The Girl, based on Samantha Geimer’s memoir, will revisit ‘one of Hollywood’s most notorious scandals through the eyes of the person most misrepresented by it’
A new movie will explore the notorious Roman Polanski statutory rape scandal from the perspective of the 13-year-old girl, Samantha Geimer.
The Girl, based on Geimer’s 2013 memoir The Girl: A Life in the Shadow of Roman Polanski, will trace her time in the famous director’s orbit in the 1970s, her experience being subjected to sexual assault and the media maelstrom that followed after Polanski, then 43, was arrested in 1977 on charges of statutory rape and lewd and lascivious act with a child.
Polanski, the acclaimed director of such films as Rosemary’s Baby and Chinatown, admitted to statutory rape in a plea bargain to avoid more serious charges, but fled to France the following year after serving 42 days in jail. He has been a fugitive from the US ever since.
I am conflicted. I don’t know what I want out of this movie. I don’t want anything at all that casts a positive light on child rapist Roman Polanski, yet I want to respect Ms. Geimer’s wishes and see that if anyone profits from all this that it be her, yet I can’t help but feel like this is still somehow exploiting her.
What I really want is for France and the film industry worldwide to stop pandering to this admitted child rapist. So many interesting voices out there and we have to waste even a moment’s thought on this crusty old pervert.
Is a movie really necessary? This is pure voyeurism.