Monday, 5 May 2014

Critical Investigation

“Sometimes people who are mentally challenged and have a history of sexual abuse… mutilate their own organs”[1]

Is the media becoming increasingly violent, especially with the rise of the torture porn horror subgenre in films such as 'Saw' and the 'The Human Centipede'? Why is this and what impact does it have on audiences?

This investigation will explore if the media has become more violent through the years and possibly why and how it may affect audiences. A hypothesis could be that the media is becoming more violent even though there are some regulations preventing some levels of violence. As a society we may be desensitised which leads to an easing of regulations and less of a moral panic until another controversial film tries to push the boundaries.

Torture porn horror (also known as ‘Gorno’) is defined as extreme sexualised violence especially to women. According to Director of 'Hostel', Eli Roth, during a FOX News interview, stated that extreme violence and horror is around and growing because "in times of terror people want to be terrified but in a safe environment"[2] Eli Roth gives examples of Hurricane Katrina and the war in Iraq, people are scared and want to scream and let out all their fear and emotion but in a safe environment where the fear is short lived. Audiences want to feel escapism from reality and be entertained, according to Blumler and Katz Uses and Gratifications theory, which is what horror films provide. However, there is the possibility that certain audiences feel desensitised from current horror films. Tom Six, Director of 'The Human Centipede', told newspapers and interviewers: "Spanish audiences often found the film funny, and laughed throughout screenings."[3] Which possibly links to what Eli Roth said about society being scared of wars, but we as a society have seen two world wars, have seen documentaries about torture, and have even survived through several natural disasters. Therefore it's possible we need films to push the boundaries to entertain us and that is what created torture porn. According to Steve Neale a majority of genres are “predictable”[4] for example “in the past the sitter would be a nameless girl”[5] but now it’s a predictable “American”[6] victim being tortured. So this predictability also justifies the creation of torture porn as its story patterns aren’t predictable, for example ‘Saw’ tends to have several twists across its franchise, they push the boundaries and shock those who were desensitised, providing entertainment for them and in some sense has rejuvenated a possible dying genre.

Tom Six has a similar belief to Steve Neale as he tweeted ‘"Attention all script writers: a villain wearing a mask on a killing spree is fucking unoriginal and stupid. Kisses on all your pink parts."’[7] Tom Six believes that to entertain audiences we need to be original and unique filmmakers as some films such as Saw V was seen as being “boring”[8] by many critics and fans, these fans are desensitised and think that these narratives are too typical.

Within torture porn the typical representation is sexualisation of women. Stereotypically the protagonist, such as the females in 'The Human Centipede' or victims such as the many women throughout the 'Saw' franchise e.g. the infamous Amanda (who escaped Jigsaw trap and became an accomplice) or Dina (the first victim in 'Saw3D') The women, stereotypically, in torture porn films are young 'girly girls' with make-up or girly clothing e.g. Dina wore a pink crop top and bra and wore mascara and had her hair tied up in a stereotypical schoolgirl pigtails, this particular female was also an Asian female which links to the stereotypical and perverted idea of Asian schoolgirls being the sexual fantasy of many males, this is possibly the deliberate representation of the female to ensure it draws in a male audience. Horror films also tend to use a stereotypical “dumb blonde”[9] possible due to what Perkins believes, some elements of truth may be in the blondes being dumb stereotype which links to Medhurst’s theory of stereotypes being a possible short hand to allow quick identification for the audience who can then either relate and escapism with the character or be entertained by the stereotypical portrayal of the character. The Asian schoolgirl representation would usually be seen as potential porn and cause a moral panic. However, in today’s society, porn is part of culture and is widely accepted by many in a positive way as seen in parts of the programme ‘Porn on the brain’ where journalist and ex-editor of men’s magazine ‘Loaded’, Martin Daubney, spoke to his father and they both agreed on how Martin “turned out just fine”[10] when stumbling across porn magazines at a young age which stereotypically sexualised women. To go against porn is likely going to label you as “anti-sex”[11] everyone has greater access to pornographic material through the use of new and digital technology, which is why so many people have accepted it as many more people are using pornographic sites. On the other hand, males in many torture porn horror films commonly are tortured less or in a more dominant position than female characters. E.g. in ‘The Human Centipede’ the head of the centipede was a male, who still had the ability to talk and eat food and had dominant control of where to move the whole centipede while the other two parts of the centipede were females who lost their ability to speak, to move freely and were surviving through the digestion of the males excrement of his food. The male also had his body parts covered while the females had their torso exposed. Which again leads to a sexualised representation of females, they are generally seen as being a “piece of meat”[12], this reinforces modern day stereotypes which some feminist say reminds them “how this world value[s] women”[13].

