The League of Tana Tea Drinkers proudly presents a roundtable discussion on torture porn. I participated in this discussion which is currently posted on Blogcritics. You’ll find my thoughts on the topic below.
Read the entire article here: http://blogcritics.org/archives/2008/05/19/173427.php
Annalee Newitz recently posed the question, “Do We Need Graphic Torture In Our Dystopias?” on Horrorhead. Newitz ponders the question without defining a clear response. She seems to be wondering if these types of scenes add any value to moving the story forward. I’ll answer that question right now, graphic scenes of torture are almost never necessary to tell a story. Torture can be used as a plot device to add realism to a scene. Basically, torture isn’t necessary but it can work.
I hate the term torture porn. It’s just stupid. It’s a term that some douche came up with to make horror films seem more sensational than they really should be. The Saw franchise doesn’t deserve the attention that it receives. The first film was interesting but it went downhill from there. The same can be said about Hostel. I know that Eli Roth is considered a pariah amongst horror fans but I feel that beneath the gore of Hostel there was an interesting story. The torture wasn’t necessary in either of these films. Torture can be implied and be as scary, if not more scary, than the reality of what is shown on screen. However, I don’t have a problem with the scenes actually being depicted on screen. It may not be the best way to tell a story but these are, after all, horror films.
Should torture be depicted in television programs like 24 or Battlestar Galactica? These shows aren’t considered to be part of the horror genre. My answer is absolutely. Both 24 and Battlestar Galactica are using torture as a device. It’s not a very subtle device but it’s effect. Dystopian storytelling is usually not very subtly using political subtext to tell a story. 24 is doing so in a way in which Jack Bauer is an anti-hero to the nth degree. For fuck’s sake, he ripped a guy’s throat out with his teeth. BSG shows scenes of graphic torture and I don’t blink an eye. This is a television show that is set in space with fucking robots for villains. Do I even need to comment on the fact that scenes of torture in this context are ridiculous? Who gives a shit?
The debate over torture in media has been raging as a hot topic for the past 3 years. It really has become a stagnant topic. There are no clear winners or losers in this debate. It’s similar to horror fans who lament PG-13 rated films versus R-rated films. Who cares? It all boils down to one simple question: is the story any good? That’s the only thing that should matter. How the story is told is up to the creator of the product. Sure, studios and political correctness can get in the way but we don’t live in an ideal world. If we did, every director would have final cut, every author would have final edit, and every horror movie would be awesome. Unfortunately, that’s not our reality.
Are there films that cross the line with scenes of graphic torture? Of course. Anyone who has ever seen Gaspar Noé’s Irréversible can attest to the fact that a 9 minute rape scene is despicable and completely unnecessary. There are a number of things that I don’t want to see in movies: rape, child molestation, necrophilia, Sandra Bullock, etc, etc.. Almost every film ever made has something that someone will find objectionable. But I’m not a politically correct idiot with his head stuck up his ass either. The bottom line is this, if you’re shocked or disgusted by scenes of torture in media, you probably shouldn’t be watching movies like Saw or The Hills Have Eyes or reading books by Jack Ketchum. That’s just common sense.
1 response so far ↓
Phronk // May 21, 2008 at 10:00 am
I agree with you completely…it’s all about story. Sometimes graphic torture scenes can get the blood pumping and enhance enjoyment of the story; but often it’s superfluous or would have been more effective if it were more subtle.