Viol, la grande peur

Episodic film centred around a newspaper office where it is decided to make more of the many rape stories that come in and create some discussion, try to change the climate of opinion (and sell more papers). This is a blatant case of 'having your cake and eat it' where the film makers hold up the 'awfulness' of rape and how women get blamed instead of men and then going to great lengths to re-enact these 'awful' acts for our viewing pleasure. Interestingly, of course the legal position has changed around since the 70's and it is now very much a case of the 'poor' guy having to prove that he didn't rape his girlfriend. The film opens with some guy running around Paris asking people what they think of rape (how fatuous is that) moves on to a trial scene where the judge is clearly of a mind that 'she must have been asking for it' and we end with a pious group of journalists suggesting they may have changed the world. In between we get rape sequence after rape sequence, well shot, voyeuristic and not unsexy. The scenes are varied and regular with a stand out one featuring a young Brigitte Lahaie and two truckers who get their comeuppance from this 'anatomy student', but it is all a bit too two faced and one is left doubting very much if there ever was any thought in the film makers mind other than bums on seats. Not for everybody, obviously, but a watchable and interesting curio from, for good or bad, a unique period in modern times.