After reading this article, I am more than ever convinced that the answer is a big resounding YES.
"Itās not a rape movie," Fanning said Tuesday. "Thatās not even the point of the film."
The disturbing scene lasts a few minutes but is not graphic. There is no nudity, the scene is very darkly lit and only Fanningās face and hand are shown.
Kampmeier said it took her a decade to get the film made, largely because of the rape scene, but cutting it was a compromise she was unwilling to make.
"This issue is so silenced in our society. There are a lot of women who are alone with this story," she said.
"When youāre shooting a film, itās the images you line up next to each other that create a story," Kampmeier said. "If you have a hand hitting the ground, Dakota screaming āstopā and you see a zipper unzip ā that creates a rape."
Ted Baehr, chairman of the Christian Film and Television Commission and publisher of the Web site movieguide.org, claims "Hounddog" breaks federal child-pornography law. He said the law covers material that "appears" to show minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
"Even if theyāre not actually performing the explicit act, we are dealing with a legal issue here," he said.
Baehr said Fanning is being exploited in the film, and that it should be considered an outrage.
"Children at 12 do not have the ability to make the types of decisions that weāre talking about here," he said. "If weāre offended by some comedianās racial slur, why arenāt we offended by somebody taking advantage of a 12-year-old child?"
Two other children perform in the film. Cody Hanford plays Buddy, and Isabelle Fuhrman plays a girl nicknamed "Grasshopper."
Kampmeier said she talked with the children and their parents but didnāt go into great detail with the young actors about the content.
"I didnāt have to articulate to Cody and Isabelle the psychological elements that were going on in this film," she said. "I used images to tell the story. I didnāt manipulate these children or explain to these children what was going on."
Fanning said she and Kampmeier talked for months before the film was shot and spent a day painting pottery together and discussing the story.
"Itās not really happening," Fanning said of a rape. "Itās a movie, and itās called acting. Iām not going through anything. Cody and Isabelle arenāt going through anything, their characters are.
"And for me, when itās done itās done," she said. "I donāt even think about it anymore."
Sundance director Geoffrey Gilmore said independent filmmakers should pursue sensitive subject matter.
"I feel the mission and very nature of what Sundance is about is to provide a platform for that," he said.
Via news.yahoo.com
Tags: dakota fanning
