Date Rape: Existed in the Past, Exists in the Future
March 10th 2010 03:54
This weekend, I sat down with my boyfriend and watched one of his favorite movies from the 80s: Back to the Future! (#1). I had seen parts of it before, but never the whole thing through. I was never that into Michael J. Fox, but boy, that Crispin Glover sure is handsome! (Although, apparently nuts? So my boyfriend says. Can anyone verify this?) I was hooked as soon as Huey Lewis & The News' "Power of Love" came on. What a great song! And overall, the movie was enjoyable, and a great watch on a Sunday night.
But, there was one point in the movie that really shocked me. And no it wasn't the "shit" bombs being dropped. Ooh, how racy, they said shit. The scene that shocked me was the attempted (date) rape scene. Date rape, what date rape scene?!
Remember when Marty is set-up to go on to the dance with Lorraine (his mother in the future.) He tells George (his father in the future), that he'll put the moves on Lorraine and when she starts to protest, George should bust into the car and rescue her. What ends up happening, is Lorraine puts the moves on Marty, and before Marty can react, he's pulled from the car by school bully Biff. Biff sees Lorraine all pretty looking and hops into the car to get handsy. Lorraine proceeds to say no, and struggle against Biff, and the car door shuts. Biff's cronies proceed to take Mary away for a beat down (which really just means throwing him into the trunk of a car.)
There are many, many disturbing things that happen in this scene. 1. Isn't a potential rape scene a little "heavy" for this movie? All and all, Back to the Future is a low-key, skateboarding, light-hearted comedy about time travel. Why include a rape scene to begin with? I understand showing the parking scene, where Lorraine hits on Marty, because that shows depth/change in the character, but why have Biff enter the car? Why can't he settle his beef with Marty and leave it at that? My guess is that the attempted rape scene was used to move the plot along, but IMHO, I think that's a lousy way to keep the plot moving.
I'll skip over the weird incestousness that happens when Lorraine does start hitting on Marty, and how Marty has difficulty resisting. Back to the attempted rape: 2. Doesn't showing Lorraine all hot and bothered with Marty, and then showing her in an unsympathetic rape situation, a lot like blaming the victim? She's obviously some sort of hussy--did you see her breasts hanging out of that dress (which they do pan on in the movie)--and thus, deserves to be sexually assaulted. (And I say unsympathetic because no one in the movie takes Biff's assault seriously, nor is the audience made to feel like a real violation of person is going on. We're too busy laughing at how the musicians chased off the cronies or waiting for George to save the day, we're not thinking about the physical and emotional damage being inflicted on Lorraine in that car.)
3. Also speaking of emotional damage, why on earth is it okay for Marty to make advances on Lorraine when he thinks that she'll refuse him? The movie says, it's okay for Marty to do this because he's the hero, the good guy, he's just pretending to sexually assault her. But it's not like Lorraine knows that this is pretend. If she had acted as Marty had wanted, she'd have the emotional scars of being potentially date raped. Not exactly, something I would want to inflict on my mother. And in addition, this scene sends out the wrong message. In cases of date rape, it is usually the "hero," or seemingly nice guy, who the girl already likes and is willing to be alone in a car with, that pressures the girl into doing things she doesn't want to do. And the movie reinforces, that all though Marty has "good intentions," they are completely self-serving.
4. The behavior of the friends during this scene is also appalling. George never tells Marty that he's a creep for wanting to get handsy on Lorraine. George is too self-absorbed wanting to be the hero that he doesn't actually care what happens to Lorraine, how Lorraine will feel. Similarly, Biff's cronies just walk away from the car even though they hear Lorraine cries of no. It's this indifferent, even vicarious, attitude that causes people to be apathetic in real situations. This past fall, a 15 year old was brutally and repeatedly raped by multiple people for hours in public as fellow (male) students did nothing to help her. Too horrific to believe? Read about it here.
I don't want to hate on Back to the Future, because besides that 5 minute scene, I REALLY enjoyed the movie. But I think it's important to critically evaluate that 5 minute scene. The more easily dismissed it is, the more reason for concern. Rape, date rape, gray rape etc. were shady in the 1980s, people didn't want to talk about it or deal with, and even more so in the 1950s (the time setting of the scene). And while authenticity is important in a film, if you can't handle a rape scene in all its social intricacies, don't include one in your movie.
But, there was one point in the movie that really shocked me. And no it wasn't the "shit" bombs being dropped. Ooh, how racy, they said shit. The scene that shocked me was the attempted (date) rape scene. Date rape, what date rape scene?!
Remember when Marty is set-up to go on to the dance with Lorraine (his mother in the future.) He tells George (his father in the future), that he'll put the moves on Lorraine and when she starts to protest, George should bust into the car and rescue her. What ends up happening, is Lorraine puts the moves on Marty, and before Marty can react, he's pulled from the car by school bully Biff. Biff sees Lorraine all pretty looking and hops into the car to get handsy. Lorraine proceeds to say no, and struggle against Biff, and the car door shuts. Biff's cronies proceed to take Mary away for a beat down (which really just means throwing him into the trunk of a car.)
There are many, many disturbing things that happen in this scene. 1. Isn't a potential rape scene a little "heavy" for this movie? All and all, Back to the Future is a low-key, skateboarding, light-hearted comedy about time travel. Why include a rape scene to begin with? I understand showing the parking scene, where Lorraine hits on Marty, because that shows depth/change in the character, but why have Biff enter the car? Why can't he settle his beef with Marty and leave it at that? My guess is that the attempted rape scene was used to move the plot along, but IMHO, I think that's a lousy way to keep the plot moving.
