A Sadistic Gaze: Sexual Assault in Into the Forest
(CW: Frank discussions of sexual assault.)
(Feminist Ecocinema; Fall 2023)
The trope of the “strong female character” has become almost as tiring as the picture-perfect Mary Sue. For a time it seemed that in lieu of, say, strong writing and dynamic personhood female characters were defined by the level by which they achieved masculine strength. For a time, this type of writing was loosely considered “feminist” in mainstream thought. However, feminism reaches more deeply than just switching a woman’s personality from the traditionally genteel to the gruffness of the traditionally masculine.
The “strong female character” is just another way to disempower women by defining their desirability to a limited set of traits and abilities. Which is where Patricia Rozema’s suspense film Into the Forest comes in. Initially, the film offers promise with its seemingly-feminist take on survivalism. The two sisters are not traditionally masculine, nor are they superpowered, nor are they one-dimensional cut-outs existing to fulfill the voyeuristic expectations of the male gaze. Instead, they are a believable blend of traits and skills. Both understand how to run the generator, problem solve, chop wood (which requires significant strength), and generally tend the more “manly” parts of the home. But while Into the Forest disrupts gender norms by placing two young women in the role of rugged survivalists, it sabotages its own examination of feminine power by falling into the tired trope of disempowerment by sexual violence.
Depictions of sexual violence are often controversial enough to overshadow the entire context of a film. Gaspar Noe’s Irreversible is one of the most infamous examples of this dynamic. According Brottman’s paper in Film Quarterly, Irreversible “consists of about 13 long, apparently unbroken shots”, a style that became somewhat of a signature for Noe (Brottman). However, the uniqueness of his filmography has largely been clouded by the 9-minute rape scene concluding Irreversible. According to Brottman’s article, the film was so poorly received by Cannes as to be more-or-less ignored (Brottman). In a similar vein, the commentary presented in Wes Craven’s 1972 The Last House on the Left about the public desensitization to onscreen violence during the Vietnam War was largely missed underneath the sexual violence.
Into the Forest’s depiction of sexual assault isn’t as anatomically graphic as both aforementioned films, but the explicit fear, pain, and hollowness in Eva’s expression during her attack leaves a number of questions about intent. Irreversible’s entire setting is intended to evoke a seedy, underground reality of disgust and, according to Gaspar Noe, “[i]f you do a movie with a rape and don’t show it, you hide the point” (Macnab). The Last House on the Left was one of the 1970s exploitation films, thus giving it its context for brutality. Yet Into the Forest’s setting seeks unity with nature. The conflict is nature and disharmony. And, from an ecofeminist perspective, seeking harmony with one’s environment is the end goal to all of life. The question isn’t so much the existence of sexual violence itself within a narrative, but why is it present?
Into the Forest is an example of a common problem when films (and other mediums) tonally switch midway through. The slow burn of the sisters building their lives together in a new world was the story. Now, post-Eva’s-assault, the story is about Eva embracing her traditionally feminine capacity as a mother, a role she was forced into by the impregnation of her rapist. While the second half of Into the Forest offers agency in the form of Eva’s choice still being her choice to keep her baby, part two is stripped of what made part one stand apart from terms like “strong female character.” Instead of these women subverting gender norms and expectations, Eva has been forced into the most traditional of traditional female experiences. Is the film telling us that the nature of pregnancy and motherhood is the ultimate calling? If so, where does the equality of feminism come in? Where is the space for infertile women, transwomen, or women who are unable to have children because of assault. Are all the accomplishments made by the sisters’ independence inferior to childbirth? Is bringing and nurturing life the exclusive role for women who desire some sense of ultimate fulfillment? Where is the feminism in that?
Each element of a story, of a film, is planned out and selected. Each element does, truly, have a reason, regardless of whether it be labeled as acceptable or not by the viewer. Perhaps Irreversible is repulsive to many, yet I can certainly understand the director’s intent in showing graphic violation as graphic and violating. I can understand Wes Craven’s use of shock factor in The Last House on the Left to expose a country’s desensitization to violence. But the context of Into the Forest doesn’t allow space for motherhood to be a non-alienating solution. Feminism seeks to elevate women to the same opportunities and freedoms of men—which does include the opportunity and freedom to choose traditional routes. Ecofeminism seeks to elevate nature to having the same opportunities and freedoms as humanity; to live in unity with one another. But Into the Forest compromises its subversion of gender by leaning into the gendered “mothering” of nature. By gendering nature, nature is placed on a “side” instead of an aspect of harmony.
