I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (1978)

Directed by: Meir Zarchi

Starring:  Camille Keaton, Eron Tabor, Richard Pace

When Jennifer Hills rents a secluded cabin in upstate New York to continue writing her novel, she has no idea what is in store for her. Falling afoul of four locals, she is beaten and raped…then beaten and raped again…and again, until finally left for dead.  However, Jennifer survives, and returns to mete out some bloody vengeance…

Of all the films which appeared on the infamous "Video Nasty" list of the 1980s in England, it is fair to say that I Spit on Your Grave is one of the very few which still has the power to shock, even today.

Camille Keaton (no relation to Diane, but a distant cousin of Buster), please Jennifer, a young woman taking up residence in a log cabin to work on her novel. When she bumps into Matthew, a local simpleton, she is warm and friendly to him, for which the other guys tease him for, calling her his girlfriend.

Matthew's "friends": Johnny, Stanley and Andy, take him to confront Jennifer, harrassing her with their boat before forcing her to strip naked so Matthew can see a real nude woman for the first time. However when Jennifer tries to escape the situation escalates further into a prolonged gangrape.

The camera never shies away from the brutality of Jennifer's situation. The whole rape sequence lasts approximately 25 minutes of screen time. It forces the audience to watch, and then watch again as they chase her down and repeat it all over again. Even then, just when you think its over, and Jennifer crawls to her cabin and reaches for the phone, it turns out that no, not even "home" is a sanctuary for her.

What sets this film apart from its remake and sequels is the nature of the revenge Jennifer eventually takes on her assaulters and would-be killers. She starts by messing with their heads, allowing them to see her at the log cabin, acting as if nothing happened - nothing worth reporting anyway. As each lets their guard down, she is able to get close enough to mete out her vengeance. Matthew is the first to go, hung by his neck with a rope and pulley system. One of the others is mutilated in the river with an outboard motor. However the nastiest death is reserved for Johnny.

Jennifer is able to convince Johnny that she isn't a threat - quite the contrary, actually, and seduces him into taking a bubble bath with her. Little does he know that she has already stashed a knife under the water and when he is fully erect she slices off his penis. Without showing anything graphic, this scene is incredibly disturbing. The amount of blood that pumps into the bath as Johnny flails around, crying "It won't stop!" is horrific even today. Just like the horrific rape scenes, Meir Zarchi strips the revenge fantasy of its façade and shows the grim realness of the situation. In much the same way that there is no titillation in any of the rape scenes, Zarchi ensures that any catharsis felt in Johnny's comeuppance is short lived.

THE VERDICT

I Spit on Your Grave deserves its reputation. It is a very hard film to watch and its very existence questions the purpose of the Rape-Revenge genre.

MIKEOUTWEST