Rape and revenge films are a subgenre of

exploitation film An exploitation film is a film that tries to succeed financially by exploiting current trends, niche genres, or lurid content. Exploitation films are generally low-quality "B movies", though some set trends, attract critical attention, become hi ...

that was particularly popular in the 1970s, but attracted controversy as a target of

extreme cinema Extreme cinema is a subgenre used for films distinguished by its use of excessive sex and violence, and such various extreme nature as mutilation and torture. It recently specializes in genre film, mostly both horror and drama. Reception The r ...

Explanation of the subgenre

Rape and revenge films generally follow the same three-act structure: * Act I: The character is (violently) raped and maybe further abused,

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. definitions of tortur ...

d or left for dead. * Act II: The character survives and may rehabilitate themselves. * Act III: The character exacts revenge and/or kills their rapist(s). In

Gaspar Noé Gaspar Noé (, ; born 27 December 1963) is an Argentine filmmaker based in Paris, France. He is the son of Argentine painter, writer, and intellectual Luis Felipe Noé. In the early 1990s, Noé along with his wife Lucile Hadžihalilović were ...

's 2002 film ''

Irréversible ''Irréversible'' () is a 2002 French experimental psychological thriller film written and directed by Gaspar Noé. Starring Monica Bellucci, Vincent Cassel and Albert Dupontel, the plot depicts the events of a tragic night in Paris as two men ...

'', the structure was reversed, with the first act depicting the revenge before tracing back the events which led to that point. Roger Ebert argues that, by using this structure as well as a false revenge, ''Irréversible'' cannot be classified as an exploitation film, as no exploitation of the subject matter takes place.

In popular culture

* The genre has attracted critical attention. Much of this critical attention comes from feminist critics examining the complex politics involved in the genre and its impact on cinema more generally. More recently, a broad analysis of the rape-revenge genre and concept was published in ''Rape-Revenge Films: A Critical Study'', by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas. The book argues against a simplistic notion of the term "rape-revenge" and suggests a film-specific approach in order to avoid generalizing films which may "diverge not over the treatment of sexual assault as much as they do in regard to the morality of the revenge act." * In addition to American and French films, rape/revenge films have been made in Japan (e.g., Takashi Ishii's ''

Freeze Me , or ''Freezer'', is a 2000 Japanese rape and revenge thriller film by director Takashi Ishii. This film stars Harumi Inoue as Chihiro, a rape victim who tries to live a normal life, only to be visited several years later by her three rapists in ...

''), Finland, Russia ('' The Voroshilov Sharpshooter''), Argentina (e.g., ''I'll Never Die Alone'';

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original title: ''No Moriré Sola''), Norway (e.g., ''The Whore''

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original title: ''Hora'', and Sweden (e.g., ''

The Virgin Spring ''The Virgin Spring'' ( sv, Jungfrukällan) is a 1960 Swedish rape and revenge film directed by Ingmar Bergman. Set in medieval Sweden, it is a tale about a father's merciless response to the rape and murder of his young daughter. The story was a ...

960 Year 960 ( CMLX) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Summer – Siege of Chandax: A Byzantine fleet with an expeditionary force (co ...

original title: ''Jungfrukällan'' which also won the Oscar for best foreign film at the 33rd Academy Awards.))

References

{{Film genres Film genres Films about rape Films about revenge Thriller films by genre

Explanation of the subgenre

In popular culture

See also

References