I agree with most reviews which can be read here. Virginie Despentes film "Baise Moi" is not a good movie when it comes to filmmaking. (Besides, its soundtrack is not quite fitting in comparism to the late-ninties punk baseline of the book.)Nevertheless there are a few moments in which you can sense the intention of the novel behind it. Which is in my opinion worth reading. In her work Despentes tries to radically interchange heteronormative orders of men and women and furthermore reveals an insuperable neoliberal economic system from which its subjects, especially female-read characters, can not, in any way, break out. Regardless of how hard, violently or vulgarly they try to turn the tables or disguise in a carnivalesque manner.But the film is too short and simply broken down to violence and explicit (!) pornography. A spectator without background knowledge of Despentes novels or her way of writing (and talking) about feminist issues could easily be overwhelmed and offended by this obscure piece of french trash cinema.If you are still interested in the work of Virginie Despentes read "Baise Moi" and maybe some passages of her essay anthology "King Kong Theory". Not quite easy to consume but readable as a deconstructive attempt to make structures of both social and economic exploitation (of women) visible. With punk music, sex, hardcore porn, drugs and violence!

Mixing extreme violence with hardcore sex, Baise-moi is a taboo busting piece of French cinema that exists purely to shock. And shock it does! Following the exploits of hooker Nadine (Karen Bach) and rape victim Manu (Raffaëla Anderson), two man-hating killers on the run, this movie, directed by and starring real porn stars, delivers moment after moment that one doesn't usually find in films that have been passed by the BBFC (albeit with 12s of cuts) and released legitimately on UK DVD.Beginning with a harrowing and explicit scene depicting the rape of Manu (and her junkie pal), the film starts as it means to go on—by unflinchingly showing everything, however seedy or violent. As the film progresses viewers are treated to more full-on sex, some nasty killings (innocent victims are killed for fun), and a gob-smacking finale in which our modern day Bonnie and Clyde (or should that be Bonnie and Bonnie?) enter a sex-club, guns ablazing.Baise-moi is PURE exploitation. As far as I could see, the extreme content has no sub-text or hidden message; it is simply there for the purpose of entertaining viewers who like to watch films that push the boundaries. Some people may have a problem with this kind of entertainment, and if so, they should stay well away. I, however, was mightily impressed by this unpretentious piece of dangerous movie-making and recommend it to anyone wanting to try something a little less 'safe' than the usual fare offered at your local video store.

It's a low budget movie and at first seems rubbish, which I suspect has meant many people gave up too early and underrated it. As the film develops the cheapness of the production only reinforces the harsh, unglamorous lives of the characters portrayed so don't be put off in the first few minutes as it really warms up! There is a degree of misandry in the casual violence inflicted against various men. However, I found myself cheering these acts on and rooting for the girls. The portrayal of sex is unusually explicit and I found this refreshing, far tamer than actual porn but still real(it helps to know the 2 main characters were transitioning from actual careers in porn!). It was refreshing also because the film was written by women and so women were not the victims of violence but revelled in being instigators. There was a definite edge to the disassociative personalities of the 2 women, who offered little reaction to their killings other than joy and I found this a good portrayal of sociopathy. The women did have redeeming features and some level of justification for their heinous acts. It was certainly a window on evil, but why should that always be about evil men? This caught me by surprise and I highly recommend this movie if you like sex and violence. If you have disdain for the likes of Rambo forget it!

Let me start of by saying that Sex and violence and the relationship between them are integral to the human experience and are both older than history itself, and I'm more than prepared to watch a film that engages in those themes. Baise-Moi does try to explore those ideas, but it falls far short of that task for a number of reasons: 1) The Characters: The two leads of the film, Nadine and Manu to their credit aren't badly performed at all. I was able to see a relationship that transcended that of a sexual nature and was filled with a genuine affection - you can see that once they had become bonded they almost became a single entity, functioning as two parts of one whole never in conflict with each other but with the world around them.The problem is that the characters lose sympathy from the audience through their actions, and It's not because they commit horrendous acts of violence or engage in sexual activity with strangers. It is possible to see characters do such things and still root for them - one need only consider characters such as Tony Soprano to accept that. But the actions of Nadine and Manu seem arbitrary. They'll have sex with some people, and kill others and its rarely clear why. In fact towards the end of the film the enter a sex club and massacre an entire room of people who are exploring and engaging in sex in a consensual manner even though these people are doing exactly what Nadine and Manu have spent their time doing. I struggled to understand what their ideology was - there didn't seem to be any clear rules or logic that could be applied to what they were doing. As an audience we don't always have to sympathize with a character, but if we can't empathize with them then their choices end up being unbelievable and we lose all stake in the film.2) The Plot. The main problem with the plot is that the film doesn't really have one and it lacks proper structure. We have a first act where we are introduced to the main characters and witness their first meeting and a end goal is set up - that of meeting another character in Vosges to help them in some kind of border smuggling enterprise, the details of which are never really made clear. Thus we enter the second act and are given the impression that this is to be a road film - a journey into the darkest corners of human interaction where all inhibitions are banished as the character's race, almost eagerly towards self destruction.We do see Nadine and Manu engage in sex and murder in an almost decadent fashion, and we see them reflect on the nature of their partnership. But there is no sense of a journey here. The films goes from one scene to another with no sense of progression. The characters seem relatively unchanged from their first act of murder and it doesn't feel as if they are really physically journeying anywhere either. It almost feels as if they're just driving around randomly - there is no sense of an overall plot progression here at all. Characters are randomly introduced and dispatched without forwarding the overall plot in any real sense.3) The Cinematography: I don't know a lot about camera work or cinematography so I won't go on about it at length but from a lay-man's point of view it felt pretty weak. Obviously this is a low budget film that had to make do with what could be afforded and I totally accept that. But the camera work constantly felt to me as if it was neglecting to play to the strengths of being able to use a hand-held camera to get a sense of realism. It always felt like the director was trying to use the camera as if it was a big budget high quality one. Unfortunately the low quality nature of the shots makes the film feel like a pale amateur imitator of other films. To sum up then, the reason Baise-Moi fails as a film for me isn't the explicit or shocking nature of the film. The makers of this film clearly decided that they wanted to be unflinching in their examination of the darker recesses of human society and I see that as a legitimate attempt to create a piece of art. Also the acting, while not award winning is for the most part isn't at all terrible and the two leads carry the film well as much as is possible. The problem lies ultimately with the script - which lacks a coherent 3 act structure. It feels as if the writer started out trying to set up a story-line with a first act that introduces the main characters and gives them an end goal and sets up a story about a journey. But then just got bored and decided to craft a series of scenes that pay homage to other road films that explore sex and violence, but failed to understand what made those films work. The end result comes off as amateurish and hackneyed and makes it look as if the film was made purely for shock value rather than to explore explicit themes in an unflinching manner.Ultimately the films attempts to explore sex and violence in an explicit manner but fails as a piece of art. In doing so it hands those who would try to censor artful expression an example that furthers their goal rather than contradicts it. 3/10.