I watched I Spit on Your Grave on Joe Bob's Savage Summer - Here's why it rocked
- Carla Davis
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
I love Joe Bob Briggs. I’ve been a fan since I first read his Joe Bob Goes to the Drive-In column in the newspaper, and I used to watch Joe Bob’s Drive-In Theater on television. I had pretty much forgotten about him though, until I heard that he had been picked up by Shudder for a 24-hour marathon.
That was one of the reasons I first subscribed to Shudder. During my free 7-day trial, I watched several of the marathon features, Revenge, and Mayhem…and that got me hooked. That was in 2018, and I am still a subscriber.
I was not a happy camper when I found out Shudder had made the decision to cancel The Last Drive-In, but I looked forward to the remaining specials, and I happily tuned in to Joe Bob’s Savage Summer. I was a bit apprehensive when I heard he would be featuring the uncensored version of the notorious I Spit on Your Grave, but I had felt the same way about watching Cannibal Holocaust when it aired on The Last Drive-In.
Both films are known for featuring disturbing content (Roger Ebert absolutely hated it), and that should give anyone pause, especially if they are sensitive to such things. But I felt like TLDI was the perfect first watch experience for Cannibal Holocaust, and I just didn’t watch the animal scenes.
I Spit on Your Grave was a much better film than I expected. Yes, the extended sexual assault scenes were rough, but no more so than 1972’s The Last House on the Left, which I saw several years ago. And really, when SA is the basis for a film, those scenes SHOULD feel really uncomfortable. They should put you in the shoes of the victim.
The director’s choice to not have a film score was a good one, because it left me feeling unsettled. Camille Keaton gave a very strong performance as poor Jennifer Hills. She was ethereally beautiful, almost angelic looking, and her ability to portray Jennifer’s pain and trauma was spot-on.
The four actors playing her attackers were very good too – so good, that it was shocking to hear Joe Bob say that none of them was ever in another film after I Spit on Your Grave. While it was very cringy to watch the bathtub scene, it was also satisfying to see Jennifer get her well-deserved revenge.
Is it better to watch I Spit on Your Grave on Joe Bob Briggs's Savage Summer special?
I have to say, watching a film like this on TLDI is the perfect way to see it. When things on the screen start to get too heavy or hard-core, it’s nice to take a little break to listen to Joe Bob give fascinating trivia facts or go on one of his rampages. I loved that Camille Keaton was actually a guest, and it’s always a treat to see “mangled dick expert” Felissa Rose visit the show.
If you are a horror fan who has never seen I Spit on Your Grave, I urge you to watch it on Joe Bob’s Savage Summer – whether you choose to view the censored or uncensored version, the Joe Bob treatment makes it easier to stomach.
Then do yourself a favor and catch as many of the The Last Drive-In episodes as you can while they are still available on Shudder. They tend to come and go based on licensing rights, so the roster changes often.
This fan will really, really miss Joe Bob and Darcy after they finish their Christmas special this year, but I am thankful for the memories and good times over the past years.