Themes: Out For Revenge, Crime Sprees, Rape & Sexual Abuse
Main Cast: Zoe Tamerlis, Steve Singer, Jack Thibeau, Peter Yellen, Darlene Stuto
Release Year: 1981
Country: US
Run Time: 84 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Undeservedly thrashed by mainstream critics in its initial theatrical run, this stylish urban thriller from quirky director Abel Ferrara has since developed a modest cult following. The late Zoe Tamerlis stars as Thana, a mute seamstress in New York's Garment District who is raped by two different assailants in a single evening -- once on her way home, a second time in her apartment by a sleazy burglar (Peter Yellen). She manages to bludgeon her second attacker to death with an iron, keeping his .45 automatic and disposing of his body one piece at a time in various locations throughout the city. When a bystander tries to apprehend her after watching her dispose of another grisly piece of evidence, she shoots him dead with the automatic. This act of violent release triggers a latent misanthropic impulse in the waifish Thana -- who was not very stable to begin with -- and she begins pumping hot lead into any predatory male she can find. The bloodbath continues unabated until the surreal, Sam Peckinpah-inspired climax, in which our anti-heroine escapes a Halloween party to square off against multiple male foes while wearing a nun's habit and blood-red lipstick. This film could be viewed as a distaff version of Ferrara's Driller Killer; where the director's previous effort was purely nihilistic, with a killer driven by urban decay, here he depicts Thana as a gun-toting agent of revenge who seems to have absorbed the collective anger of wronged women everywhere -- including women exploited in other movies of the same genre. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
Review
This terse revenge fantasy makes no apologies for its astronomical body count and queasy gore. Instead, it focuses on creepy details to drive home its not-so-subtle point about the aggression women face at every turn in the urban jungle. From the mundane horror of a rapist's cellophane mask to the casual leer on a boss' face at work, director Abel Ferrara's camera impassively takes in the myriad predators, actual and potential, who clutter cleverly named heroine Thana's path like so many panhandlers. For her part, star Zoe Tamerlis invests her speechless character with a quiet dignity that slowly evolves into stylish sexual agency; it's as if the only way Thana can become conventionally "hot" is to kill all potential sexual partners. Whether you read the protagonist's transformation from demure worker bee to avenging vixen as S&M window-dressing or feminist irony, it certainly makes for some arresting images. For every expertly choreographed assassination scene, though, Ferrara also adds a handful of throwaway detail shots: spare bullets, bloody irons, broken windows, and streetwalker accessories. The well-cast supporting characters likewise lend nuance to the story -- especially the meddlesome landlady, the imperious fashion plate, and the wise-cracking, tough-talking coworkers who present the film's alternate visions of femininity. Ultimately, despite its small budget and no-frills feel, Ms. 45 presents a self-contained meditation on sex roles that stands up to repeated viewing in a way few pure action films can. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
Cast
Zoe Tamerlis - Thana
Steve Singer - Photographer
Jack Thibeau - Man in bar
Peter Yellen - Second rapist
Darlene Stuto - Laurie
Editta Sherman - Landlady; Albert Sinkys - Boss; Jimmy Laine - First rapist; Bogey - Phil
Credit
Mary Kane - Associate Producer, Abel Ferrara - Director, Rochelle Weisberg - Executive Producer, Joe Delia - Composer (Music Score), Matt Vogel - Special Effects, Nicholas St. John - Screenwriter
Walking home from work one night, Thana, a mute seamstress in New York City's Garment District, is raped in an alley. She survives and makes her way back to her apartment, where she encounters a burglar and is raped a second time. She bludgeons this second assailant to death with an iron. She then keeps his .45 caliberpistol, dismembers the burglar's body, puts the pieces into plastic garbage bags and disposes of them in various locations throughout the city. She begins to have frequent nightmares and hallucinations of the second assailant stalking her, and her mental stability begins to dim.
Noticed by a man while she is disposing of one of the body parts, he chases her until she gets scared fearing for another sexual assault, and fatally shoots him. This event furthers her impulse for vengeance, and Thana then transforms her appearance and sets out to kill any man who annoys her. Near the end of the film, she dons nun's habit and red lipstick and initiates a shoot-out at a Halloween party. In the ending she is stabbed by a woman present at party.
In late 1997 Ms. 45 was accidentally released completely uncut by Warner Bros. UK on VHS video, and was for sale for approximately 1 week, before being replaced by the cut version.[2]
Ms. 45 was released on DVD on April 25, 2000 by Image Entertainment, but was reedited for DVD release. The reedit removes less than a minute total. The cuts include changes to the first rape featuring Ferrara's cameo, which is split by an insert shot from a later scene. The second rape is more drastically cut, omitting a line "This oughta make you talk, huh?" The climatic Halloween party shoot-out was also recut to remove an on screen murder, which now occurs off screen.[3]
The uncut DVD is now available in France, published by Aquarelle.
