High plains drifter assault scene

Robocok

Robocok

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A recent thread inspired me to revisit some of Clint Eastwood's old westerns. I recently watched The Outlaw Josey Wales which was awesome. Tonight I started High Plains Drifter and I'm kind of dumbfounded by this scene I just watched.



So, it cuts off early in this clip, but in the movie, he finishes. Like, how was this acceptable to show back then? Was this considered normal behavior of a protagonist as recently as a few decades ago? Like, wtf?

<Varys01><{chips}><{blankeye}>
 
Just some edgy shit they threw in there to garner media interest.
 
Clint Eastwood is a legend and you can't cancel a legend! They already tried.

It was the wild wild west and they wanted to portray it accurately.
 
TardStrong said:
Clint Eastwood is a legend and you can't cancel a legend! They already tried.

It was the wild wild west and they wanted to portray it accurately.
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I'm still a fan of Clint but this scene still has me irked because I don't think it's right to rape anyone. It's not enough to completely destroy my being a fan of his movies, but I don't agree with that scene being in the movie. Rape is wrong.
 
Robocok said:
I'm still a fan of Clint but this scene still has me irked because I don't think it's right to rape anyone. It's not enough to completely destroy my being a fan of his movies, but I don't agree with that scene being in the movie. Rape is wrong.
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I agree, everyone does but I think the point of the scene was to tame that lady. They were painting a picture. I believe Clint Eastwood was there to save that town and he had his way with a few women in the movie. He was a a rough drifter there to save the town and he was untouchable because everyone in the town was soft. I mean he was there to murder people
 
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He does the same thing to the inn keeper lady later in the movie, it just doesn't show the actual assault. I think they were trying to portray him as a morally grey character, but yeah definitely uncomfortable to watch.
 
TheSlothMan said:
He does the same thing to the inn keeper lady later in the movie, it just doesn't show the actual assault. I think they were trying to portray him as a morally grey character, but yeah definitely uncomfortable to watch.
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Kind of reminds me of another movie I watched recently, Nightcrawler. The protagonist in that movie is pretty shady too but you still admire other traits so it's a mixed bag. Kind of like people in real life. Not that I know any rapists..
 
You will notice in the film, that the woman was basically goading him into sexually assaulting her because he is the archetypal, strong, male, and she is painted by the movie as having an insatiable desire for him, but unable to act on it because of the strict, paternalist, rules. The movie is commenting on female repression in multiple ways, one of them in a quite lighthearted manner (poking fun at her insatiable libido and shameless sluttiness). So, rape was definitely a thing that was accepted as something that happened, not a thing that was ok. But, it was a topic that, while taboo, could still be part of a plot in a movie, without the masses crying out in objection. Social mores have drastically changed in the past few decades. Up until the 70s and 80s, men were in control, and women had been taught to defer for the most part. They had been held repressed by previous generations, and controlled. The 60s and 70s were the start of social change that culminates in what we have today.
 
Been a very long time since I've seen that movie but I thought that
the twist is that Clint is kind of a bad guy in that movie, isn't he? The town screwed him over so he returns years later, pretending to be their savior when he actually just causes them more suffering.
 
Karl_Hungus said:
You will notice in the film, that the woman was basically goading him into sexually assaulting her because he is the archetypal, strong, male, and she is painted by the movie as having an insatiable desire for him, but unable to act on it because of the strict, paternalist, rules. The movie is commenting on female repression in multiple ways, one of them in a quite lighthearted manner (poking fun at her insatiable libido and shameless sluttiness). So, rape was definitely a thing that was accepted as something that happened, not a thing that was ok. But, it was a topic that, while taboo, could still be part of a plot in a movie, without the masses crying out in objection. Social mores have drastically changed in the past few decades. Up until the 70s and 80s, men were in control, and women had been taught to defer for the most part. They had been held repressed by previous generations, and controlled. The 60s and 70s were the start of social change that culminates in what we have today.
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I don't agree with rape, but there's definitely quite a few things wrong with western culture atm.
Fedorgasm said:
Been a very long time since I've seen that movie but I thought that
the twist is that Clint is kind of a bad guy in that movie, isn't he? The town screwed him over so he returns years later, pretending to be their savior when he actually just causes them more suffering.
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I see, so he was whipped by the men of the town years earlier. I wonder why no one recognized him.

I remember at the end he tells the midget sheriff that he already knows his name.

It was an ok movie but definitely not of the caliber of Josey Wales.
 
Fedorgasm said:
Been a very long time since I've seen that movie but I thought that
the twist is that Clint is kind of a bad guy in that movie, isn't he? The town screwed him over so he returns years later, pretending to be their savior when he actually just causes them more suffering.
Click to expand...
A quick read through the wiki makes it look like his character was supposed to be the personification of revenge from beyond the grave. I guess it's heavily implied he's the vengeful spirit of the murdered marshal.
 
Robocok said:
A recent thread inspired me to revisit some of Clint Eastwood's old westerns. I recently watched The Outlaw Josey Wales which was awesome. Tonight I started High Plains Drifter and I'm kind of dumbfounded by this scene I just watched.



So, it cuts off early in this clip, but in the movie, he finishes. Like, how was this acceptable to show back then? Was this considered normal behavior of a protagonist as recently as a few decades ago? Like, wtf?

<Varys01><{chips}><{blankeye}>
Click to expand...

yeah i saw that a while back. frankly im astounded i ever thought of his characters as something to look up too.
 
Robocok said:
A recent thread inspired me to revisit some of Clint Eastwood's old westerns. I recently watched The Outlaw Josey Wales which was awesome. Tonight I started High Plains Drifter and I'm kind of dumbfounded by this scene I just watched.



So, it cuts off early in this clip, but in the movie, he finishes. Like, how was this acceptable to show back then? Was this considered normal behavior of a protagonist as recently as a few decades ago? Like, wtf?

<Varys01><{chips}><{blankeye}>
Click to expand...


to his defense, his character listened to NWA
 
spacegnome said:
yeah i saw that a while back. frankly im astounded i ever thought of his characters as something to look up too.
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I like his other characters. It's just this movie and the one where he kisses 10 year olds that I don't like.
 
Robocok said:
I like his other characters. It's just this movie and the one where he kisses 10 year olds that I don't like.
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his characters are fine but the longer im alive the more transparent and foolish they seem to be. its a mythology and an archetype that i think is the key to failure in life and that only works in movies.
 
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