Torture porn horror had “rejuvenated”[14] the horror genre and has in the last decade started to reel back in some of the desensitised audiences as it provides a new sense of entertainment according to Blumler and Katz. However, Angie Barry did state that “Saw torture porn”[15] rejuvenated the genre last decade. This decade is more about going back to the “basics”[16] of horror. This therefore suggests that the genre of torture porn is already a trend that has passed, it suggests that we’re already desensitised by torture porn and need something more to rejuvenate the horror genre, possibly the rise of a new subgenre more horrific than torture porn.

Torture porn horror tends to have very unique narratives and gruesome death scenes to provide entertainment for some of the “sick, twisted torture fanatics”[17] and through the narrative audiences tend to be scared at the same time and escape into the film and feel sutured into scenes where they feel as if they are in as bad of a position as the victims of the film and therefore end up screaming and looking away. Some examples of this can be seen in the film 'Grotesque' the scene where a male and female are both strapped to a table while a man chainsaws through their fingers is shown more during the females torture than the males and is done more slowly to the female.  The sexualisation of women and making the films seem more pornographic than typical horror films is usually because the main target audiences are males over the age of 18. Therefore the pornographic materials sole purpose is to “stimulate the viewer’s particular desires.”[18]. The feelings some audiences may receive could be masochism and may lead to sadism between a viewer and victim.

There are many negative effects on audiences especially of unstable minds or of young age who could end up mimicking the actions portrayed on screen and end up performing some of the violence to their friends, family or even members of the public to feel a sense of entertainment. Therefore leading to the copycat theory being a possible effect on audiences. An experiment, which is known as the Bobo Doll experiment, shows the effect of onscreen violence on young children. Children exposed to the violence showed similar “aggressive responses”[19] that were shown in the video. This could also link to Gerbner’s theory, which states that there is a cause-effect relationship between the violence we see onscreen and real-life violence. Some feminist sociologists such as Dworkin and Morgan suggest “there is a strong relationship between the consumption of pornography and sexual crimes.”[20] Some scenes within films such as ‘The Human Centipede’ where women are stripped down to nothing and linked together in a human centipede to satisfy the fetish of the “very sick mind”[21] of the villain. Even though the genre isn’t aimed at young audiences (audiences below the age of 18) there are still ways for children to get a hold of this content through poor parenting or easy access to the internet. The Internet is difficult to control and has billions of explicit content freely available to anyone which links to Newson. Newson believes that explicit images are too easy to find and “encouraged viewers to identify with violent perpetrators rather than victims.”[22] This may lead to rises in crimes. The hypodermic needle theory suggests a “direct influence via mass media”[23] that young minds, impressionable minds and unstable minds that may view this explicit content may end up finding it socially acceptable to do what the media portrays, which relates heavily to the works of McCabe and Martin who believe that in some social situations audiences may end up replacing normal rules with violence they view, for example instead of negotiating and debating they’ll act violently. There was an incident where a 12-year-old boy had raped his 7-year-old sister after watching “hardcore pornography on the internet”[24] through the use of an Xbox. Due to new and digital technology the child had performed sexual acts on his sister as the Xbox had exposed the child to explicit material.

Other possible effects on audiences may actually be positive instead of negative. Similar to what director Eli Roth of Hostel said, Fesbach and Sanger believed that screen violence allows the audience to “release aggressive energy into safe outlets”[25] and against Newson, Dworkin and Morgan is Young’s theory which argues that the effects of violence being portrayed on screen can allow the audiences and potential criminals to feel sympathy for the victims and their families and therefore lead to sensitisation of certain crimes due to violent torture porn films making people more aware and responsible for their actions and evidently lead to a reduction in crime with a feeling of catharsis. Criminals would feel sympathy and emotional release for victims.

