Today, amid wars and gruesome occupations, there is no doubt that we, as a race, are inevitably drawn into violence. Aggression over pacifism and bloodshed over compassion seem to be the guiding forces of our time. As the world continues to lose patience and continue to commit aggression, art that imitates life, or speculates on it, naturally needs to reflect some of that. So is it okay to show violence on screen, to show rape on screen which is perhaps the most brutal of physical and emotional violations? The debate has raged and the crude and vulgar forms of depiction of violence have dominated screen time and mind space ever since man learned to shoot films and run them on spools for public display. The question is always how much is too much? And, a little more philosophically, is there a point to making this depiction?
Negligent attitude towards sexual violence
Recently Vijay Sethupathi and Anurag Kashyap’s film King Ringing the cash registers with a cliched revenge drama, filled with contrived and non-linear time zones. Though a fine essay by the protagonist’s broken father redeems much, the brutal violence in the film induces an internal physical shudder at times.
The gore, the violence and the casual attitude towards violence makes one wonder if the assault is actually a living, bittersweet character in the film. Not to spoil the story, but if you get nervous at depictions of physical violence on screen, be warned that there is also more than one rape in the film, not revengeful but, as mentioned earlier, almost casual, a flick of the wrist; we-can-do-it-therefore-we-will-do-it level of numbing.
A scene from the Tamil film ‘Maharaja’
As a cinematic trick, it is meant to move the plot forward in this film, and as such, the emphasis is on entropic flashbacks, suggestive and erotic facial expressions, post-sexual clothing adjustments, struggles, partial nudity, screams, and violence. There is a particularly brutal scene in another flashback, where the abuser spits on the child victim with such violence, it is certainly a bittersweet moment in the film. Of course, this worsens into a cycle of even more violence, bloodshed, and a climactic ending, which by then the audience has either been expecting, predicted, or whispered as a prayer for the film to end as a relief.
Also Read | A History of Violence: In defence of ‘Leo’ and Lokesh Kanagaraj’s penchant for the action genre
influencing behavior in society
Studies have proven that violent behavior on screen increases violence, especially in children. Psychologist Albert Bandura proved in the 1960s that the more aggressive a film is, the more aggressive the children watching it will behave.
Other studies have also shown that another way violence is allowed to be practiced in society is by desensitizing the audience. Desensitization ensures that the response to violence in real life is dull or dead, allowing it to continue, or worse, encouraging it. Violence on screen has rarely been an agent of change, as filmmakers are sometimes misled to think.
The king of screen violence, Quentin Tarantino, infuses his films with a comedic element and an element of dramatic distance between the screen and the audience. At a press conference in 1994, he said: “Violence is one of the many things that go into movies. People ask me, ‘Where does all the violence in your movies come from?’ I say, ‘Where does all the dancing in Stanley Donen’s movies come from?’ If you ask me how I feel about violence in real life, I have a lot of feelings about it. It’s one of the worst aspects of America. Violence in movies is good. I like it.”
While violence has an undeniable place on screen as an aspect of life, we don’t just want to see romantic comedies on the big or small screen. Violence stylized in movies, without any opportunity for redress, is problematic; the most nuanced portrayal of rape on screen is from a Netflix series Sandman, In the episode Calliope.
In the final episode of the season, a writer out of inspiration on a deadline is given a mythical muse by another writer, and he pleads with her to be his inspiration. She has been imprisoned for decades against her will, and his pleas turn into insistence and demands. In one scene, as he is furiously typing away at his manuscript, through a small bleeding scratch on his face, we realize that he has had his way with her. Unusual for a rape scene, and with none of its usual ostentation, but still powerful and conveys the message strongly.
Michaela Coel in ‘I May Destroy You’
In another recent streaming series, I can destroy youSexual violation is depicted in a variety of subtle and severe ways, and is responded to by the system, sending the message that consent is important in any sexual relationship, and can be withdrawn at any time.
Educate, don’t glorify
It is important to show violence on screen because we need to keep our films real and grounded, but mindless violence in the name of moving the plot forward is not helpful and even detracts from the film’s credibility. You can always take a more sensitive, realistic approach and stylize the portrayal in a way that doesn’t glorify violence but instead serves to make the audience aware and educate them.
