01-02-2011, 07:44 AM
I have nothing whatsoever against violence in film, so long as it's justified and has a reason to exist beyond simple titilation. The Silence of the Lambs, for instance, was an incredibly gruesome movie, but it was made in such a way that you could distance yourself from the bloodshed and appreciate the serious story, characters and themes. It had craft and style. It was art. I Spit On Your Grave wasn't art. Simple as. Whatever you think of the film, whether you like it or not, there's no way you can argue that it has craftsmanship. It's a bit like watching footage of a grisly car crash. All you see is bloodshed on a screen, nothing else. Where's the escapism in that? I think I understand what you mean, though. Brainless endurance tests probably eliminate serious thought in certain viewers, like slick romantic comedies do with others.
"We believe that we invent symbols. The truth is that they invent us; we are their creatures, shaped by their hard, defining edges." - Gene Wolfe