Even though Young’s theory is possible, In 2012 a report was produced stating a rise in prosecutions and convictions for violence against women. This figure has “risen by 15,000 over four years.”[26] which suggests that it’s possible that with the recent rise in torture porn horror such as ‘The Human Centipede’, ‘Hostel’ and Saw’ there is a possible correlation. The more popular the genre has become the more crimes against women have risen. Therefore it’s possible that torture porn horror is creating a much more violent and sadistic society who are becoming more desensitised and committing sexual crimes. However, we live in a society where there is always real life horror, there is always violence being committed across the world, including terrorist attacks, violence on women, serial killers etc. Violence surrounds us daily on the news with murders, potential bombings and attacks. In horror films there has always been violence, “violence in horror films isn’t new to society, it already exists within society.”[27] Therefore torture porn horror may not be the reason to increases of violence against women. “Violence depicted in films is done to shock us. It would be hard to believe that the viewers would want to commit acts like that themselves.”[28] 

Before torture porn existed there was a sub-genre known as “ultra violence”[29] which was created due to the film ‘A Clockwork Orange’ which at the time (1970’s) contained sadistic violence that wasn’t common to the horror genre, similar to what’s happening to the human centipede. There are several scenes, which contain sadistic violence and sexualisation of women forming a “gender hierarchy”[30]. One scene in specific that was when the main character, Alex, and his gang perform a home invasion and destroy the house, beat the male and tie him up and then fondle his wife; cutting and ripping her clothes while singing. Alex forces the tied up male to watch as he performs a sex act on his wife. Even though the audiences are unable to see Alex raping the woman they are disturbed by “the amount of sadistic glee Alex gets from it.”[31] He is enjoying the rape of a woman and sings while he degrades her.

Another historical and controversial film was Psycho, which has been re-rated several times over the years from PG, to PG13 and 15.  It was seen as being quite revealing with the shower scene even though the camera shots gave the illusion of the character being naked when she never really was during filming. This scene led to Janet Leigh receiving “grotesque”[32] sexual letters. Some audience members were also scared of the shower scene, one father wrote to Hitchcock stating that his daughter “refused to shower after seeing this film.”[33] It seems that more rules and regulations are being put in place as films become more violent, leading to changes in ratings of films prior to those now. Many years ago it was considered that children and women were “vulnerable to psychological damage and moral decay”[34] which therefore led to many films being targeted mainly at men while “women and kids were protected”[35].

Some films nowadays aren’t always focusing on the sexualisation of women but mainly on the torture. A film such as ‘Would You Rather’ stars a porn star known as Sasha Grey; she isn’t in any explicit or revealing scene. She is actually portrayed as a strong, mean and “shiv-happy crazy”[36] woman, the film gives her character a dark, mysterious and therefore sexy and dangerous feel. Her makeup helped reinforce this portrayal with slight sexualisation; her lipstick was a dark red connoting love, danger and lust, her eye shadow was black, which went with her outfit of a black vest top, shorts and a red bra. Her hair was parted over to one side of her face with a wet look and slight curls. In one scene she is quickly ripping open an envelope, she had a choice of trying to survive underwater for two minutes or the envelope, which when opened revealed her challenge as having to survive underwater for four minutes, she kept to her strong persona and went for the challenge. When forced underwater she didn’t get the chance to breathe and therefore led to a short struggle and eventually drowning, at this moment audiences who enjoy torture would feel a sense of sadism. They enjoyed the torture as much as the hosts of the game allowing audiences to identify with them. Sounds heard within the scene were diegetic sounds, with only a small bit of dialogue before the drowning, possibly to allow the sound of struggle and breathing to be heard more clearly and to be emphasised.

