femsploitation

At its core, Elle flips and unfolds conventional narratives of victimization, refusing to make it a reductive event. This kind of dynamic has been attempted by male filmmakers in the past, most notably in the femsploitation thrillers of the ‘70s and ‘80s and Quentin Tarantino’s modern update, Kill Bill.

What Should We Make of Elle’s Out-There Sexual Politics? Kevin Lincoln 2016

José Manuel Cravioto’s Bound To Vengeance wants so badly to work the femsploitation angle, but has no functional understanding of the crucial factors that distinguish between the good and bad apples. At every available opportunity, the film punishes its ostensible heroine for taking her welfare—and, more vitally, the welfare of her fellow women—into her own trembling, bloodstained hands.

Bound To Vengeance Charles Bramesco 2022