I Spit on Your Grave (1978)AKA Day of the Woman
Directed by Meir Zarchi
Writing credits Meir Zarchi
Camille Keaton .... Jennifer Hill
Eron Tabor .... Johnny
Richard Pace .... Matthew
Anthony Nichols .... Stanley
Gunter Kleemann .... Andy
"I Spit on your Grave" is the greatest rape and revenge flick ever made. It is brutal, powerful, sleazy and exploitative. It is also quite effective and will probably leave scars on you. Obviously, it's a must see.
A female writer goes out into the woods to get some work done. Four locals start checking her out and decide they want more. Now, at this point you are expecting a rape scene. You know its coming. So the locals take her in the grass and have their way with her. It's not a very graphic rape. I was expecting to be shocked but I wasn't. It was at this point that the movie really began. As the writer walks away, she is pounced on and raped a second time.
This scene was brutal. There is no music or editing done on the rape scene. It is shot as if you are really there watching it happen. She is pinned down on a rock and screams for her life. Does the movie want you to enjoy what you're seeing or would it rather have you be disgusted at the sexual violence? I don't know. I would imagine it wants it both ways. Horror fans will probably love the thrill of being shocked while others will be repulsed.What really takes "I Spit on your Grave" over the top is the next rape scene. Yes, she's raped a third time. She crawls back to her house and is violated again. Now we know that these men are cretins and deserve everything they've got coming to them. The rest of the movie has the writer dishing out bloody death to the lecherous men. She knows the power her body has over them and decides to use it so that she can spit on their graves.
I found this movie to be a brutal gut punch. The rape scenes were tough to watch. "I Spit on your Grave" is not just some cheap horror flick. It is undeniably shocking and well made. For horror fans looking for something to really hurt them, "I Spit on your Grave" will do it.
SCORE: 3.5 out of 4 for the ultimate rape and revenge flick
Great film and terrific review; Loved the fact that Jennifer fought back- Would have loved to see those fucks suffer more horrifically than they did; Still a good revenge flick that I rank up there with LAST HOUE ON THE LEFT. I almost wish David Hess played the lead fucker; Would have been better, but still enjoyed the bath scene just as well. This movie gets the honor of being the longest cinematic rape scene ever- it's like 30-45 long... Great review!!
ReplyDeleteThis is a really popular movie, and Camille Keaton has this amazing simmering quality, and I think the rape and revenge genre is fine, but for my money, too much time is spent dwelling on the rape. It's The Passion of the Christ of rape movies. I don't say that movies like this should be prohibited from being made, nor do I say it's devoid of merit -- I even paid tribute to the poster in one of my movies -- but even giving it a pro-woman's revenge title (this, or Day Of The Woman) doesn't hide the fact that the movie revels in the rape, the way Passolini's Salo revels in the despicable acts it portrays. I know it's an "eye of the beholder" kind of thing, but watching it makes me feel complicit. That said, the revenge scenes are really memorable. I'll never take a bath in the presence of a woman with folded towels within reach.
ReplyDeleteIt was men that decided the movie should be boycotted. Only stupid women would support banning it but the actual decision to ban it was made by MALE boards of censors. Not women. Why? Because they are afraid it encourages revenge for what men do every day to women.
ReplyDeleteThey don’t want to admit it's fear of women that made them ban it so they pretend it’s over concern for the exploitation of women. Duh.
Men know the only reason they do horrible things to women is because women are not like them in that in general they act like victims afterward and don’t fight back like men would. Like men would be PRAISED for but women are reviled for. Discouraging female revenge and encouraging male revenge is a deliberate double standard intended to DIS-EMPOWER women. In this movie the woman acts like a man would. That is taboo. That is what men fear. The turning tide of violence. Even good men know and fear it. Many if not most men hate woman that do that because most of all, they know and secretly fear it’s deserved. Not just for the men who rape women but all the men who won’t actually rape but jack off to rape porn. They feel guilt but they get off on it anyway. Even so called good guys in the privacy of their homes do it. Yeehaaaw.
They fear this movie will catch on and encourage women to take revenge. If not by actually killing men in real life, in many "other" ways. They didn’t shut it down because they were horrified at the rape scene. They shut it down because the rape scene identified with the victim instead of the aggressors (men). It's hard to get off on that. This SHAMED them while getting some of them hard although I'm sure they lost their erection once the revenge scenes start. The revenge terrifies them. The movie is disturbing to women of course but it is terrifying and traumatic for men far more than women - which is unusual. This is not a rape movie so called “nice” guys will secretly enjoy – for once.
The movies writer takes a real victim (which the movie is based on) to male cops before taking her to the hospital. He regrets this but only after the damage is done. Any cretin could tell a raped woman with a broken jaw belongs in a hospital not a police station. No doubt she could not protest as she was broken in spirit and (must I repeat) had a BROKEN JAW. I can just see her realising they were taking her to the cops all beat up and half naked and in pain instead of a hospital. I wonder what she was thinking. Oh no here we go again? And then her fool of a father tries to offer them a reward for their stupid exploitation of her incredibly vulnerable state. Did she agree she wanted to talk to cops rather than nurses. I doubt it. They probably didn't consult with her at all. Another rape of her choices? As if helping a rape victim makes you a hero. Ha ha, hilarious. Duh.
There are thousands of movies exploiting women. Men watch aggressive degrading sex movies all the time and make no protest as long as the woman stays a victim. As long as she doesn’t fight back.
I think men have the deepest contempt for women that don’t fight back. No they don’t want women to fight back of course, but they they know THEY would and may secretly think women deserve to get shit on because they don’t.
Look at the fuss Lorena Bobbit caused. One amputated penis and it’s world news but men cut up women’s bodies every day and nobody blinks. Violence towards women is “normalised”. This movie promotes violence towards abusive men. The alternative is being a hapless, crying, weak victim. What, depend on the law to be your savior?? You have got to be kidding. As the writer of this movie knows, rape victims are frequently gang raped figuratively speaking by cops, lawyers judges and the press. I know women whose own fathers raped them and all they got is a few months of jail served on weekends. That's a fact.
Bring on ISOYG2010. Where can I buy the T Shirt.