Recently The BBFC had to “tighten its policy”[37] recently due to 'The Human Centipede', cuts are also now needed for certain films to be allowed to be shown to an audience e.g. the Human Centipede 2 had to have “32 cuts”[38] to it before it was unbanned from the U.K. The BBFC are created “in order to protect children from unsuitable and harmful content in films and videos.”[39] And state “this independent scrutiny prior to release ensures the highest possible level of protection and empowerment.”[40] David Cameron is attempting to keep the TV 9pm watershed “clean”[41] but he is “fighting a losing battle”[42] due to popular reality tv shows and talent shows such as ‘X-factor’ and ‘Big Brother’ promoting “sexualised routines”[43] alongside this David Cameron is also promoting an idea to Internet service providers (ISPs) to ban explicit content online, which is “welcomed by women’s groups and academics who had campaigned to have ‘rape porn banned.’”[44]

To conclude, “Horror is not about cheap scares, creaking doors, horror is about a pervasive, life- denying, sickening atmosphere, horror is pure misanthropy, an utter negativity that is alien to petty, human existence.”[45] The media has become more violent with the rise of torture porn, it has become a mainstream horror sub-genre and therefore has affected a large majority of the audiences however it’s impossible to state that a rise in sexual crime is due to the torture porn sub-genre because it portrays the same conventions of horror and violence which has been around for years. We as a society have lived through pain and horror as Eli Roth states and eventually become desensitised by horror, which possibly creates the need for more violent films which in turn creates more strict policies that lead to the re-rating of previous films in history and affect new explicit films. But with the internet even ISP policies cannot prevent torture porn being seen, piracy, hacks and protest against these can occur. Also due to the Internet, we are unable to control the billions of data being uploaded daily, which prevents things such as the 9pm watershed from working as “the watershed only applies to television.”[46] It’s therefore possible to assume that the watershed no longer exists due to the rise of the Internet, catch up TV and UGC. There have been some attempts on creating a watershed for the Internet by David Cameron but many people including Mic Wright believes “people this stupid should not be making our laws.”[47] We cannot control everything on the Internet, which can easily be accessed by everyone and is heavily used by teenagers. The effects of pornography material I believe doesn’t have a huge effect of audiences but when it does it effects a minority. Generally crime against women has gone down, it’s just one or two shocking stories being hyper-real. Media coverage “masks the absence of a basic reality”[48] We are more likely to feel sympathy for a victim, we view such horror films to gain entertainment and escapism.

Word Count: 2662 (Excluding title and quotes)



Works Cited
Academic/Books/magazines
-       Aston, James, and John Walliss. To see the Saw movies essays on torture porn and post-9/11 horror. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2013. Print.

-       Butler, Judith. "Preface." Gender trouble feminism and the subversion of identity. New York: Routledge, 1999. Print.

-       Dines, Gail. "Preface." Pornland: how porn has hijacked our sexuality. Boston: Beacon Press, 2010. Print.

-         Greenberg, Roy Harvey. "The shows of violence." Journal of Popular Film & Television 26 (1998). Print.

-         Jean Baudrillard, “Simulacra and Simulations”, in Modern Literary Theory and Criticism: A Reader, ed. David Lodge and Nigel Wood (Harlow and New York: Longman, 1988). Print


-       Neale, Stephen. “Genre Theory.” Genre and Hollywood. London: Routledge, 2000. Print.


-       Newman, Kim. "Torture Garden." Sight & Sound June 2006. Print.









Internet
-       Abi. "2013-11-25-20-14-33." 2013-11-25-20-14-33. Everyday Media Sexism, n.d.Web.6Jan.2014. <http://www.everydaymediasexism.org.uk/index.php/669-2013-11-25-20-14-33>.

-      Anderson, Craig, and Brad Bushman. "The Effects of Media Violence on Society." Umich Edu. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www-personal.umich.edu/~bbushman/02AB2.PDF>.

-      “Banned horror film gets 18 rating after cuts." BBC News. BBC, 10 June 2011. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-15203870>.

-      Barry, Angie. "The Cabin in the Woods: Best Horror Movie in a Decade?." The Cabin in the Woods: Best Horror Movie in a Decade?. Criminal Element, n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.criminalelement.com/blogs/2012/10/cabin-in-the-woods-the-best-horror-movie-in-a-decade-angie-barry-thriller-zombies-joss-whedon-film>.