I'll skip over the weird incestousness that happens when Lorraine does start hitting on Marty, and how Marty has difficulty resisting. Back to the attempted rape: 2. Doesn't showing Lorraine all hot and bothered with Marty, and then showing her in an unsympathetic rape situation, a lot like blaming the victim? She's obviously some sort of hussy--did you see her breasts hanging out of that dress (which they do pan on in the movie)--and thus, deserves to be sexually assaulted. (And I say unsympathetic because no one in the movie takes Biff's assault seriously, nor is the audience made to feel like a real violation of person is going on. We're too busy laughing at how the musicians chased off the cronies or waiting for George to save the day, we're not thinking about the physical and emotional damage being inflicted on Lorraine in that car.)
3. Also speaking of emotional damage, why on earth is it okay for Marty to make advances on Lorraine when he thinks that she'll refuse him? The movie says, it's okay for Marty to do this because he's the hero, the good guy, he's just pretending to sexually assault her. But it's not like Lorraine knows that this is pretend. If she had acted as Marty had wanted, she'd have the emotional scars of being potentially date raped. Not exactly, something I would want to inflict on my mother. And in addition, this scene sends out the wrong message. In cases of date rape, it is usually the "hero," or seemingly nice guy, who the girl already likes and is willing to be alone in a car with, that pressures the girl into doing things she doesn't want to do. And the movie reinforces, that all though Marty has "good intentions," they are completely self-serving.
4. The behavior of the friends during this scene is also appalling. George never tells Marty that he's a creep for wanting to get handsy on Lorraine. George is too self-absorbed wanting to be the hero that he doesn't actually care what happens to Lorraine, how Lorraine will feel. Similarly, Biff's cronies just walk away from the car even though they hear Lorraine cries of no. It's this indifferent, even vicarious, attitude that causes people to be apathetic in real situations. This past fall, a 15 year old was brutally and repeatedly raped by multiple people for hours in public as fellow (male) students did nothing to help her. Too horrific to believe? Read about it here.
I don't want to hate on Back to the Future, because besides that 5 minute scene, I REALLY enjoyed the movie. But I think it's important to critically evaluate that 5 minute scene. The more easily dismissed it is, the more reason for concern. Rape, date rape, gray rape etc. were shady in the 1980s, people didn't want to talk about it or deal with, and even more so in the 1950s (the time setting of the scene). And while authenticity is important in a film, if you can't handle a rape scene in all its social intricacies, don't include one in your movie.
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Comment by David Jobling
Culture Guide
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Short Performance Works
there's a great deal of comedy you are cutting through to focus on the attempted rape of a woman in this scene - without analysing much of the voracious female trying to (unknowingly) get 'handsy' with her as yet unborn son.
Sexual assault is not only something that happens to women you know.
Sexual assault is not a good thing - it is wrong, bad, abhorrent, and a variety of categories of it go seemingly unnoticed when the male of our species is the victim.
I certainly appreciate what you are saying, and that you don't want to 'hate on' this movie - but don't imagine it is only women who are victims of sexual assault, and that men are the only ones who attempt it. If you really want to discuss taboo subjects people want to ignore - ponder on that.
And if you want to check out a great movie your boyfriend will enjoy along with you, may I suggest Kung Fu Hussle.
Comment by heather van de mark
Women on Screen
however, just because i omitted the female on male assault, that doesn't make the twice male on female assault any less "taboo."
i left out the whole mother/son thing because again, incest is just not something i think this movie was prepared to handled. the crush lorraine has on marty is tolerable, but to see her throw herself at him, and for him to desire her, is just too heavy for this movie.
Comment by David Jobling
Culture Guide
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Sound Pet
Short Performance Works
I agree with what you are saying and my only reservation is the genre - when I look at the dynamic of comedy and the way such 'assaults' are often used in the genre I see it's very common; because what we fear is often funny if the consequences are unexpected - hence - it is funny to watch Marty use a conditioned response to his naieve mother (the conditioned response being "okay let's put her in a vulnerable position so we can save her, and then put the status quo of the world 'right', by hooking her up with her future husband as a 'hero") only to have her behave in an unexpected way - voraciously seeking sensual exploration rather than simply being a victim - this is funny.
The reality of the situation is impossible to break down because it's a fantasy situation - it could never actually happen.
I would add that it's the dress she is wearing, many under-petticoats and lots of material - that slows down any serious advances from Biff - not her ability to defend herself - so it is very sexist in the way so many gender based sterotypes arising from the 1950's are - apply the same thinking to just about any episode of the I Love Lucy Show of the 1950's and you will notice a great deal of familial abuse taking place between a husband and wife - but it's funny... it's 'classic comedy'.
Back To The Future is very tuned in to all of this, that's probably why the 'future' scenes where Marty sees his kids - they are the products of over indulgence of 1980/90's ideals that have been projected into the 'future'. No social networking - so TV plays a big part whereas the reality is the internet would have consumed Marty's son rather than TV etc..
What you've done is ask some really sensible questions of a film unworthy of such focus.
Films like The Break Up, Something About Mary and Say It Isn't So should go on your playlist - I'd be interested to read what you have to say about them.
Cheers!