I Spit On Your Grave

Introduction

Meir Zarchi`s controversial film about the brutal rape and beating of a young woman, and the revenge she exacts on her attackers.

This cult film became famous following its banning in the UK during the `video nasty` witch-hunts of the early 1980s, but this release is the bare-bones and very heavily edited version which was supposed to have been released when it first appeared on VHS.

Video

The video quality is quite awful considering the film was supposed to be re-released in anamorphic widescreen. When there are night-time scenes it`s almost impossible to tell what`s going on. As for the `close-up effect` of an axe in the back, then the least said the better.

Audio

The sound is apparently remastered to 5:1, but there is no evidence of anything worthwhile for this type of set-up. At its best, the sound is passable, and there is no (or little) music to get in the way of, or indeed advance what plot there is.

Features

There are no extras, unless you count scene selections, which I don`t.

Conclusion

I first saw this film many years ago, in its uncut status, when legally available in the UK (apparently the cut scenes were added again for distribution after the edited version was passed by the BBFC), and wondered even then what the attraction, or indeed the point of it all was.

The attack on the girl (played by Camille Keaton, the grand-daughter of Buster, who was probably spinning frantically in his own grave after she made this), even in this version, is dwelt upon rather too lovingly and lasts for around 20 minutes (10 minutes or so having been cut). The director may well have intended the `in your face` violence to sicken as much as it does to prove some form of point, perhaps letting us know how awful it is when something like this happens. Did we need a reminder?
The fact that there is no actual soundtrack to the film lets us concentrate more on what`s happening on screen, making everything appear more clinical.

The revenge is just as horrific, and in one case, unintentionally hilarious (concerning as it does, a hot bath, a kitchen knife and a Puccini aria all about an abandoned woman - oh how clever Mr. Zarchi must have thought he was!), but with one important difference - it doesn`t feel as if the writer or director (the same person as it happens) cared much about anything moral which could have been rescued from the mess. The last two killings are done in quick succession, and then the film ends…his heart certainly wasn`t in it by then, but of course, once the majority of sex and gratuitous nudity is out of the way, what`s the point of continuing, eh?

The acting isn`t too bad overall (with one or two exceptions), although with the risible script and terrible editing, there isn`t much anyone could have done. If you want meaningful characterisation, then you had better not waste your money on this. All is one-dimensional, and there is little explanation as to who anyone is, and what motivates them, but maybe that`s deliberate, as another reminder of the horrible randomness of these sorts of incidents. Then again, maybe not.

So, an exploitation film, and that`s about it. If any recommendation was going to be made, then I understand that there is a cut two-sided version out there, complete with director`s commentary, and the uncut `Millenium` edition can be bought from the States. Either of these would be a better choice if you ever feel the urge to see what all the fuss was about.