-      “Bobo Doll Experiment." Simply Psychology. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Jan. 2014. <http://www.simplypsychology.org/bobo-doll.html>.

-      Boy, 12, raped younger sister after viewing porn on games console." theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 4 Mar. 2014. Web. <http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/mar/03/boy-rape-younger-sister-porn-games-console>.

-      Cochrane, Kira. "For your entertainment." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 1 May 2007. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/may/01/gender.world>.

-      “Effects of Violence In Horror Films Past and Present." HubPages. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://lamar82.hubpages.com/hub/Effects-of-Violence-In-Horror-Films-Past-and-Present>.

-      Hatch, Sam. "Culture Dogs - Sam Hatch's Hostel Part II Review." Culture Dogs - Sam Hatch's Hostel Part II Review. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.wwuh.org/program/culturedogs/reviews/sam reviews/hostelpartii.htm>.

-      Hawkins, Ross. "Online pornography to be blocked by default, PM announces." BBC News. BBC, 22 July 2013. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-23401076>.

-      “How does classification work?." British Board of Film Classification. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.bbfc.co.uk/what-classification/how-does-classification-work>.

-      Hypodermic needle theory." University Of Twente. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2014. <http://www.utwente.nl/cw/theorieenoverz

-      Kelly, June. "Rise in convictions for violence against women." BBC News. BBC, 23 July 2012. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18949533>.

-      Lawson, Mark. "The TV watershed: not in front of the children." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 8 June 2011. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/jun/08/tv-watershed-not-for-children?INTCMP=SRCH>.

-      “No hope, no happy ending. Horror as it should be!!." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1467304/reviews-156>.

-      Row, Matthew. "Would you rather - review and analysis." Examiner.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2014. <http://www.examiner.com/review/would-you-rather>.

-      “Section One: Protecting the Under-Eighteens." Ofcom. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/broadcasting/broadcast-codes/broadcast-code/protecting-under-18s/>.

-      Shaffer, R.L. "The Human Centipede [First Sequence] DVD Review." IGN. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://uk.ign.com/articles/2010/10/07/the-human-centipede-first-sequence-dvd-review>.

-      Simpson, Clare. "10 Film Scenes Of Astounding Ultra Violence." WhatCulture RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://whatculture.com/film/10-film-scenes-of-astounding-ultra-violence.php/10>.

-      Six, Tom. "Attention all script writers: a villain wearing a mask on a killing spree is fucking unoriginal and stupid. Kisses on all your pink parts." Twitter. Twitter, 14 July 2013. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <https://twitter.com/tom_six/status/356351281234837505>.

-      Six, Tom. Interview by Berge Garabedian. Personal interview. 11 Oct. 2009.

-      “The effect of media content on audiences and society." Revision World. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://revisionworld.co.uk/a2-level-level-revision/sociology/mass-media-0/effect-media-content-audiences-and-society>.

-      “Trivia [Psycho]." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054215/trivia?ref_=tt_trv_trv>.

-      UK film censor to get tougher with 'torture porn' movies." The Week UK. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013 <http://www.theweek.co.uk/film/50537/uk-film-censor-get-tougher-torture-porn-movies>.

-      Wright, Mic. "A 'watershed' for the internet? People this stupid should not be making our laws." Technology  A watershed for the internet People this stupid should not be making our laws Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/technology/micwright/100009434/a-watershed-for-the-internet-people-this-stupid-should-not-be-making-our-laws/>.

Moving Image
-       A Clockwork Orange. Dir. Stanley Kubrick. Perf. Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee, Michael Bates. Warner Brothers, 1971. Film.

-       Grotesque. Dir. Shiraishi Kôji. Perf. Kotoha Hiroyama, Hiroaki Kawatsure, Shigeo Osako. Another World Entertainment, 2010. Film.

-      Hostel. Dir. Eli Roth. Perf. Jay Hernandez, Derek Richards, Eythor Gudjonsson. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, 2005. Film.

