marieToo
Posts: 3595
Joined: 5/21/2006 From: Jersey Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Mercnbeth 'The Secretary', 'The Story of O', and most recently 'The Pet'; movies announced as providing incite and breaking barriers regarding BDSM. They all failed. The failed for many reasons. Prime among them is capitalism; they were meant to produce money so they needed to be 'sensational' and 'titillating' much more then they needed to be reality. No one works for free. Even documentary type movies are produced in order to make money, no? Why would or should a 'bdsm' flick be any different? Should someone be making bdsm movies as a public service to mankind? Whats wrong with titalliating? This is afterall, entertainment we're talking about, no? quote:
They were directed and represented by 'stars' who had no reference point to draw, or if they did, wanted to keep it secret. As a result the characters were caricatures. But thats what acting is. And when it's done well, actors can and do create wonderful representations of certain realities, that can either touch someone or not. quote:
Their personalities and personal psychology was dysfunctional represented by such things as OCD or a 'cutting'. The submissives are always shown as weak, needed the strong, rich, caring character to 'complete' them. Does this really relate to anyone's reality? It does relate to some peoples' reality, Merc. Vanilla, bdsm or anything in between, people of all orientations have 'issues' or 'dysfuntions' of some sort. In fact, off the top of my head, I cant think of any drama (movie, TV or otherwise) that the main characters dont have some type of hang-up, problem, issue, or dysfunction of some sort. Why would bdsm movies be represented any differently? Are you suggesting that those who live bdsm lifestyles are somehow less apt to have dysfunctions than say....'vanilla' people? quote:
The one minor exception was '9 1/2 Weeks'. Mickey Rourke gave the appearance of really knowing how to use a crop, and his sarcastic sadistic dialog and tone gave the impression of being 'real'. However, there was only just so far the director was willing to go. And of course, the submissive had 'issues' with being a successful woman who couldn't maintain a relationship and the Dom was 'dark' and 'rich' who had 25 suits of the same color and style hanging perfectly in his closet; so we still had the basic formula. They should have put more of the book into the movie. Again, I would view this as entertainment rather than a representation of anything other than a plot for dramatic movie. Frankly, I found 9 1/2 weeks to be one of the most boring films I've ever seen. The only thing that saved it, was viewing close-up shots of Basingers face every 20 seconds. As far as the Secretary, I think most people's disappointment lies in the fact that there wasn't a whole lot of sexual/physical scenes. I didnt even really view that film as being much of a bdsm flick. I saw two very vulnerable people who had finally found someone else to accept them exactly as they are. Two 'newbies' who yin and yan to each other's 'freak', quite naturally with no questions asked, no reason to discuss, dissect or find logical reasons for it. If I remember correctly, the guy at one point tried running from it, but the girl stayed there and waited for him; commited to acceptance of herself and to him; and finding freedom and empowerment in that acceptance. The fact that their particular 'freak' had D and S overtones, seemed secondary to the the underlying message (the way I interpreted it, anyway) Of course the characters had dysfunctions; everyone does. to portray bdsmers as being more psychologically fit than anyone else, would be a gross misrepresentation. I just dont think there is any accurate way to represent bdsm relationships any more than there is an accurate way to represent non-bdsm relationships; all are varied and unique unto those involved, and I would go even further than that and say theres a little Ds and a little "vanilla" in all relationships anyway. Whether or not its recognized or admitted to is a whole other story.
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marie. I give good agita.
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