what the hell about the bathroom scene?? (spoilers!!!)
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greganto — 12 years ago(April 08, 2013 08:12 AM)
I believe she cut herself in order to fool her mother (and maybe herself) into thinking that she is still menstruating even though she's past her menopause by now. It's something she's been doing regularly obviously in the last few years. Why she did it? This has clearly to do with the psychological dynamics betweeen her and her mother. Maybe it indicates a denial to acknowledge the grown up woman inside her, as this should lead her to break up with the suffocating ties with her mother.
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ichbinsisyphos — 12 years ago(July 26, 2013 07:03 PM)
You know, this is something I find interesting. If she simply wanted to cut herself, I doubt she would go about it as surgically as she did. She was aiming for a very specific spot, she had something very particular in mind, that's what I get from the execution of the scene.
Of course this theory has as much problems as any other, I don't think she was supposed to be past her menopause.
I will now end this debate with you. -
Helena727 — 10 years ago(April 20, 2015 09:01 AM)
greganto
, she's engaging in self-mutilation, not trying to simulate menstruation.
Also, she probably
isn't
past menopause; the average age of menopause for white women in industrialized nations is 51, and the "movie" Erika is in her 40s (Erika in the novel is in her 30s).
"All you need to start an asylum is an empty room and the right kind of people." -
the_spiral — 12 years ago(October 19, 2013 05:15 AM)
The book explains (in graphic detail) how she is performing a ritual of masochistic self-harm on her genitals with the razorblade. It was incredibly disgusting, and for the sake of my sanity I'm glad the movie was more ambiguous about it.
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Helena727 — 10 years ago(April 20, 2015 10:29 AM)
Did you read the post directly above yours?
The book explains (in graphic detail) how she is performing a ritual of masochistic self-harm on her genitals with the razorblade. It was incredibly disgusting, and for the sake of my sanity I'm glad the movie was more ambiguous about it. -
eolloe — 10 years ago(November 01, 2015 09:05 PM)
That was one of the most horrific things I can remember ever seeing on film.
Just the thought of it makes me incredibly uncomfortable even now.
And despite all the other weird things she does in the film, that one thing makes it hard to accept her as a real person rather than just a character in a story. -
paulg-67221 — 9 years ago(October 07, 2016 05:55 PM)
Because she has masochistic fantasies and is repressed. She is cutting herself as a form of release.
It is also worth mentioning that she has odd fetishes. She sniffed tissues in the booth and urinated when spying on the couple. She also seems contradictory, she wants to be dominated but at the same time wants control.
This scene made me uncomfortable, so I guess Haneke accomplished his goal. -
The Kraken — 3 years ago(December 17, 2022 05:22 PM)
Omg that was so gruesome! She was self cutting on her vagina
I think she couldn't feel pain or something because she didn't seem to wince at all
Trust me, a cut down there HURTS BAD. I once cut myself shaving and the pain was awful.