-       Porn on the brain. Daubney, Martin. Channel 4. 30 Sept. 2013. Television.

-      Psycho. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Perf. Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles. Shamley productions(IS), Shamley productionsItalia : CIC video, 1994, 1960. Film.

-      Roth, Eli. "Despite Iraq and terrorism horror films make big bucks." Your World w/ Cavuto. Fox. WXXA, New York: 8 Feb. 2007. Television.

-       Saw 3D. Dir. Kevin Greutert. Perf. Tobin Bell, Costas Mandylor, Betsy Russell. Cinemania group, 20112010. Film.

-       Saw V. Dir. Mark Burg. Perf. Tobin Bell, Costas Mandylor, Betsy Russell. Lionsgate, 2008. Film.

-       The Human Centipede. Dir. Tom Six. Perf. Dieter Laser, Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie. IFC in Theaters, 2010. Film.

-       The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence). Dir. Tom Six. Perf. Laurence R. Harvey, Ashlynn Yennie. Bounty Films, 2011. Film.

-       Would you rather. Dir. David Guy Levy. Perf. Brittany Snow, June Squibb, Jeffrey Combs, Sasha Grey. MPI Media Group, 2013. Film.
























Works Consulted
Academic/Books/magazine
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-       Donnerstein, Edward I.. The Effects of aggressive-pornographic mass media stimuli. Madison, Wisc.: Dept. of Communication, University of Wisconsin, 1982. Print.

-       "Effects of media violence." Media Magazine Sep. 2002. Print.

-       Eysenck, H. J., and D. K. B. Nias. Sex, violence, and the media. London: Temple Smith, 1978. Print.

-       "Horror Monsters." Media Magazine: The Culture Issue Feb. 2011. Print.

-       Jones, Steve. Torture Porn Popular Horror after Saw.. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. Print.

-       Kahn, Paul W.. Sacred violence: torture, terror, and sovereignty. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2008. Print.

-       Popular Communication 7.1 (2009): 40-48. Print.

-       Signorielli, Nancy. Violence in the media: a reference handbook. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2005. Print.

-       Smith, Clarissa. "Pornographication: A Discourse For All Seasons." International Journal of Media and Cultural Politics 6.1 (2010): 103-108. Print.

-       “The acceptable face of torture.” Media Magazine Apr. 2005. Print.

-       "The Context of Conflict: Media representations of war." Media Magazine: The Reality Issue Dec. 2009. Print.

-       "The representation of sexual freedom." Media Magazine: Freedom Issue Apr. 2009. Print.

-       "Women in horror." Media Magazine: 'Politics' Issue Dec. 2011. Print.

-       Wood, Wendy, Frank Y. Wong, and J. Gregory Chachere. "Effects Of Media Violence On Viewers' Aggression In Unconstrained Social Interaction.." Psychological Bulletin 109.3 (1991): 371-383. Effects of media violence on viewers' aggression in unconstrained social interaction.. Web. 6 Jan. 2014.

-       "You think you know the story ... icons of horror in The Cabin in the Woods ." Media Magazine: Images and Icons, Horror Sep. 2012. Print.









Internet
-       Bajaj, Akshay, and Harvey Shergill. "Misé En Media." Important audience and narrative theories. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://miseenmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/important-audience-and-narrative.html>.

-       Brown, Todd. "THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE: FULL SEQUENCE Banned Outright By The BBFC." Twitch. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://twitchfilm.com/2011/06/the-human-centipede-full-sequence-banned-outright-by-the-bbfc.html>.

-       Cashmore, Pete. "Will this new movie kill off torture porn for good?." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 28 Aug. 2010. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/aug/28/torture-porn-frightfest-quiz>.

-       Cochrane, Kira. "Is there a link between 'torture porn' and real sexual violence?." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 3 May 2007. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/may/03/letters.news>.

-       Ditum, Sarah. "Why The Human Centipede II bugs me." theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 7 June 2011. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/jun/07/human-centipede-ii-horror-porn>.

-       Ebert, Roger. "The Human Centipede." All Content. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-human-centipede-2010>.

