Feb. 16, 2015
Samantha Morley
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2.5/5 BLINDFOLDS
It’s been awhile since a major movie so raunchy and erotic has come out that it makes experienced adults squirm in their seats.
“Fifty Shades of Grey” debuted on Feb. 12 and is a movie that should not be seen without being prepared for some very saucy scenes.
Based on E.L. James’ book of the same name, the movie follows English literature college student Anastasia Steele (Dakota Johnson) and billionaire Christian Grey (Jamie Dornan).
For the most part, Christian is trying to seduce – perhaps coerce? – Ana into his erotic world of chains, whips, ropes and suspension mechanisms. Ana is skeptical to give into his charms but finds herself falling in love with the handsome bachelor quite effortlessly.
The film mostly consists of setting up the background of the characters and the ways that Christian tries to impress Ana. He tracks her down at the store she works at; he finds which bar she’s in while out getting drunk with friends; he whisks her away in his own private helicopter; and he even buys her an expensive car.
All of these efforts enchant Ana into falling in love with Christian.
The storyline doesn’t just border on cliché; it falls deep into the pit of cheesy lines and expected outcomes.
On the upside, the actors were cast extremely well. Johnson plays the perfect innocent-looking girl with the brown hair, pretty blue eyes and puffy lips that she can’t help but nibble on.
Dornan plays a great twisted yet charming rich man who loves to have his way with women. Both actors play their roles very well, especially considering all the nude and sex scenes.
A movie like this is expected to have saucy scenes all over the place. The film put an extremely heavy emphasis on the sexual interactions between Ana and Christian. It can almost be considered soft-core pornography considering how much skin and physical interaction is shown on screen.
Aside from the steamy bedroom scenes, the overall plot is weak and doesn’t have much merit. Without the sex, the movie is simply another chick-flick about a guy so desperate to be with a girl, yet the girl is reluctant to give into his charms (even though she eventually does).
The movie doesn’t leave much in terms of surprise. Any frequent moviegoer can see where the story is headed. The biggest appeal of the film was seeing just how far the director could go before the movie became rated X instead of R.