to View - Griffith College Dublin

opinion |
“I don’t blame
myself. You see, Mr.
Gitts, most people
never have to face
the fact that at the right time
and the right place, they’re
capable of ANYTHING.” [Noah
Cross:Chinatown]
On September 26, 2009, famed film-director,
Roman Polanski, was detained by police at
Zürich Airport. Polanski was trying to enter
Switzerland to attend the Zurich Film Festival,
where he was to receive the “Golden Icon”
Lifetime Achievement Award. The arrest
was made at the request of the U.S. Justice
Department, as Polanski has had a U.S. arrest
warrant outstanding since 1978. Since his
detainment, there has been massive support
for the freedom of Polanski amongst some of
Hollywood’s biggest names. So surely his crime
wasn’t that bad
Rajmund Roman Liebling was born on the
18th of August 1933, in Paris, France to Polish
parents. His parents returned to Poland just
two years before World War II began. Both were
later taken to concentration camps; where his
mother later died.
Hollywood’s
Dark Prince
A look at Roman Polanski..
Polanski managed to escape, and
growing up, took a great interest in
film. In the 1950s, he took up acting
and directing. From there he went to
France, before eventually making the
move to Hollywood in 1968. It was in
this year that he made the infamous thriller,
‘Rosemary’s Baby.’
In 1969, tragedy struck. His wife, actress Sharon
Tate, along with four others, were murdered
by the notorious Manson clan. She was eightmonths
pregnant with their first child at the
time. After the murders he returned to Europe,
but his re-emergence in Hollywood came
in 1974, with the release of the acclaimed
‘Chinatown.’
It was three years later that Polanski was
arrested for the sexual assault of a 13-year-old
girl. Polanski agreed to a plea deal that spared
him incarceration. The deal saw him spend
about 45 days in jail during a court-ordered
psychiatric evaluation. But fearing that the
judge might not honour the deal and sentence
a 50-year jail stint, Polanski fled to France. It
was, in his opinion, far too long of a sentence.
“I’ve been tortured by this for a year and that’s
enough” he told a BBC reporter in the year he
fled.
“I don’t blame myself.
You see, Mr. Gitts, most
people never have to
face the fact that at the
right time and the right
place, they’re capable of
ANYTHING.”
“Woody Allen, on the big list
of celebrities who support a
child rapist.”
50 years was probably too lenient. The
testimony given from victim, Samantha Gailey,
reads like a crime-channel documentary. The
kind you feel uneasy hearing about on the news,
and often carry ‘discretion advised’ warnings.
To sum things up, a grand jury wanted to charge
Polanski with rape by use of drugs, perversion,
sodomy, lewd and lascivious act upon a child
under fourteen, and furnishing a controlled
substance to a minor. Polanski’s plea deal,
however, saw him plea guilty to the charge of
‘unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.’
On the 10 th of March 1977, Polanski took Gailey
to Jack Nicholson’s Los Angeles home for a
photo-shoot that the director claimed was for
French Vogue. Geimer testified that Polanski
gave her a combination of champagne and the
sedative drug, Quaalude. Polanski “performed
oral sex, intercourse and sodomy on her” each
time after being told ‘no’ and being asked to
stop.
“Does artist
triumph rapist”
Polanski has protested his victim’s claims that
the sex was not consensual. Polanski stated
that he did not drug Geimer, that she “wasn’t
unresponsive” and didn’t respond negatively
when he inquired as to whether or not she was
enjoying what he was doing.
The thing that leaves me baffled about this
case is the subsequent ‘excusing’ of Polanski’s
crimes. Does artist triumph rapist This is
the kind of thing that knocks down any kind
of mountain of belief you’ve maintained in
humanity.
Since his arrest there has been mass-outcry
from scores of Hollywood’s big players. Many
of his fellow directors signed a petition that
demanded “the immediate release of Roman
Polanski.” The names; Woody Allen, Michael
Mann, Martin Scorsese, Wes Anderson and
Sam Mendes, amongst many others, can be
found on the petition.
Yes ladies and gentlemen, Woody Allen, on
a big list of celebrities who support a child
rapist. Because what you need when battling
a paedophilia case is a man who married his
adopted daughter on your side.
Whoopi Goldberg also got herself into a bit
of controversy after some careless comments
on American talk-show, ‘The View.’ She didn’t
actually sign the petition or claim to support
Polanski in any way, but she did state that what
he did wasn’t “rape-rape.” Rape-rape must
be when you know the victim, not the person
responsible.
Why would these people sign Surely they
can’t actually support rape, however scornfully
the media may claim they do. Perhaps they are
thinking of their own private wrong-doings. No
one is perfect, especially in Hollywood.
However, don’t lose all faith in Hollywood.
California Governor and all-around mortal
legend, Arnold Schwarzenegger, said; “I think
that he is a respected person and I am a big
admirer of his work. But, nevertheless, I think
he should be treated like everyone else. It
doesn’t matter if you are a big-time movie actor
or a big-time movie director or producer.”
Polanski isn’t short of support in his chosencountry-of-exile,
France, either. As he is a French
citizen, the French authorities have long refused
to return him to the U.S. for sentencing. French
culture minister, Frédéric Mitterrand, called Mr.
Polanski’s arrest “absolutely dreadful” and that
it made no sense for him to be “thrown to the
lions for an ancient story.”
French director, Jan Kounen pulled his film
‘Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky’ from the
Zurich Film Festival in disapproval of Polanski’s
arrest. Vincent Maraval, a producer of the film,
said, “We’re disgusted by the hypocrisy of
the Swiss authorities. They shelter all kinds of
thieves under banking secrecy and they sell out
a film master.”
It doesn’t matter how long ago it happened,
how much of an ‘outstanding director’ Polanski
is, how old the charges are, or how many film
festivals or academies think Polanski is above
the law. He’s not. Is he misunderstood I
understand that he raped a child.
Polanski announced that he intends to appeal
extradition to the U.S and hired lawyer, Lorenz
Erni, to represent him. On the 6 th of October,
his initial request for bail was refused as
he was considered a high risk of flight. As a
result of Polanski fleeing the court prior to his
sentencing, all six of the original charges are
still pending against him.
I’ll end on this extraordinary quote, found by a
Telegraph blogger from an interview Polanski
gave to novelist, Martin Amis, in 1979.
“If I had killed somebody, it wouldn’t have had
so much appeal to the press, you see But…
fucking, you see, and the young girls. Judges
want to fuck young girls. Juries want to fuck
young girls. Everyone wants to fuck young
girls!”
Really I don’t. In fact, I asked around. I have no
qualms in saying that the absolute majority were
on my side here. However, Hollywood seems
to be in a world of its own right now. A world
far separated from our humble habitat; reality.
____________________
By Nicola Byrne
opinion |
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