-       Jones, Steve. "No Pain, No Gain: Strategic Repulsion and The Human Centipede." Cine-Excess Special Issue: Cult Controversies. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://scholar.googleusercontent.com/scholar?q=cache:72QEEmwfTkYJ:scholar.google.com/+%22human+centipede%22&hl=en&as_sdt=0,5>.

-       Malamuth, N. "The Effects Of Mass Media Exposure On Acceptance Of Violence Against Women: A Field Experiment*1." Journal of Research in Personality 15.4 (1981): 436-446. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0092656681900404. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

-       Martin, Don, and Roger Clague. "Replies to The Effects of Media Violence on Society." Replies to The Effects of Media Violence on Society. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.sciencemag.org/content/295/5564/2377.short/reply#sci_el_426>.

-       "Media Violence Consumption Increases the Relative Risk of Aggression, Analysis Shows." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 27 Aug. 2012. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/08/120827130728.htm>.

-       Murray, Gabriella. "JUMP CUTA  REVIEW OF CONTEMPORARY MEDIA." torture-porn text version. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.ejumpcut.org/archive/jc50.2008/TortureHostel2/text.html>.

-       Murray, Steven. "Horror Movies Help and Information." Horror Movies Help and Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.bellaonline.com/site/HorrorMovies>.

-       Oliver, M. B.. "Adolescents' Enjoyment Of Graphic Horror: Effects Of Viewers' Attitudes And Portrayals Of Victim." Communication Research 20.1 (1993): 30-50. http://crx.sagepub.com/content/20/1/30.short. Web. 19 Nov. 2013.

-       "Representation of Women in Horror Films." screampsychohorror. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://screampsychohorror.wordpress.com/representation-of-women-in-horror-films/>.

-       Siry, Lawrence. "6 Masaryk University Journal of Law and Technology 2012." 6 Masaryk University Journal of Law and Technology 2012. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/mujlt6&div=23&id=&page=>.

-       "The Human Centipede (First Sequence) (2009)." The Human Centipede (First Sequence). N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/human_centipede/>.

-       "The Human Centipede - IFC Entertainment." NextGEN Gallery RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.ifcfilms.com/films/human-centipede>.

-       "The New York Observer." The New York Observer  emThe Torturedem Leaves Audience Past PainThreshold Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://observer.com/2012/06/the-tortured-leaves-audience-past-pain-threshold/>.

-       "The Stranger." Real-life human centipede of one. (Or something. Whatever you want to call it, your brain is going to hate this.). N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. <http://www.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2010/11/27/real-life-human-centipedeof-one-or-something-whatever-you-call-it-the-mind-reels&view=comments>.

-       Tookey, Christopher. "'One of the most repellent movies I have ever seen': Film critic Christopher Tookey on a worrying trend fuelled by lily-livered censors." Mail Online. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2246161/Human-Centipede-2-One-repellent-movies-I-seen-says-Christopher-Tookey.html>.

-       Tunzelmann, Alex. "Zero Dark Thirty's torture scenes are controversial and historically dubious." theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 25 Jan. 2013. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2013/jan/25/zero-dark-thirty-reel-history>.







Moving Image
-      Death proof. Dir. Quentin Tarantino. Perf. Kurt Russell, Zoe Bell, Rosario Dawson. Alliance Atlantis, 2007. Film.

-      Mirrors. Dir. Alexandre Aja. Perf. Kiefer Sutherland, Paula Patton, Amy Smart. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, 2008. Film.

-      The devil's rejects. Dir. Rob Zombie. Perf. Sid Haig, Bill Moseley, Sheri Moon Zombie. Lions Gate Home Entertainment, 2005. Film.

-      Wolf Creek. Dir. Greg McLean. Perf. Nathan Phillips, Cassandra Magrath, Kestie Morassi. Dimension Home Entertainment, 2006. Film.










[1] Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence). Dir. Tom Six. Perf. Laurence R. Harvey, Ashlynn Yennie. Bounty Films, 2011. Film.

