Analysis of Baise Moi

In the opening scene, we are introduced to a couple that we will never see again, the woman is desperately trying to win back her uninterested boyfriend. He is taking advantage of her weakness by berating her publicly. He has not been home in 5 days, but is not showing intentions of leaving her, but rather he is getting off on treating her poorly, holding her at arms length, and even getting her to pay for his pool games while he ignores her. Nadine is sitting at the bar and she is immediately described as an “ace head queen” by the bartender. Even though it is revealed later that she is a prostitute, it is disrespectful that the male bartender would immediately refer to her sexuality when asked about her. Manu is treated poorly by her drug dealer acquaintance she meets on the street; and even by her own loving brother, who demeans her place in life and hits her before giving her 300 francs. Shortly after, we are treated to an extremely graphic nine minute gang rape scene. One woman screams and fights, as Manu silently submits and refuses to give her tormentor the thrill he is looking for, it seems the latter has been down this road before. From these opening scenes of feminine humiliation, it appears obvious that this film has a hardcore feminist, anti-man message; it is suggested by these opening scenes that all men are intolerable, sadistic, horn-dogs filled with violent rage; looking at women like they are condoms, something to be used and thrown away… and all men deserve to die.

One major aspect of this film that everyone seems to talk about is the frequent use of hardcore pornographic scenes. Most critics would demand that the usage of these images be justified towards plot movement or possibly be included by the director to comment on societal factors. Baise Moi does a small bit of the former but not much of the latter. This film utilizes its extreme sexual images like a Venus Flytrap, attempting to attract men to watch the film because of its controversial hardcore porn scenes. When it has the man in its grasp, it attacks him, telling him that not only thinking about having sex with a woman is a horrible thing and you will be punished, but you deserve to be killed based on gender alone. It touches on this by exposing Nadine as a porn fan, and her roommate appears disgusted and tells her that watching porn is only for men. Later, Manu assumes that Nadine’s boyfriend watches porn because Nadine recognizes her from her films.

Throughout the rest of the film, the girls go on a hate-fueled killing spree. Although they typically kill men in sexual situations, their psychotic rampage includes killing others either for their own benefit, or just to eliminate witnesses like the woman at the ATM machine or after they steal the man’s car. Like Oliver Stone’s Natural Born Killers (1994), the murders are done in an overtly graphic nature that would suggest satire. We begin to share the girls’ aloofness towards the violence through consistent exposure and desensitizing. This element of satire is hinted at by the two girls when, after killing a victim, they discuss their lame lines. Nadine says, “Where are the witty lines? People are dying; the dialogue has to be up to it.” Manu retorts; “We can’t write it in advance.” “You’re right, that’s totally unethical.” This scene shows that the directors, while celebrating an anti-man stance, are trying to not take themselves too seriously. Their hatred towards men becomes laughable towards the end, after the two kill everyone in a sex club. While leaving the first man alive, they force him to pull down his pants and grunt (like the pigs that all men appear to be) before they buckwheat him (shoot him in the anus).

Discussing the actual look of the film, and the director’s choices, we must know that they were under a very small budget, and this film was recorded entirely with digital cameras. Knowing that this film was the mainstream directorial debut, we wonder if it is intentional that the film begins to show a more gritty tone as it proceeds towards the climax. Intentional or not, it is a nice touch to see the “film” itself appear to break apart with the lives of our two main characters. This is most obvious when the girls arrive at the police checkpoint and this look continues until Manu is killed. One of the more interesting shots of the film is when Manu and Nadine arrive at the beach as Manu wishes. When Manu looks out to the sea, the director uses a shot of the water different than what we are used to seeing. Typically, with a water shot, we are shown either the horizon where the sky meets the sea, or the beach where the waters crash. This is to give the viewer a proper frame of reference. The director uses a very tight shot of the waves consuming the entire screen, suggesting a wall. Manu and Nadine have hit a wall and they realize that they can never go back, only ride out the wave.

Manu and Nadine are played by actual stars of pornographic film, and their lack of acting experience may have helped them project an apathetic attitude towards the people around them. There is only one scene showing any compassion at all by our two main characters, towards the end of the film, when we are shown a microcosmic shot (an image in which most of subject is cropped by the frame of reference) of Manu and Nadine sitting at a table and when one girl mentions a brother, we see a look of guilt and sorrow come across Manu’s face, as she remembers her first victim of this killing spree, her own brother. We only see any real remorseful emotion in Nadie after Manu is killed.



Throughout the history of film, some filmmakers have created cinematic pieces that are made just to top the shock factor presented by its predecessors, Baise Moi is definitely made to be controversial, for people to talk about, but it also a cartoon of a film, though not the Tom and Jerry type. Through the desensitizing of our society, it is becoming more and more typical for us to look at horribly violent images without feelings of nausea or repulsiveness. To include graphic sex with the violence is almost like a 21st century Reese’s peanut butter cup. Chocolate + Peanut Butter = goodness. Graphic sex + graphic violence = Baise Moi, a film people will continue to talk about in excess for years to come. It will be interesting to see how new directors try to top it.

Jason Hedman
Kenosha, WI
May 2011