Revisionist Rape-Revenge: Redefining a Film Genre [Hardcover]

Considered a notorious subset of horror in the 1970s and 1980s, there has been a massive revitalization and diversification of rape-revenge in recent years. This book analyzes the politics, ethics, and affects at play in the filmic construction of rape and its responses.Introduction: Reapproaching Rape-Revenge 1. Remaking Rape-Revenge: The Last House on the Left (1972/2009) and I Spit on Your Grave (1978/2010) 2. The Postfeminist Trap of Vagina Dentata for the American Teen Castratrice 3. Rape, Racism, and Descent into the Ethical Quagmire of Revenge 4. The Shame of Male Acolytes: Negotiating Gender and Sexuality Through Rape-Revenge 5. Collective Revenge: Challenging the Individualist Victim-Avenger in Death Proof, Sleepers, and Mystic River Conclusion: Challenging the Boundaries of Cinema's Rape-Revenge Genre in Katalin Varga and Twilight Portrait

Claire Henry's provocative re-thinking of the rape-revenge genre from the 1970s classics to contemporary mainstream films is essential reading for all scholars interested in representations of women in the cinema. Bringing together film theory, popular culture, and political and ethical considerations, this book is both comprehensive and challenging. Revisionist Rape-Revenge offers new insights into one of cinema's most important film genres while asserting the relevance and significance of feminist theory for anyone interested in women's roles in contemporary film today. - Barbara Creed, Professor of Screen Studies, University of Melbourne, Australia

Numerous books, articles, and academic essays have been written throughout the years about the meaning and intentions of the original 1978 motion picture 'Day of the Woman' a.k.a. 'I Spit on Your Grave,' however few have reached the level of such thorough, comprehensive, and in-depth analysis of the film as crafted by Claire Henry in her superbly written book. An invaluable read. - Meir Zarchi, writer and director of the original 1978 Day of tló