Product: Day of the Woman (1978)
Rating: 5.0
Make your own judgment.
This one, along with Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, is one of the most provocative cinematic experiences I have undergone. Revile it for its crudity and flinch at its relentless violence, but you'd have to admit this film succeeds all the way in provoking some kind of response from its audience.Personally I find I Spit on Your Grave much less exploitative than it could have been. Firstly, take into account that the entire story is filmed from a neutral perspective while privileging the point of view of Jennifer. Secondly, note its subtle but deeply angered treatment at how a good-hearted, friendly woman is destroyed, reborn as a sadistic avenger lacking in heart and painfully unaware of what she's become. The final shot is simple brilliance, a more apt observation on Jennifer's character change and saying much more than a direct, moralizing title card could have (eg. Howard Hawks' Scarface).Finally, this film's most commendable (and perhaps contentious) point is its treatment of the men, the perpetrators of the original crime. Although animalistic in their brutality and at times grotesquely macho, the men's overall portrayal does not relegate them to pure villainy. We see moments of vulnerability, humanity (Stanley's relationship to Johnny is especially fascinating, thanks to Aron Tabor's multilayered performance) and even sympathy. None of which excuses them from their crime, as the film watches their humiliation and destruction with as unflinching an eye as it had Jennifer's suffering at their hands.This is essential viewing for anybody interested in feminism in film, and the rape-revenge genre. (Both The Accused and the lesser-known French drama L'Amour Viole/The Rape of Love borrowed liberally from I Spit on Your Grave's stance on male bonding and gang rape.) People interested in analyzing this film can also refer to Carol Clover's Men, Women and Chain Saws, which contains one of the few fair-minded assessments of this film untainted by the controversy of the film's social context.Once you're prepared for the violence and extreme human behaviour in this film, you'll find much to think about.