{"id":5418,"date":"2015-03-22T00:59:21","date_gmt":"2015-03-21T23:59:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/?p=5418"},"modified":"2015-05-02T11:32:28","modified_gmt":"2015-05-02T10:32:28","slug":"traps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2015\/03\/22\/traps\/","title":{"rendered":"Traps"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Traps<\/a>
Traps<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n

\nFormat:<\/B> DVD

\nRelease date:<\/B> 23 March 2015

\nDistributor:<\/B> Second Run

\nDirector:<\/B> Věra Chytilová

\nWriters:<\/B> Věra Chytilová, Eva Kacírková, Michal Laznovsky

\nCast:<\/B> Zuzana Stivínová, Miroslav Donutíl, Tomás Hanák

\nOriginal title:<\/B> Pasti, pasti, pastičky<\/i>

\nCzech Republic 1998

\n116 mins\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Věra Chytilová was one of the Czech New Wave\u2019s most innovative directors, best known for Daisies<\/i><\/a> (1966), where the antics of two mischievous teenage girls are matched by the director\u2019s own cheeky stylistic experimentation. Traps<\/i> (1988) comes much later in Chytilová\u2019s career, and is among her more conventional films. Where her earlier work tended to elude traditional cause-and-effect narrative in favour of a liberated, episodic structure, Traps<\/i> pursues its dark satire in an inexorable succession of attacks and counter-attacks. <\/p>\n

In her essay to accompany this new Second Run DVD release of Traps<\/i>, Carmen Gray situates the film among a \u2018new proliferation of mass-appeal comedies\u2019, which Traps<\/i> is clearly \u2018parodying\u2019. Certainly, with its graphic opening images of pig castration, searing attack on contemporary trends and attitudes, and broad spectrum of female characters, Traps<\/i> sets itself apart from mainstream comedy\u2019s tendency to stereotype.<\/p>\n

The story revolves around Lenka, a country vet, who is raped by ad executive Petr and environment minister Donhal after they offer her roadside assistance. Knowing that their crime will go unpunished by the judicial system, Lenka uses her professional skills to make sure the two men don\u2019t go on to attack other women. <\/p>\n

Although the rape itself is more or less elided through whip-pans across the treetops of the forest where it takes place, Chytilová deftly shifts the focus by dwelling on the long struggle that precedes the attack and the debilitating nightmares and flashbacks Lenka suffers from afterwards. The large number of films that graphically depict rape wade into a dubious territory of sly titillation or sadistic humiliation. Chytilová conveys sexual assault\u2019s true impact on women by taking a broader perspective.<\/p>\n

Petr and Donhal\u2019s light-hearted attitude towards rape, enjoying the struggle of one woman against two men, turns the episode into an example of why women may live their lives feeling constantly under threat. Chytilová also offers a succinct glimpse into the consequences of rape, which extend far beyond the terrifying and violent event itself, affecting Lenka\u2019s professional and personal life. She can no longer stand the sight of breeding animals on the farms where she works, and her relationship with her boyfriend is destroyed, as she is initially afraid to tell him, then disgusted when he finds out and \u2018forgives\u2019 her for being raped.<\/p>\n

Lenka\u2019s cheerful professional competence prior to the attack is reminiscent of Anna\u2019s in Chytilová\u2019s earlier The Apple Game<\/i>: the midwife, though comically clumsy at times, shines with confidence whether delivering a baby at the hospital or a calf at the farm. Although it is this competence that allows Lenka to punish her attackers, the action does not empower her. When her boyfriend learns what she has done, he says \u2018I\u2019ve never seen you like this\u2019. \u2018Maybe it\u2019s not me anymore,\u2019 she replies. Rather than suggesting, in the simplistic way of Hollywood, that taking the law into your own hands brings catharsis, Chytilová demonstrates that happy endings can\u2019t truly exist in an unjust and hypocritical society.<\/p>\n

Alison Frank<\/B><\/I><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Czech New Wave director Věra Chytilová offers a complex view of the consequences of rape in this dark satire.
\nReview by Alison Frank<\/B><\/I><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[11,3],"tags":[794,61,151,134,1018,1170],"class_list":["post-5418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-check-it-out","category-dvds-and-blu-rays","tag-1960s-film","tag-czech-cinema","tag-czech-new-wave","tag-eastern-european-cinema","tag-new-wave","tag-vera-chytilova"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","wps_subtitle":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/surUP-traps","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5466,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2015\/04\/29\/fruit-of-paradise\/","url_meta":{"origin":5418,"position":0},"title":"Fruit of Paradise","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"April 29, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Released after the crushing of the Prague Spring, Chytilov\u00e1\u2019s 1970 follow-up to Daisies is as visually inventive but much darker in tone. Review by Alison Frank","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fruit of Paradise 1","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Fruit-of-Paradise-1-594x386.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Fruit-of-Paradise-1-594x386.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Fruit-of-Paradise-1-594x386.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5542,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2015\/06\/05\/panel-story\/","url_meta":{"origin":5418,"position":1},"title":"Panel Story","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"June 5, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"As part of our focus on the Czech filmmaker V\u011bra Chytilov\u00e1, we take an illustrated look at her 1979 satirical comedy. Comic Strip Review by S.J. Harris","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"panelstory 1","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/panelstory-1-594x891.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/panelstory-1-594x891.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/panelstory-1-594x891.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6188,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2016\/02\/17\/something-differenta-bagful-of-fleas\/","url_meta":{"origin":5418,"position":2},"title":"Something Different\/A Bagful of Fleas","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"February 17, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"This new release explores V\u011bra Chytilov\u00e1's early 1960s documentary-inflected pre-Daisies work. Review by Alison Frank","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"something-different","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/something-different-594x401.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/something-different-594x401.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/something-different-594x401.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":643,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2009\/06\/04\/daisies\/","url_meta":{"origin":5418,"position":3},"title":"Daisies","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"June 4, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"But their insubordination is not just an act of female resistance against patriarchal society: V?ra Chytilov\u00ed\u00a1's Daisies (1966) is more Dada than women's lib, and the two Maries are above all non-conformist individuals, outsiders to the grinding machinery of society. Virginie S\u00e9lavy","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Daisies","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/06\/Daisies-594x452.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/06\/Daisies-594x452.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/06\/Daisies-594x452.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1504,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2011\/02\/02\/a-blonde-in-love\/","url_meta":{"origin":5418,"position":4},"title":"A Blonde in Love","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"February 2, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Milo\u0161 Forman's is a gem of the Czech New Wave. Review by Alison Frank","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A Blonde in Love","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/A-Blonde-in-Love-594x440.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/A-Blonde-in-Love-594x440.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/A-Blonde-in-Love-594x440.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5670,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2015\/08\/23\/dragons-return\/","url_meta":{"origin":5418,"position":5},"title":"Dragon’s Return","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"August 23, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Eduard Gre\u010dner's film is reminiscent of The Seventh Seal, with its timeless bond with the cycles of nature and local superstition. Review by Alison Frank","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Dragons Return","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Dragons-Return-594x417.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Dragons-Return-594x417.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Dragons-Return-594x417.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5418","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5418"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5418\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5482,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5418\/revisions\/5482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5418"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5418"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5418"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}