was banned in numerous countries.
Jennifer, the movies victim turned hero, is not weak or helpless by nature but is simply overpowered and temporarily defeated. She is depicted as strong and intelligent throughout the movie, while her adversaries are depicted as lithesome, moronic, ingrates. It took four goons to do to her what she single-handedly did to each of them and in the end they each got their just deserts.
An alternate tag-line for the film was "This woman has just cut, chopped, broken and burned five men beyond recognition... but no jury in America would ever convict her!" All I have to say is amen to that. Most would agree that in an ideal world men and women would be equal and rape would be a thing of the past. But until that time comes the punishment should fit the crime. This woman deserves a medal, not a sentence.
4 castrations out of 5
Rated R for violence, sexual content, nudity, disturbing scenes, language.
Watch the I Spit On Your Grave trailer.
No comments:
Post a Comment