The film overall is nothing particularly special. The acting is a little thick, the pace drags in a few places, and the score is a little over-wrought. The narrative gets heavy-handed as the story winds down. I felt like the themes were hitting me over the head, rather than appearing naturally from time to time.
But the most unsettling thing about this movie is how the narrative frames sexual violence. Rape is framed as a problem-solver for both Anna and Ben. Anna is victimized as a plot device, which is used to resolve the conflicts of Anna's dissertation being held up by Hadley, and is a fix-all for Ben's visiting professorship conflict. Ben gets to use Anna's rape for his personal and professional benefit. Hadley faces no consequences for his actions, save for the punch in the face delivered by white-knight Ben. The fact that Ben more or less tells Anna that rape/sexual violence is an occupational hazard in academia is incredibly distressing. The narrative supports this character's assertion that sexual violence in academia is the norm and does nothing to demonstrate that this is a flaw or misconception particular to Ben. Since the director is actually a professor at the university where the movie was filmed, he's clearly trying to blur the line between fiction and reality (and if he's not, the effect is the same because his dual roles do in fact blur the line for him). Overall, I object on several levels to the film's treatment of rape. I think it's dangerous to depict a rapist not being held accountable for his actions. I'm disappointed. I had hoped a movie set in an educated atmosphere would not resort to such cheap tricks as relying on sexual violence to wrap up so many conflicts in a little bow.
But the most unsettling thing about this movie is how the narrative frames sexual violence. Rape is framed as a problem-solver for both Anna and Ben. Anna is victimized as a plot device, which is used to resolve the conflicts of Anna's dissertation being held up by Hadley, and is a fix-all for Ben's visiting professorship conflict. Ben gets to use Anna's rape for his personal and professional benefit. Hadley faces no consequences for his actions, save for the punch in the face delivered by white-knight Ben. The fact that Ben more or less tells Anna that rape/sexual violence is an occupational hazard in academia is incredibly distressing. The narrative supports this character's assertion that sexual violence in academia is the norm and does nothing to demonstrate that this is a flaw or misconception particular to Ben. Since the director is actually a professor at the university where the movie was filmed, he's clearly trying to blur the line between fiction and reality (and if he's not, the effect is the same because his dual roles do in fact blur the line for him). Overall, I object on several levels to the film's treatment of rape. I think it's dangerous to depict a rapist not being held accountable for his actions. I'm disappointed. I had hoped a movie set in an educated atmosphere would not resort to such cheap tricks as relying on sexual violence to wrap up so many conflicts in a little bow.