Directors: Virginie Despentes, Coralie
Starring: Karen Lancaume, Raffaela Anderson,
Running Time: 74 Minutes
Certificate: 18
Extras: The Making Of Baise Moi, Q & A with Cast and crew
When the title of your film translates to FUCK ME/RAPE ME, you can just imagine the controversy that will surround it. BAISE MOI is a brutal assault on the senses in more ways than one which constantly challenges the audience. But does it amount to anything?
BAISE MOI follows two women who are treated like dirt by society. Nadine (Lancaume) is an escort and Manu (Anderson) is raped by a gang of men. Manu’s reaction is to show no emotion while such a horrific act takes place. It immediately robs the assailants of any sense of power and they soon leave. Nadine and Manu soon meet up and decide to take a road trip of destruction across France, engaging in sex, drugs, and murder. Lots and lots of murder.
The violence is visceral and at times unbearable, but not because of the gore or actions depicted, but because of the characters’ mentality. They, very quickly, lose their grip on right and wrong and kill without discrepancy. When the protagonists (certainly not heroes) begin killing innocent people you’ll find yourself trapped in moral purgatory where confusion trumps emotional engagement. One scene sees the women attack a man after he tries to put on a condom. Is this an extremist form of feminism men can’t understand? Possibly, but it’s more likely just a broad attempt to shock the audience.
Shot on gritty video and starring adult film stars performing unsimulated sex, it really does feel like a porno, while trying to step away from such a label at the same time. The unsimulated sex does offer an extra layer to the disturbing rape sequences, and mixing the brutal violence assures they’ll be no titillation. Coming from the world of adult films both Lancaume and Anderson give surprisingly complex performances throughout, unfortunately the bipolar writing doesn’t develop these women enough.
BAISE MOI is an unfocused film which doesn’t seem to understand what it is doing or why. It will certainly open up a lot of debate amongst its viewers, but similar themes have been handled elsewhere to a more satisfying degree. At 74 minutes this is definitely worth a watch for those wanting to view controversial and challenging cinema, but it’s one that may be best forgotten.
Extras: The transfer provided by Arrow is absolutely immaculate, and we’re at last given the complete uncut version with sex scenes undarkened. The Making Of… is a fascinating account from the directors and stars shot at the time of the film’s release. It’s a wonderful 40 minute affair that captures the controversy at the time and goes some way to explaining the intentions of the creators. However, we really need to see a retrospective documentary that tracks the tragic aftermath of those involved. Lancaume saw BAISE MOI as her break away from the porn industry, but would take her own life just 5 years later.
BAISE MOI is released on DVD on 25th March via Arrow Video
