L'ange de la vengeance

Ms. 45 (1981) was an interesting view on the revenge flicks that were popular during the mid 70's to the early 80's. Abel Ferrara and his co-conspirator Nicholas St. John follow the life of a mute dress worker (Zoe Lund) who snaps one day after being raped twice. She kills her last attacker and keeps his gun. After seeing the grim world around her and the loss of her mental faculties, she decides to do a hunting.

A strange but highly enjoyable film that takes exploitation films to a whole new level. The gritty direction by Abel Ferrara and the smart writing from Nicholas St. John elevate this movie above most of the trash that was produced during this time period. The star, Zoe Lund posses some unearthly beauty and she has that certain stuff to make the material work. Not many other actresses could have pulled this off but she some how manages to.

If you can find an uncut version of this movie I advise you to go out and get it. This is one of the best vigilante movies you'll ever watch. I have to highly recommend this film. It's Abel Ferrara doing what he does best. Street level film making!

Step 1: Watch Ms .45

Step2: Read the Wikipedia page for Zoe Lund

Step 3: Watch Ms .45 again, now that you know a little about her. Amazing.

RealReview Posting Scoring Criteria: Acting - 1/1 Casting - 1/1 Directing - 1/1 Story - 1/1 Writing/Screenplay - 1/1

Total Base Score = 5

Modifiers (+ or -) Originality: 1 Standout Performances: 1 ( Zoe Lund )

Total RealReview Rating: 7

This early Abel Ferrara effort fits into the rape revenge tradition. Nonetheless it's far more interesting than most films of its type, and certainly far better overall than the vast majority of them. In fact, perhaps it is THE very best of them all. Definitely worth a watch if you're interested in these kinds of films even just a little. As far as gritty vigilante films go, this is definitely in the upper echelon. The more I watch this film, the more I appreciate it. There are many things to enjoy within it. Even some very funny moments. There is great artistic vision shown here from both the director and writer. Far more than you'd normally see in these types of films. Even if you notice the way the film is shot, it's quite great. It really is a beautifully crafted film in many ways, despite the dark and grimy themes and atmosphere. I remember the first time I ever saw this was with an old girlfriend, and after the film she said, "Well that was cute.". Warning: Your companion may not feel the same.

8/10.

In Manhattaan, the mute seamstress Thana (Zoë Tamerlis) is a timid woman that works in the fashion industry and spends most of her idle time at home. One night, she is raped in an alley while going back home after hours and when she arrives at home, she is raped again by another criminal. However, she reacts and kills the assaulter with a flatiron. The disturbed Thana loses her sanity and uses the rapist pistol to kill men on the streets of New York.

"Angel of Vengeance" is a cult-movie by Abel Ferrara with elements of "Death Wish" when a simple woman goes insane after being raped twice in one day and she uses the criminal's gun to kill every man that makes a pass on her. I have just watched this film for the fourth or fifth time on VHS and it has not aged. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Sedução e Vingança" ("Seduction and Revenge")

Note: On 12 May 2017, I saw this film again.

A rape revenge film that earns the "exploitation" tag that often accompanies the genre. While the theme was already pretty low hanging fruit at the time of it's release, this movie opts to set itself apart by focusing on the declining mental state post trauma. The resulting downward spiral is as captivating as it is gratuitous.