There are absolutely no laws on the books anywhere that prohibit protraying rape on film... either in the mainstream or in pornography. Yet the industry has largely repudiated rape scenes to avoid the dreaded obscenity charges that have been lobbed at Porn Valley like RPGs since the Meese Commission. A mainstream movie like The Accused can contain a graphic and disturbing rape scene, and actually receive praise for its gritty realism. And no one would think of labeling it "obscenity" because, regardless of the content, the scene clearly wasn't conceived in an attempt to arouse the viewer. The same goes for movies like Irreversible or Prince of Tides... which goes so far as to protray children getting raped. As is always the case, it isn't content that worries the govt. or deluded social progressives... it's intent . As with the case of child modeling sites , this is yet another example of the state attempting to punish "bad thoughts". You're allowed to show a woman getting brutally raped... just don't enjoy it too much! But how does one draw the line between "good rape scenes" and bad ones? Years ago I worked in a small local video store that specialized in foreign and indie films. It was a favorite of the local college kids and pretentious hipsters. One of the films we carried was a low-budget French indie called "Baise-Moi" that featured graphic rape scenes ( including penetration shots ), and actually starred a couple of c-list French pornstars ( Raffaëla Anderson and Karen Lancaume ). What made this movie "art" and not simply high-brow porn? And for that matter, why isn't porn art? [ But that's a whole other thread. ]
The point is many, if not most people, have rape fantasies... and for 99% of those people, fantasy is all it is. They can make a distinction between simulating acts of degradation and violence for the purposes of arousal... and actually hurting someone. So saying this sort of content should be censored based on the actions of a few fucked-up social defectives, is like banning alcohol 'cuz a few dozen frat kids drink themselves to death every year. And regulation is one of the reasons young, impressionable kids shouldn't be watching porn in the first place ( Although imho, viewing acts of hardcore sex isn't nearly as obscene as the free-for-all violence that most kids are allowed to watch ).
I'd love to see more camera-wielding perverts step up and tackle hardcore content without fear of reprisal. But the hard, cold realities of the business end of things will scare producers and directors away from anything that even smells of non-consentual sex until the American public is grown-up enough to elect an administration that will treat them like grown-ups. Oh well... I still have my copy of Taxi Girls!