Descent (2007)

Director:

Talia Lugacy

Writers:

Talia Lugacy (writer)
Brian Priest (writer)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Plot:

A college co-ed is brutally raped and struggles alone to rebuild her life.

Plot Keywords:

Club | Restaurant | College | Cocaine | Fancy Restaurant

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Rosario Dawson	...	Maya
Chad Faust	...	Jared
Marcus Patrick	...	Adrian
Vanessa Ferlito	...	Bodega Girl
Jonathan Neil Schneider	...	Archeology Professor (as Jon Schneider)
James A. Stephens	...	Professor Byron
Nicole Vicius	...	Melanie
Paul Sado	...	Downstairs Guy
Scott Bailey	...	Upstairs Guy
Tracie Thoms	...	Denise
Aisleagh Jackson	...	Construction Girl
Robert Lehrer	...	Speaker
Alexie Gilmore	...	Seline
Johnathan Tchaikovsky	...	Tyler
Colombe Jacobsen-Derstine	...	Nadia

MPAA:

Rated R for brutal rape, language, some sexual content and drug use. (edited version); Rated NC-17 for a brutal rape. (original theatrical version)

Runtime:

101 min | 94 min (R-rated version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (edited version) | Australia:R | USA:NC-17 (original rating) | New Zealand:R18 | Germany:18

Filming Locations:

Fairleigh Dickinson University - 285 Madison Avenue, Madison, New Jersey, USA

Company:

City Lights Pictures

Movie Connections:

References The Hunt for Red October (1990)

Soundtrack:

Piano Sonata in A major D 959

Boring then disturbing....

I fast forwarded through much of this film. I felt that with such a sensitive issue that it was mishandled. I didn't get a real sense of her deterioration. I was left having to assume a lot about her motives, why? It was unclear for much of the film what she wanted. Any well told story, our heroine has to be likable or at least pitiable. I did not have those feelings for her. More information was given about the attacker and his weaknesses than the main character which is disturbing. I felt that the attacker gave a more credible performance than did Dawson. I got a sense of bravado stripped(literally) away in the concluding scenes. Although I did not feel sorry for him, initially, more attention was given to his rape than hers. This movie was very exploitive. I felt like I was watching a porno/rape flick. I felt duped. This just seemed like angry feminism/vigilantism. It was not lost on me that Dawson and her "boyfriend" were Black/Latino and the rapist is white. Was the writer advocating that minorities take to vigilante style aggression on the white male establishment. As an African American man that just seems like a dangerous message to send out to the young people (who I'm sure will make up the majority of viewers)who already expressed violent homicidal revenge tendencies anyway. Did part of me want this white guy who raped this black/Latina girl to get his just reward-sure. However, that is just a petty knee jerk reaction. This was just so outrageous and disgusting that it made feel like an accomplice. This type of abusive cinema will only destroy the fragile nature of our pluralistic society. I felt like it just re-inforced the stereotypes of minorities as violent predatory beasts. In the end, I felt sorry for the white rapist.