There seems to be a new buzzword going around at the moment – torture porn. The theory that torture and violence in films is presented in such a way as to make it equivalent to pornography not only applies to the films themselves but to the people who watch it, implying that they are the sort of morally devoid creatures who find the mistreatment of innocent individuals to contain some form of pleasure.

Initially I dispelled this notion as one of the many that are made up by those who fail to see the appeal in edgy, violent films. However, after careful consideration it seems that there may well be a depiction of violence that borders on pornographic. But this doesn’t seem to pleasurably pornographic, rather the complete antithesis, violence so unedited and brutal that it ends up blurring the line between reality and fiction.

Recent films such as Hostel and the Saw trilogy are based on the notion of torture as a form of game, or as a form of pleasure. While these all seem different at first they are just different parts of the same spectrum, with the majority of the murders having no real heavyweight conviction behind them, aside from the personal reasons of each villain. Jigsaw, the cancer stricken maniac from the Saw trilogy punishes those who he feels have abused the beauty of life, something he sees as unacceptable now he is having his taken away. While most of the people he traps do indeed deserve to be punished in some way the particular trap in which they are placed (usually connected to the scam they’ve been pulling) would not be justifiable if recreated in the real world. It is not necessarily the trap that entices the viewer but what they’ve done to deserve being treated in such a way, and the rules that dictate how the ‘game’ is won. It is in this frantic period of watching the victim trying to escape their impending doom that the pornographic element is fulfilled.

While not traditionally pornographic it unlocks a desire deep inside that longs to see humanity prevail, that cheers the underdog and so desperately wants them, regardless of the fact that these are supposedly morally un-redeemable characters, to escape. While the outcomes of these ‘games’ are almost inevitable the mechanisms of the trap themselves are often overlooked in favour of how easy the victim gives up, or how far they are prepared to go to save their own life. While you won’t be creaming yourself at the thought of someone being torn apart it does become somewhat satisfactory that, as inevitable as it may be, humanity does prevail and one person will always escape, however brief his or her freedom may last.

Hostel plays on the same idea of humanities desire for the underdog. Being handcuffed to a chair and tortured is a pretty heavy situation to get out of, so when somebody manages to overcome the oppression and escape we cheer and pray that they survive. Again it’s not something that will get you hot under the collar but this is a different kind of pornography, perhaps one that we do not recognise straight away, but one that will ultimately make a sadistic, gory film enjoyable to the point of exhaustion.

It's not all bad though. There's a particularly beautiful scene in Hostel (yes that's right, beautiful) in which Paxton begs to his torturer in English, before switching to German, obviously unnerving the would be killer to the tune of a rather melodic piano track. It's actually really moving and you think it's worked as the torturer leaves the room, only to return with a gag to shut Paxton up. Juxtaposing the serious with the comic is something that works well in this kind of films. It allows a short break before commencing the horror.

Torture Porn is a negative term at the moment. However I actually see it as a positive thing. I am not particularly fond of gory films, I mute them, close my eyes and change channels when explicit gore is shown, but there is something in them that compels me to watch on, especially as the victim is usually outnumbered or placed in such a situation as to make it unfair. While there aren’t too many survivors in these kinds of films it is the eventual ‘winner’ that evokes emotions of pleasure in as much as we are happy that someone has had the courage and willpower to survive, regardless of the fact that it is an unwritten law in horror films that the re-establishment of status quo is practically forbidden.

One criticism that is aimed at this new genre of film is that is increasingly misogynistic. Do I believe this? No, unless you count seeing lots of naked girls misogynistic, which I don't. If there had been a rape scene then yes it would be, but the woman are in a sense more powerful than the men (espedcially in Hostel and Saw), effectively showing them to be quite manipulative and damn good villains! Surely the fact that women are involved in the films show that not everyone thinks this way.

While it may get to a point that that the continuing realism of such films becomes too much for the viewer to bear I will continue to watch through my hands and enjoy the rush of excitement that sweeps over me when a particularly villainous baddie is killed or maimed by the heroic underdog. Bring on the Torture Porn!