Watching the film Saving Face, made me gain a new-found appreciation for the life I have. It is almost impossible to believe that on the same planet we live on, there are acid attacks going on. As Americans, most of us live a very sheltered life and are unaware of the tragedy that occurs in other parts of the world. The women who suffer the attacks are victims of a sexist and unequal society. Their husbands were throwing acid on them, most likely as a punishment for their disobedience toward a male authority. It is truly astounding in their society that if you disobey or disagree with your husband acid could be thrown on you, and people turn a blind eye. I was in disbelief watching this film that justice was not immediately won. Women in that society are not treated as people, but rather possessions of the male gender. I was shocked when they were interviewing the one woman's husband who threw acid on her, and was now on trial. He looked straight into the camera and claimed it was not him who did it, and he saw another man throw acid on his wife. In reality he threw acid on her for trying to file a divorce against him. He looks into the camera and lies because he feels no remorse, and doubts that he will be charged. It was a relief to say the least when the outcome was a new law giving anyone who commits this crime life sentences, and thankfully this man was the first to receive it. Seeing all the women's faces disfigured by acid was a heart-breaking wake up call for all of the evil that happens outside our free nation.



I was not in the class yet when we watched The House Is Black. However, this movie is also comparable in some ways to Turtles Can Fly. That film illustrates how murder, war, and rape happen so often that the people in Turkey and Iraq are immune to the tragedy. I never knew much about what goes on in countries other than the United States. Watching these films about foreign nations has opened my eyes to the sensored bubble we live in. In these nations where rape and acid epidemics are prevalent, women have no voice. They are victims in male-dominated nations, and continue to suffer. What does that really say? In both of these films, there were cases of women who would rather take their own lives then live the ones that God has given them.