Review of Day of the Woman (1978) by Héliø L — 09 Aug 2015

Meir Zarchi says he was compelled to make this softcore rape revenge flick after assisting a female victim of sexual abuse who emerged from the side of the road while he was driving to a park with his daughter one night in 1974.

Almost forty years on ( it was shot in 76), there is still controversy surrounding this visceral work that does not turn the camera away from the sexual violence inflicted upon its female protagonist during a 45-minute sequence that makes Gaspar Noe's Irreversible look like child's play.

It is a tough watch indeed, and it must have been a tough shoot too - some crew members had to call it quits along the way because they simply couldn't handle it. But then we watch the victim turn the game around in spectacular fashion, and what at first seemed like the most mysoginist exploitation film ever made suddenly becomes some kind of female power triumph.

Its original title - Day of the Woman - was not commercially viable but it does help to set the record straight. What is really more torturous about the whole experience is the awful acting (though Camille Keaton deserves kudos for her courage), cheap special effects and rough-as-fuck, sometimes inaudible sound.

The lack of a music score only helps by adding some extra realism to scenes that aren't always well executed. This is possibly one of the world's most misunderstood and notorious cult classics.

Forget general critical consensus and experience it for yourself though I'd definitely stay away from its remake and sequel. Enough is enough!