Gender and cinema wondering.

[prog]

Based on the dismissively tiny survey of friends I have so far taken (me, one male friend, two female) I wonder if women tend to find the live-burial scene intrinsically and deeply upsetting in a way that men don't. Not to say that I felt no suspense in watching it, but that it certainly didn't carry the same raw-nerve discomfort that my female pals desribed. I find this more interesting because the character wasn't in immediate peril (compared to other scrapes she gets into), but this gets singled out as an especially harrowing scene. Part of me suspects that it's playing on something hardwired, there. Thoughts? Refutations?

(Would it have been different if the scene were the same length, but Thurman's character kept her cool from the start, instead of fighting to regain it after spending a minute panicing? Even if that alone the triggering factor, I'd still bet there's a gender-reaction split here.)

Comments

[aspartaimee.livejournal.com]

i don't consider myself clausterphobic on a day to day basis, but i will admit that i thought that part of KBII was disturbing. she spent more than a minute panicking, which is maybe why it had more of an impact for me.

i don't think changing her reaction would have made a difference for me. it's really the concept.

it's a toss up, though, which was more disturbing for me: the buried alive part of II, or the orderlies boinking comatose patients in I.