A revolutionary classic of feminist cinema criticism, Molly Haskell's "From Reverence to Rape" remains as insightful, searing, and relevant as it was the day it was first published. Ranging across time and genres from the golden age of Hollywood to films of the late twentieth century, Haskell analyzes images of women in movies, the relationship between these images and the status of women in society, the stars who fit these images or defied them, and the attitudes of their directors. This new edition features both a new foreword by New York Times film critic Manohla Dargis and a new introduction from the author that discusses the book's reception and the evolution of her views.
About the Author
Molly Haskell has written for many publications, including the Village Voice, New York Times, Ms., Saturday Review, and Vogue. She is the author, most recently, of "My Brother My Sister: A Story of Transformation".
Reviews
"As a young woman, I felt I should embrace a feminist perspective on films, but I was a cinephile first. Movies came before politics, religion, or boyfriends–always. When I first read 'From Reverence to Rape', I was relieved that Haskell also admitted movies were her 'first allegiance', and that the theory of the male gaze 'seemed too monolithic, a narrow one-way street, allowing no room for the pleasure women take in looking and being seen'. Without discrediting earlier feminist writings, Haskell expanded perspectives and enlightened readers not only because she loved the movies but also because she knew cinema history... With her approach, Haskell reclaims classic films and female stars, explaining their meaning and appeal for women. But, she is no apologist for an industry that has excluded women from behind the camera, tried to pigeon-hole women characters as wives and mothers, shaped female archetypes that reflect male fears and desires, and turned on actresses who defied male standards of beauty and femaleness" – Susan Doll, Movie Morlocks
"Sex is just as good a vehicle for hate as it is for love... Haskell brings more concrete and convincing evidence to her theme than any other feminist writer I have read" – Anatole Broyard, New York Times
"In examining the goddesses worshipped by an entire nation, Haskell reveals a good deal about our national character and our most cherished sexual myths... Concerned with the deeply ingrained belief of women's inferiority, she analyzes movies as a social product as well as a social arbiter, and she effectively demonstrates how women are encouraged to impose limitations on themselves by fashioning those selves after flickering shadows in a darkened auditorium – sexual creatures who possess neither ability nor ambition beyond their bodies... Both as an examination of film and as sociology, 'From Reverence to Rape' is excellent" – Harriet Kriegel, Nation
"Haskell is interested in women – how they are used in movies, how they use movies, and how the parts they play function as projections and verifications of our myths about women's lot and woman's psyche" – Jane Kramer, Village Voice
"'From Reverence to Rape' is an incisive, exceedingly thoughtful look at the distorted lens through which Hollywood has historically viewed women. It is a valuable contribution not just of film criticism but to a society in which the vital role of women is just beginning to emerge" – Christian Science Monitor
"[Haskell's] book is short on militant rhetoric and long on wise, constructive insight. She explores the tensions and potentialities of heterosexual relationships, as portrayed in the movies, with such humorous, sympathetic skill that both sexes can enjoy, and profit from, her work" – J. M. McInerny, Best Sellers
