What Were They Thinking?

Of all the horror films I have seen, one of the few that truly stands out is Rosemary’s Baby (1968), a true masterpiece of a genre where few masterpieces reside. This film alone is proof of director Roman Polanski’s not inconsiderable talent; but does this make him a good man? It is common knowledge of Polanski’s rape of then thirteen-year-old Samantha Gailey, also of how he fled the United States before his final conviction. Now that Polanski has been arrested, the story is headlining the news once more.

So why talk about an issue that has been beaten to death over and over? Because of petitioners who have “demanded the immediate release” of the infamous filmmaker. This petition, signed by over one-hundred filmmakers and actors and the sort, states “His arrest follows an American arrest warrant dating from 1978 against the filmmaker, in a case of morals.” I can see one major problem with the petition right there: since when was rape an issue of “morals”?

This petition has been signed by the likes of Wes Anderson, Darren Aronofsky, Alfonso Cuaron, Jonathan Demme, Wong Kar Wai, Michael Mann, Alexander Payne, Tilda Swinton (did she not star in The War Zone (1999)?), Martin Scorsese and Woody Allen, a joke in and of itself.

What were these people thinking? Are they merely ignorant of what Polanski really did or are they just so jaded they don’t care? I don’t know any person who considers rape to be a “case of morals” as this petition states but apparently a lot of seemingly sane men and women in Hollywood don’t seem to see it as a problem. Do they simply view Polanski as a brother under fire or are they just not paying attention?

I find it totally offensive that because this man has talent he seems to be above the law in matters of this severity. This is not an issue that can be determined based on morals, this was a forty-four-year-old man drugging and having non-consensual sex with a minor. Whatever way you look at it, you would think this would be viewed as repugnant. If it was anyone but a famous figure would this even be an issue? I do not see Scorsese or Allen running to the defense of other rapists, one time or not; yet for some reason they run to the defense of this man.

Do I respect Polanski’s work? Yes. The man has made some of the greatest films of our time, from Rosemary’s Baby to Chinatown (1974). Do I respect the choices he has made in his life? No. It is as simple as that, and I find it disturbing to find so many people find these choices to be an issue of "morals".

Sincerely,
The Undergraduate.