50 Shades of Grey (2015)
Certified: 18
Duration: 125 minutes
Directed by: Sam Taylor-Johnson
Starring: Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Eloise Mumford, Luke Grimes, Rita Ora, Victor Rasuk, Max Martini, Dylan Neal, Callum Keith Rennie, Jennifer Ehle, Marcia Gay Harden, Aaron Taylor-Johnson
KRS Releasing Ltd
Three years ago, Fifty Shades of Grey was literally swept off bookshelves and you would see everyone reading it everywhere, on buses, at the beach...
Skimming through the book, I found the writing to be a tad overdone and at times awkward. Unlike my better half, I could not feel there was anything really new, but realised that the steamy erotic story was aimed first and foremost at women and not men.
This was surely not the first novel of its kind but E. L. James made it acceptable and sent out the message that it’s ok to experiment, to fantasise and to develop one’s sexuality.
Now along comes the highly-touted movie and, unlike the book, this one piqued my interest. I was curious to see how the production would circumvent certain scenes, how sadism and masochism will be presented on screen and, even more than that, to see to whom this movie adaptation will appeal to.
Despite all the naysayers, the film succeeds in rising above its source and yet remains true to it. It is a polished film, one that is self-aware of its audience and is willing to cater to them. Like the book, it entices the audience by not giving them a full-blown meal but rather seducing them in very much the manner as Mr Grey’s modus operandi.
The film succeeds in rising above its source and yet remains true to it
Director Sam Taylor-Johnson has managed to deliver the spirit of the mediocre novel, instead of worrying about being too loyal in approach and adaptation. The film’s major bonus is Dakota Johnson, who as Anastasia Steele is a revelation and gives the picture its emotional and physical core.
Anastasia is an English literature student in Washington writing for her school newspaper. The article she has to write is about Christian Grey (Jamie Dornan), a billionaire and total control freak who is only 27 years old.
Jamie Dornan lures Dakota Johnson into his sexual fantasy world in Fifty Shades of Grey.When she finally gets to meet him she obviously enough wilts under his attention.
After the interview the two meet again and, by hook or by crook, she ends up in his apartment. Mr Grey flaunts all his wealth and charisma and she is soon introduced to his kinky desires: he indulges in bondage and has a veritable array of paraphernalia to bring her further under his influence.
For Anastasia, who has sexually lived quite a sheltered life, Christian is an eye-opening experience.
While he is the one exercising control, by the end, however, as the film proceeds, one starts to wonder who exactly is in control.
Taylor-Johnson has made a wise decision in casting two new faces in the main roles, so that the two actors come without prior conceptions and screen baggage. Dornan is fitting as Grey, however the camera is simply in love with Johnson, the daughter of Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson. The film is also beautifully shot and the expected spicy scenes are given more oomph than the usual Hollywood production. Through all this, the film keeps a tasteful approach and one can feel the director’s tight control.
Taylor-Johnson and the source novel have brought a niche product to the masses with the difference being that the film version is more mature in its approach. It manages to be a mix of soft core elements, expected slow-motion presentation with an ever-increasing element of darkness mixed with seductiveness. To its benefit, the musical orchestration is by Danny Elfman, whose compositions include the 1989 Batman soundtrack and the Desperate Housewives theme besides collaborations with director Tim Burton.
The end result may be described as a merging of Nine and a Half Weeks and Pretty Woman – it is a romantic film that titillates and seduces. In a world where porn is simply everywhere, Fifty Shades of Grey is a different and classy affair.