Anatomy of Violence
MAST D: Deepa Mehta. Canada/India. 93 min. Sep 12, 7 pm, TIFF Bell Lightbox 1 Sep 15, 3:30 pm, TIFF Bell Lightbox 1 Sep 17, 9:30 pm, TIFF Bell Lightbox 2. Rating: NNNN
Mehta’s unique take on the infamous gang rape of a young woman on a Delhi bus with her fiancé delves into the backgrounds of the perpetrators to ask what led them to become violators.
Workshopped by her excellent cast of unknowns and stars, it points the finger at a rigid class system, trauma, poverty and the patriarchal values that breed violent misogyny. These men are profoundly oppressed people in sharp contrast, a canny – and risky – sequence shows the subway filled with well-dressed upwardly mobile women on their way to work.
Anatomy Of Violence is hard-hitting, but take note – the assault itself is never shown.
