Let Me Die a Woman

An extension of the Mondo-style documentary, with their "mission" to illustrate, and exploit unknown or forgotten cultural practises and habits, Doris Wishman's (see Review #298: 'Deadly Weapons' (1974)) Let Me Die a Woman follows the work of sex reassignment surgeon Dr Leo Wollman (who also acted as the films adviser), and his work with both post- and pre-op transsexuals. The film has interviews with the aforementioned doctor, along with several transsexuals in various stages of transformation, and also throws in some re-enactments and dramatisations of some of their experiences.

Whilst this is billed under the exploitation banner, and would have been shown in these types of cinema, the film is not overly exploitative, and presents the stories and their participants in quite a sympathetic manner. However, the film does explore, in a very graphically visual manner the operations required to alter the genitalia. Of course with this being made in the 1970's means that the screen is filled with incredibly hairy, militant-looking pubic areas, whilst these men with tits flash their flaccid c***s for the camera. In one scene the doctor probes a post-op vagina with his fingers - a sexual orifice so hideous that I simply had to avert my eyes.

Aside from the Mondo movies (and of course Faces of Death (1978) et al), I am not really aware of any other exploitation film that used this documentary style to expose new, sometimes weird phenomenon - except for Being Different (1981) that focused on exploiting circus sideshow acts, and included a modern day Elephant Man - so I am unqualified to state whether this film is emblematic of it's kind. What does strike me is the fact that this type of documentary was so new, and also that it was marginalised to the exploitation/grindhouse circuits. The subject matter, and the gratuitousness of the film highlights to me how this kind of "exploitation" is in fact now a fundamental part of prime-time television, with shows such as Embarrassing Bodies or any others of the many, many similar formats that infest our screens, in our homes, whilst we f*****g eat our dinner! Given this parallel, and shift in the ways in which the participants are exploited in the modern-day TV show and the cinematic format, the film is pretty naive.

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Let Me Die a Woman was a semi-serious attempt in 1978 by underground director Doris Wishman to film the attitudes and lifestyles of sexually confused individuals who want to change their gender. The film also enlisted the aid of Dr. Leo Wollman M.D. (surprise, surprise, he's actually a legitimate doctor), who relates case histories of individuals who have had sex changes and the problems they face. We do get to see an actual sex change take place (although most of it's covered with a surgical sponge) and witness numerous probes of newly constructed sex organs. All pretense this has of being a real documentary falls apart quickly when it becomes a string of softcore porn scenes. Apart from that, several of the people being interviewed are obviously either homosexuals or women and while talking about dildos as medical aides for operatives, Dr. Wollman makes a bold statement by telling us that "not all dildos are used for medical purposes" (!) A tremendous amount of the impact of this film has been taken away by the so-called talk shows that feature these people as guests every week so that now, they seem routine rather than shocking. Though not Doris Wishman's best film, it is an interesting time capsule and on a camp level, Let Me Die a Woman is an entertaining film.

Some of her previous accomplishments (like "Deadly Weapons" and "Diary of a Nudist") already taught us that Doris Wishman isn't ranked very high on the list of filmmakers with good taste and moral values, but I never thought she would even dare to exploit people that struggled with sex and identity crises all their lives. "Let me die a Woman" is supposed to be a documentary (better say schlockumentary or even smutumentary), but it has very little educational or informative value. The film is a compilation of interviews with a Puerto Rican transsexual – "Last year, I was a man" – and allegedly scientific feedback from a sleazy guy I wouldn't allow near my body. Dr. Leo Wollman may perhaps be an authority in the field of sex-change operations, but he clearly doesn't feel comfortable when there's a camera aimed at him. His eyes turn towards everywhere except straight into the lens and his lines sound a little too much like they're being read from a large billboard in front of him. Still, his acting capacities are Oscar-worthy compared to some of the courageous patients that come to tell about their agonizing lives. There's one guy/lady, I think her name's Debbie, whose voice and facial expressions are truly unendurable. "Let me die a Woman" is a rancid and utterly shameless exploitation flick, and cult collectors should only watch it for the sake of morbid curiosity. It's really jaw-dropping how Dr. Wollman unscrupulously treats the transsexuals as study objects, like motionless life-sized dummies, and moves his filthy fingers over their genitals in order to point out how he turned their penises into vaginas. I don't know anything about this type of surgery, and I reckon it must be complicated undertakings, but most of the results looked truly hideous and even quite gross. Actually, they didn't look like vaginas but gateways into hell. The film is fairly short (80min.) but the last half hour feels annoyingly stretched, as Wollman repeats the same old things over and over again and even inserts a totally ridicule story about a guy who committed suicide because he didn't talk about his transsexual desires with anyone. Oh puh-lease!

Let Me Die a Woman (1978)

BOMB (out of 4)

Infamous Doris Wishman "documentary" that deals with men who want to be women and women who want to be men. Wishman is very well known in the exploitation field and I had heard this was her best movie so I decided to watch this one as my first. I got the exploitation but I also got real footage, which I really didn't want to see. I personally find the subject matter gross so having to watch all of this stuff made me wanna puke. The actual operation was insane and downright disgusting as well. While this presents itself as a documentary it's crazy enough to insult anyone who watches it. This is the one film that I wish I never bothered watching.

I did not know what to expect when I saw Let Me Die A Woman. Trangender friends told me that Leo Wollman was a noted medical authority, maybe THE medical authority on transgender issues and sexual reassignment surgery back in the Seventies when it was a topic that got very little public airing. The only thing I can say is that the film was done the way it was done was to get the widest possible audience for the subject. Even if said audience was only wanting a few pornographic titillating moments.

This film deals with male to female transitioning, the infinitely more complex subject of female to male transgender folks is for the most part left alone. It certainly is true the criticism that Wollman is no actor. He's a doctor and this is purportedly a documentary.

But a few porn stars like Harry Reems apparently offered their services to generate a little box office. In one of a few porn interludes Wollman notes that you can have problems if you don't sufficiently rest and recover after the surgery is done. Then by way of a demonstration Reems does his thing with a newly transitioned woman who then experiences vaginal bleeding. There's a few scenes like this in Let Me Die A Woman.

Talking about reassignment surgery though, the topic that is left untouched is the attitude of the insurance companies who still treat all of this as cosmetic surgery. That is to me mind blowing. All the transgender people I know both pre and post op have never approached sexual reassignment with the same attitude as one say getting a nose job which insurance companies have this on the level of. Some can never transition because the cost is so prohibitive they can't conceive of it in their lifetimes. This film shows the attitudes of 1977 and even with what we now know and the changing attitudes in public opinion, the medical insurance industry remains unaffected.

I suppose Wollman thought this was the way to get the message out, but wow did he pick the wrong kind of film to do it.