Trigger Warning- mentions of rape/ sexual assault

Spoiler Alert- I tell you the climax of the movie

This past weekend, I watched a film with some girl friends of mine. We were feeling good, had just done some sea salt face masks, so we decided to watch a romantic comedy that evening. We selected 40 Days and 40 Nights, thinking it would be a classically cheesy one from the early 2000's. It held to be true to this expectation, being comical in an awkward way as it follows the story of a young man who decides to give up all types of sexual activity (including kissing, and masturbation) for lent in hopes to get over an ex-girlfriend. He struggles, his work places starts placing bets on how long he will last and he ends up falling in love with a girl over the course of 40 days.

Now here's the spoiler part, and the main reason I have a problem with this film, besides the portrayal of men being totally unable to last more than a few days without, *ahem*, pleasing themselves in some way: the main character is raped, and it is not at all addressed as a problem. He has arranged to have his new girlfriend to come to his apartment at midnight, as soon as lent is over, so that they can consummate their relationship. His problem is that he is not sure if he can last these few final hours, so his roommate handcuffs both of his hands to the bed posts and leaves the key on his nightstand and the front door unlocked, knowing the new girl will need to come inside the apartment when the clock strikes twelve. Our celibate hero falls asleep, and wakes up to his ex-girlfriend straddling him. He has a semi- dream sequence where he ejaculates, then fully wakes up in horror as she comments that he must have enjoyed it. His ex-girlfriend had sex with him while he was asleep and restrained, yet the man is viewed as the bad guy when his new girl comes and he tries to explain.

Of course, the group of girls I was with and myself, started to yell at the laptop on our laps. A character was clearly raped, forced to have sex with someone he 1) did not consent to and 2) did not know he was having sex with. Yet, because he was male it is not taken seriously at all. I doubt, here putting on airs that the character himself is conscious, knew that what had happened to him was rape at all.

This is why we need feminism!

Men can be raped. Men do not always want sex. It is not the victim's fault, ever. The victim should not be blamed by their partner for having sex with another if that "sex" is actually rape. These facts are inarguable, and they do not need more explanation than what they say directly. I do not recommend this film. It's portrayal of men, and of sex as harmful and perpetuates rape culture. It's not funny, even in the way that some bad films are funny for being bad. Although it was cute to start, the entire tone and mood of the room shifted with the main character's assault. It is never addressed as such and is treated almost comically.

To conclude: Rape isn't funny, don't watch 40 Days and 40 Nights. Thank you.