April 18, 2001 01:28am
Controversial French Rape Film Hits U.S. Coasts
Source: Reuters/Variety
by: Charles Lyons
(NEW YORK, NY) -- ``Baise-Moi'' (''Rape Me''), a controversial French picture in which a prostitute and a rape victim embark on a violent road trip, will be released in New York and Los Angeles this June.
Montreal-based Remstar Distribution, which picked up North American rights to the film last October, will partner with Santa Monica-based FilmFixx on the U.S. release.
The picture's U.S. premiere takes place Friday at the Castro Theatre as part of the 44th San Francisco Intl. Film Festival.
``Baise-Moi'' stars two veterans of France's adult film world, Raffaela Anderson and Karen Bach. The story centers on a violent rape and the after-affects on the rape victim and her friend, whose subsequent random acts of violence draw the attention of the media and the police.
Virginie Despentes wrote the award-winning, bestselling novel ``Baise-Moi'' upon which the film is based. She also penned the screenplay and co-directed the film with Coralie Trin-Thi.
Under pressure from conservative groups, the picture was banned by French censors from distribution in Gaul. Following appeals by the filmmakers, the film was booked in French sex cinemas and caused something of a sensation in the homevideo market.
In the U.K., the British Board of Film Classification last month allowed the film to be distributed there once distributor Feature Film Co. agreed to remove about 10 seconds of explicit footage.
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