[2] Neil Cavuto, Eli Roth Fox News 07 Interview, 0:51-0:55

[3] Berge Garabedian, Sitges 09 Interview, 3:55-4:30

[4] Neale, Stephen. “Genre Theory.” Genre and Hollywood. London: Routledge, 2000. 209. Print.

[5] Newman, Kim. "Torture Garden." Sight & Sound June 2006: 28. Print.

[6] Ibid

[7] Tom Six Twitter Page https://twitter.com/tom_six

[8] Aston, James. "Introduction." To see the Saw movies essays on torture porn and post-9/11 horror. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2013. 3. Print.

[10] Martin Daubney, ‘Porn on the brain’, Channel 4 documentary

[11] Gail Dines, ‘Pornland: How porn has hijacked our sexuality’.1-3:Preface

[12] Kira Cochrane, “Kira Cochrane on the rise of ‘torture porn’”, The Guardian article http://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/may/01/gender.world

[13] Abi, “EverydayMediaSexism.org.uk”
http://www.everydaymediasexism.org.uk/index.php/669-2013-11-25-20-14-33

[14] Angie Barry, “The cabin in the woods: Best horror movie in a decade?” http://www.criminalelement.com/blogs/2012/10/cabin-in-the-woods-the-best-horror-movie-in-a-decade-angie-barry-thriller-zombies-joss-whedon-film

[15] Ibid

[16] Ibid

[17] Sam Hatch, “Hostel part II review”, culture dogs, http://www.wwuh.org/program/culturedogs/reviews/sam reviews/hostelpartii.html

[18] Ibid

[19] McLeod, S. A. (2011). Bobo Doll Experiment. Retrieved from http://www.simplypsychology.org/bobo-doll.html

[20] Revision World post. http://revisionworld.co.uk/a2-level-level-revision/sociology/mass-media-0/effect-media-content-audiences-and-society

[21] R.L. Shaffer “The human Centipede [First Sequence] DVD Review, IGN. http://uk.ign.com/articles/2010/10/07/the-human-centipede-first-sequence-dvd-review


[24] Boy, 12, raped younger sister after viewing porn on games console." theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 4 Mar. 2014. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/mar/03/boy-rape-younger-sister-porn-games-console

[25] Ibid

[26] June Kelly, “Rise in convictions for violence against women” BBC News, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18949533

[27] Lamar, “Effects of violence in horror films past and present” original quote by (Allen 2009) http://lamar82.hubpages.com/hub/Effects-of-Violence-In-Horror-Films-Past-and-Present

[28] Ibid

[29] Clare Simpson, “10 film scenes of astounding ultra violence”, whatculture.com blog post. http://whatculture.com/film/10-film-scenes-of-astounding-ultra-violence.php/10
[30] Butler, Judith. "Preface." Gender trouble feminism and the subversion of identity. New York: Routledge, 1999. 13. Print.

[31] Ibid

[33] Ibid

[34] Greenberg, Roy Harvey. "The shows of violence." Journal of Popular Film & Television 26 (1998): 50. Print.

[35] Ibid

[36] Row, Matthew. “Would You Rather – Review” http://www.examiner.com/review/would-you-rather


[38] BBC News, ‘banned horror film gets 18 rating after cuts’ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-15203870

[40] Ibid

[41] Mark Lawson, “The TV watershed: not in front of the children”, Guardian Article http://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/jun/08/tv-watershed-not-for-children?INTCMP=SRCH

[42] Ibid

[43] Ibid

[44] Hawkins, Ross. "Online pornography to be blocked by default, PM announces." BBC News. BBC, 22 July 2013. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-23401076.

[45] Glyptoteque, IMDB User Review of ‘The Human Centipede’ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1467304/reviews-156

[47] Mic Wright. “A ‘watershed’ for the internet? People this stupid should not be making our laws.” http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/technology/micwright/100009434/a-watershed-for-the-internet-people-this-stupid-should-not-be-making-our-laws/
[48] Jean Baudrillard, “Simulacra and Simulations”, in Modern Literary Theory and Criticism: A Reader, ed. David Lodge and Nigel Wood (Harlow and New York: Longman, 1988), 423. Print