Revenge, d. Coralie Fargeat (2018)
A meticulously made and unflinchingly grisly film, Revenge is a tense, nihilistic ride that only lapses into hysteria in the last few minutes - but by then you are already on the gore smeared hook.
I probably don't have to say much about the set up: Jen is a beautiful young woman who is appallingly used by powerful men who assume she was put on the earth just for them. They're right to a certain extent, but not in the way they think. Despite their best efforts, she refuses to be disposed of, and will eventually bring a brutal and bloody reckoning to them all.
It's usual for male critics to now say something facile about how this is a feminist rape / revenge movie and, as such, is not just an exploitation flick. I'm not going to do that, instead I'll just say that it is well balanced and you don't feel dirty watching it, i.e. there's no voyeuristic pleasure, just dread and unease.
The bottom image is the last shot in the film and serves as both a defiant full stop and an ellipsis: Jen isn't a bit sorry, and now she knows how to settle the score with those who think they can mistreat her, the world had better watch out.
