Salo is a divisive film. Some say it's exploitative torture porn masquerading as art. Others say it's a deep critique of fascism. Watching the film nearly fifty years after it's release, I see both sides, somewhat, but I'm mostly inclined to say it's a film that lives on for its (somewhat diminishing) shock value than any sort of lasting political commentary.
The plot: during late WWII, with Northern Italy under German occupation, four quite perverted senior members of the Italian ruling class, assisted by their henchmen and Nazi soldiers, select a group of teenage boys and girls to be kidnapped and taken to a villa as their sex slaves and torture subjects.
On the shocky torture porn: yes, it's full of nudity, outlandish sex fetishes (particularly scat), and violence, including physical torture. Given that all the youths were kidnapped, basically every sex scene involving them can be considered a rape scene. Virtually everyone is bisexual, anal sex gets higher billing than normal sex, and there are grotesque segments that will stay with you. For memorability, Salo gets high marks. I imagine it likely was the most controversial film ever made at the time of its release, though changing attitudes towards homosexuality - which looms large in the movie - have defanged that aspect a bit.
On the political angle: the captors are fascists; this isn't subtle. There are comments peppered throughout about fascism and the captors discuss the ultimate modes of oppression and inflicting suffering. They're unabashed sadists, using their power to inflict pain on others sheerly for personal enjoyment. This is highlighted most explicitly in the final scenes as one of the captors becomes aroused while watching the physical torture of the prisoners and he begins fondling the boy next to him while continue to look on in delight at the horrors being inflicted below.
The political side is where I think the film falls short. If the opening scene (explaining the movie is taking place under Nazi rule) didn't exist and the interspersed discussions about fascism were tweaked ever so slightly, you'd have essentially the same movie, and it'd just be a movie about sadism. Frankly, then it'd be nothing more than a torture-porn exploitation flick.
The final scenes have more social commentary than the rest of the film combined. Upon seeing the physical torture of the captives, the musician finally decides she's seen enough and commits suicide. The captives, on the other hand, rat each other out in an attempt to save themselves; those who have not broken the rules then are offered the opportunity to "collaborate" with the captors and continue on with them. If the movie has an underlying political message about what fascism is, it seems to be this: Die or suffer under it, then face the choice to join it and inflict suffering on others in order to continue on, but if you do, you may find you like being the one with power.
So, yes, there's more to the movie than a lot of naked people being forced to eat excrement. But by the time you get to the end, you've been watching so much sexual exploitation and violence that it's easy to lose sight of any larger message. Maybe that's part of the point, but Salo is not a movie that makes you want to pop it back on the screen right away for a rewatch to see what you missed the first time.
The plot: during late WWII, with Northern Italy under German occupation, four quite perverted senior members of the Italian ruling class, assisted by their henchmen and Nazi soldiers, select a group of teenage boys and girls to be kidnapped and taken to a villa as their sex slaves and torture subjects.
On the shocky torture porn: yes, it's full of nudity, outlandish sex fetishes (particularly scat), and violence, including physical torture. Given that all the youths were kidnapped, basically every sex scene involving them can be considered a rape scene. Virtually everyone is bisexual, anal sex gets higher billing than normal sex, and there are grotesque segments that will stay with you. For memorability, Salo gets high marks. I imagine it likely was the most controversial film ever made at the time of its release, though changing attitudes towards homosexuality - which looms large in the movie - have defanged that aspect a bit.
On the political angle: the captors are fascists; this isn't subtle. There are comments peppered throughout about fascism and the captors discuss the ultimate modes of oppression and inflicting suffering. They're unabashed sadists, using their power to inflict pain on others sheerly for personal enjoyment. This is highlighted most explicitly in the final scenes as one of the captors becomes aroused while watching the physical torture of the prisoners and he begins fondling the boy next to him while continue to look on in delight at the horrors being inflicted below.
The political side is where I think the film falls short. If the opening scene (explaining the movie is taking place under Nazi rule) didn't exist and the interspersed discussions about fascism were tweaked ever so slightly, you'd have essentially the same movie, and it'd just be a movie about sadism. Frankly, then it'd be nothing more than a torture-porn exploitation flick.
The final scenes have more social commentary than the rest of the film combined. Upon seeing the physical torture of the captives, the musician finally decides she's seen enough and commits suicide. The captives, on the other hand, rat each other out in an attempt to save themselves; those who have not broken the rules then are offered the opportunity to "collaborate" with the captors and continue on with them. If the movie has an underlying political message about what fascism is, it seems to be this: Die or suffer under it, then face the choice to join it and inflict suffering on others in order to continue on, but if you do, you may find you like being the one with power.
So, yes, there's more to the movie than a lot of naked people being forced to eat excrement. But by the time you get to the end, you've been watching so much sexual exploitation and violence that it's easy to lose sight of any larger message. Maybe that's part of the point, but Salo is not a movie that makes you want to pop it back on the screen right away for a rewatch to see what you missed the first time.