Meir Zarchi's _Day of the Woman_, released in America as _I Spit On Your Grave_, has been lauded as "a classic in the revenge genre." Certainly, there is some merit to categorizing the film as a "revenge" piece. However, those critics who acknowledge this film as a "revenge drama" do grave injustice against the tradition itself, which originated in the Renaissance under the direction of such famous playwrights at Thomas Kyd (_The Spanish Tragedy_), John Webster (_The Duchess of Malfi_), and even William Shakespeare (_Titus Andronicus_). _Day of the Woman_ is more of an attempt at cultural commentary than it is a work of art in the revenge drama vein.
Zarchi, an Italian director of low-budget horror pictures, creates horror films that are very similar to some of his other Italian contemporaries, namely Lucio Fulci (_Zombie_ and _The House by the Cemetery_) and Dario Argenti (_Suspiria_). Zarchi also is influenced by American auteurs of the horror genre in the '70s; no doubt, Wes Craven's _Last House on the Left_, another work of exploitive revenge within the horror genre, is influential to Zarchi's _Day of the Woman_. Understanding the influences from which Zarchi's film arises, it becomes much more easy to recognize how this film is not original, nor worthy of recognition alongside other works of art within the revenge drama genre.
The 1970s was an enigmatic decade, marked by both apathy (brought on by the Vietnam conflict and later Watergate) as well as activism (feminism, multiculturalism, and gay rights strengthened their political and social standing in the United States). For both of these reasons (and others not discussed), American society demanded answers and punishments for any "crimes" directed against a "common good." Even the popular literature originating out of the time, like _Ms._ magazine and _The Advocate_, is a clear indication of this assertion.
_Day of the Woman_ serves a purpose, then, for Zarchi: the woman gets revenge on those men who humiliate and degrade her. The problem with this motivating principle is simple: the men are reduced to caricatures of the typical "backwoods redneck," the woman is the prototypical high class, professional "bitch," and the setting is influenced directly by _Deliverance_. Virtually every aspect of the film, therefore, is borrowed, contrived, and inconsequential.
Moreover, the film itself lacks the depth of a well-written revenge drama. The political intrigue, filial sense of duty, and social ostracization of the condemned protagonist are missing from Zarchi's film. Some critics may refute, saying the film is very political in its portrayal of the woman getting revenge on the abusive man. They may even counter by stating that the woman is ostracized socially by her action. My objections to these comments are brief: 1) if this film is attempting to be political, it does so outside of the dictates of what true politicism is . . . and that is anything but revenge-oriented. 2) if the woman is supposedly ostracized by her acts of revenge, the audience never sees this as the film ends with her wielding an axe above her head, careening her boat down the river. (No doubt, another weak political and social statement which Zarchi attempts to make.)
When comparisons are made between Camille Keaton's character in _Day of the Woman_, to Hieronimo in Kyd's _Spanish Tragedy_ or even Titus Andronicus in Shakespeare's play of the same name, this wronged protagonist lacks the intensely psychological and moral dilemmas which afflict her Renaissance prototypes.
I give this film 3 out of 10 stars. While my review has been mostly negative, I cannot deny that this film has been influential to up-and-coming horror directors. It also is a comment, albeit a weak one, on the social environment that fostered it. It is a film that should be watched once and viewed in the context of which it originates. If this viewing experience is achieved, then perhaps the audience can even have a laugh . .. or be so completely offended that they never watch another film in their entire life.
Zarchi, an Italian director of low-budget horror pictures, creates horror films that are very similar to some of his other Italian contemporaries, namely Lucio Fulci (_Zombie_ and _The House by the Cemetery_) and Dario Argenti (_Suspiria_). Zarchi also is influenced by American auteurs of the horror genre in the '70s; no doubt, Wes Craven's _Last House on the Left_, another work of exploitive revenge within the horror genre, is influential to Zarchi's _Day of the Woman_. Understanding the influences from which Zarchi's film arises, it becomes much more easy to recognize how this film is not original, nor worthy of recognition alongside other works of art within the revenge drama genre.
The 1970s was an enigmatic decade, marked by both apathy (brought on by the Vietnam conflict and later Watergate) as well as activism (feminism, multiculturalism, and gay rights strengthened their political and social standing in the United States). For both of these reasons (and others not discussed), American society demanded answers and punishments for any "crimes" directed against a "common good." Even the popular literature originating out of the time, like _Ms._ magazine and _The Advocate_, is a clear indication of this assertion.
_Day of the Woman_ serves a purpose, then, for Zarchi: the woman gets revenge on those men who humiliate and degrade her. The problem with this motivating principle is simple: the men are reduced to caricatures of the typical "backwoods redneck," the woman is the prototypical high class, professional "bitch," and the setting is influenced directly by _Deliverance_. Virtually every aspect of the film, therefore, is borrowed, contrived, and inconsequential.
Moreover, the film itself lacks the depth of a well-written revenge drama. The political intrigue, filial sense of duty, and social ostracization of the condemned protagonist are missing from Zarchi's film. Some critics may refute, saying the film is very political in its portrayal of the woman getting revenge on the abusive man. They may even counter by stating that the woman is ostracized socially by her action. My objections to these comments are brief: 1) if this film is attempting to be political, it does so outside of the dictates of what true politicism is . . . and that is anything but revenge-oriented. 2) if the woman is supposedly ostracized by her acts of revenge, the audience never sees this as the film ends with her wielding an axe above her head, careening her boat down the river. (No doubt, another weak political and social statement which Zarchi attempts to make.)
When comparisons are made between Camille Keaton's character in _Day of the Woman_, to Hieronimo in Kyd's _Spanish Tragedy_ or even Titus Andronicus in Shakespeare's play of the same name, this wronged protagonist lacks the intensely psychological and moral dilemmas which afflict her Renaissance prototypes.
I give this film 3 out of 10 stars. While my review has been mostly negative, I cannot deny that this film has been influential to up-and-coming horror directors. It also is a comment, albeit a weak one, on the social environment that fostered it. It is a film that should be watched once and viewed in the context of which it originates. If this viewing experience is achieved, then perhaps the audience can even have a laugh . .. or be so completely offended that they never watch another film in their entire life.