The rape/revenge subgenre of horror has been met with controversy over the years. Genre precursorsVirgin SpringandA Woman Brandedset the stage, whileWes Craven’sTheLast House on the LeftandMeir Zarchi’sI Spit on Your Gravedrew ire among the film community.I Spit on Your Grave, featuring a full 30 minutes of gang rape,was dubbed a “video nasty”(or an ultra-violent exploitation movie deemed inappropriate for mass consumption) in the U.K.
In the decades since these films, countless more rape/revenge films have been released, including modern genre-subverting entries likeThe Nightingale,Promising Young Woman, andCoralie Fargeat’sRevenge.Dread CentralEditor-in-ChiefMary Beth McAndrewsthrows her proverbial hat into the ring with her feature directorial debut,Bystanders. From a script penned by actor/screenwriterJamie Alvey,Bystandersmolds the typical genre film with farless focus on the assault and greater attention given to the revenge. Such a decision makes the indie film not only a promising debut for McAndrews but one of themost refreshing takes on the classic rape/revenge story.
‘Bystanders’ Focuses on Delicious Revenge Rather Than Rape
Bystandersfeatures a pretty simple set-up. Three women attend a party in a secluded cabin on the backroads of an undisclosed small town. When they arrive, a group of young men hand them tumblers of jungle juice, which they’ve spiked with roofies. Abby (Brandi Botkin) and her friends collapse into a drug-fueled stupor, giving the men the opportunity to assault them. McAndrews and Alvey make the creative choice to approach the rape scene in a way we rarely see in these kinds of films.There are no extended onscreen visuals of the sexual attack, as it’s only alluded to by a blurry camera lens and distorted audio of the abusers bragging about their behavior. Clocking in at less than one minute, this sequence emerges as far less triggering, offering a refreshing take on a genre that often feels gross and ridiculously exploitative. The teamgives agency to victims through this intuitive decisionto focus more on how they exact revengerather than graphically showing the attack.
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After the men start hunting the women for sport, two bystanders drive by on their way home from a wedding. Clare (Alvey) and Gray (Garrett Murphy) assist a distraught Abby on the side of the road but run into a bit of trouble when Cody (Bob Wilcox) and his band of rapists catch up with them. But what they don’t know is that Abby is far stronger than meets the eye. Exacting her revenge,Abby takes matters into her own hands and knocks off the incels one by one in the most wonderfully grotesque ways. There’s plenty of brain bashing, knife stabbing, and fire torching — everything you want to see happen to a group of rapists. In centering the story almost entirely on revenge,Bystanderstwists the knife and makes the body mutilation of cruel men something in which to take great pleasure. Alvey entices you into the sticky web, and McAndrews douses the screen with a charming razzle-dazzle for good measure.
Jamie Alvey’s ‘Bystanders’ Script Packs in Plenty of Dark Humor
So often in rape/revenge films, there’s a lack of humor to give the viewer a chance to breathe. In between kills, the audience is reminded of the tragic events and the lingering loneliness and desperation. InBystanders’sscript,Alvey mixes in dark humor to lighten the moodas the protagonists slaughter the group of men. In doing so, the film is given a considerable boost. As blood splatters on the grass and dirt,the characters toss out hilarious lines that give their stories a well-rounded quality. They’re not savages; they’re people with purpose and personality. Clare and Gray are of particular note here, as Alvey uses them as an avenue for levity. Their dynamic together allows the other characters, namely Abby, to feel more grounded and relatable. Heightened characteristics pair well with the hyper-realized nature of the gnarly carnage.
In the sea ofgraphic rape/revenge films, which includesMs .45andM.F.A., McAndrews’ film reassesses the genre with smart storytelling and an empowering approach to the characters. In an interview withVariety, McAndrew spoke about the necessity for this kind of story. “A huge part has been making political statements using these genre elements to speak about monstrosity and fear,” she said. In her own way, taking real-life terror and molding it intoa world-burning triumph bestows much-needed catharsisand allows the viewer to feel more related to the characters. At a time when women’s rights are under attack,Bystandersperfectly captures the feminine rage and rebellionshattering the surface of today’s culture.
