Interesting article on rape and sexual violence in films

[Tmesis]

Here. I thought it made some interesting points (some of which I've seen here before).

Very easy for the writer to criticise but unless I missed it there was no illustrations of how it could be portrayed in a manner the writer found acceptable. It would be worse surely for cinema to pretend it simply doesn't happen?

The writer gave a couple of examples where it was relevant and well handled. She objects to films that use it for shock value or titillation. I thought her point about the different ratings for sexual violence and actual sex was very interesting.

Specifically mentioned were Irreversible ("when I saw the film, the one time I think I'll ever see the film, it broke my heart as if it had actually happened to someone I know. It's so skilfully built that it registered. It got through all of the film technique and all of the exploitation crap I've seen and it hit me in a very personal place. It made me feel that loss in a way that few films have, and I deeply respect it even if I never ever want to see it again.") and The Road Warrior ("that has a pretty awful early moment that is quick but graphic, and Mel Gibson's reaction to it is to turn away, unable to look. This is the same dude we've seen f some mf'ers up by that point, without even blinking an eye. Max is out of his mind. But that? He can't watch, and so we don't either after that first awful glance. It's really well-directed by Miller.")

And then "All I ever ask is that any filmmaker who is going to use these images uses them in a responsible way, genuinely aware of the weight of what they're doing [...] The one thing that's for sure is that the next time I'm sitting through what is essentially an exploitation film and they decide to throw in a rape just to keep things lively, I will get up and leave the theater, or I will turn the DVD off, or I will simply tune the movie out."