Irreversible and The Last House on the Left ask where genre fits into discussions of feminism and sexual violence. Irreversible is, arguably, a suspense/thriller/drama film, whereas The Last House on the Left is inarguably a horror film. Into the Forest has been argued to be both. Yet, the atmosphere of Into the Forest is not that of horror, it is the atmosphere of a slowburn drama.The film as a whole is not intended to disgust or to shock. And yet, in the middle of nowhere, a graphic rape scene. Was the abrupt shift in tone meant to set the viewer off guard? Instead of it feeling jarring, the assault in Into the Forest felt fetishized, as if the entire narrative was a cohesive whole, but this one scene required the close-up and loving affection of a pet project—not a narrative obligation. If the goal was for shock factor, it failed, as the scene isn’t shocking so much as insulting. If the goal was for a tonal shift, then it partially succeeded, though I question what tone it intended to land on.
While the setting for Into the Forest is a character of itself, it feels even moreso like a disrespected stereotype once the assault has occurred. In small town Pacific Northwest there are certainly unsafe areas and unsafe persons—just like anywhere. However, culturally there is a stronger sense of simultaneous community and independence in that region. Perhaps an individual needs to “earn” their way into the community, however clearly Eva and Nell’s family has already done so. There likely would’ve been neighbors—even if far off—who would have been more helpful and better prepared. Given the wealth and, likely, connections Eva and Nell’s father clearly had, there would have been well-intentioned people checking to see if they were okay. In the Pacific Northwest, nature is part of everyday life; it is not an adversary.
Initially, Into the Forest challenges the gender norms, showing a dynamic representation of women as people not defined by their gender. However, with the inclusion of sexual violence, the film sabotages that independence by redefining women as sexual objects under threat. This shift communicates to the viewer that the worst thing that can happen to a woman is sexual violation, thus reinforcing the idea that a woman’s sexuality is their strongest asset. Furthermore, it does a disservice to the goal of equality behind feminism by inferring sexual violence is only a straight, self-identifying female problem. But that just is not the case. Sexual violence is a problem when it occurs to anyone of any identifying gender. Unfortunately, it is just so heavily associated with women that men may be less likely to come forward. According to RAINN (Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network), there are almost half a million sexual assault and rape victims in the United States every year. 54% are under the age of thirty. 90% of adult rape victims are female, 3% are male or male children. 21% of transgender/genderqueer college students are sexually assaulted (“Victims of Sexual Violence: Statistics.”). Even for a victim in the 3%, sexually assault affects 100% of their world.
Into the Forest presents a scenario where women have enough to worry about without the threat of male violence. This is a refreshing take in examining sisterly relationships, dynamics of survival, and the oh-so-familiar feeling of being stuck in a house with one’s family for extended periods of time that many remember from COVID. But with the introduction of sexual assault Into the Forest becomes just another dehumanizing story that disrespects the weight of its subject matter. Sexual assault is a reality that needs discussed and, perhaps, even portrayed in a variety of ways. However, to discuss or portray the subject is a heavy burden that any storyteller must use with respect. Perhaps the gaze of the camera in Eva’s face did not fall within the confines of the male gaze, but it certainly fell within the confines of a sadist’s.
Works Cited
Brottman, Mikita, and David Sterritt. “Irréversible.” Film Quarterly, vol. 57, no. 2, 2003, pp. 37–42. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.1525/fq.2004.57.2.37. Accessed 16 Dec. 2023.
Into the Forest. Directed by Patricia Rozema, performances by Elliot Page, Evan Rachel Wood. 2015.
Irreversible. Directed by Gaspar Noe, performances by Monica Bellucci, Vincent Cassel. 2002.
The Last House on the Left. Directed by Wes Craven, performances by Sandra Peabody, Lucy Grantham. 1972.
Macnab, Geoffrey. “‘The Rape Had to Be Disgusting to Be Useful’.” The Guardian, 2 Aug. 2002, www.theguardian.com/film/2002/aug/02/artsfeatures.festivals.
“Victims of Sexual Violence: Statistics.” RAINN | The Nation’s Largest Anti-sexual Violence Organization, www.rainn.org/statistics/victims-sexual-violence.
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