This is an independent thought-provoking French film with a great philosophical depth and very explicit sexual scenes, the ones that have got the attention of those morons who will forget everything when they see nakedness and hear the word genitalia.
The sexual act is not the object of the movie, but the analysis of female desire and sexuality. In fact, this movie is a philosophical reflection on why female sexuality is culturally and gender repressed, and justified only when benefit men, never as a natural expression of women's nature. The movie reflects on the nature of woman desire. Is it the same as man desire? Do women have the same sexual needs? Do they express their desire the same as men do? Does a woman really need sex in a relationship for the romance to work? What is it romance?
The elements that director Catherine Breillat uses to explore what female desire and how it works are:
1/ The main role, Marie, is a very sweet looking girl with barely sensual physical features. No big lips, angular face features, curves or full breasts. Actually, Mary is almost childish, very innocent and virginal looking. However, she has a very strong sex drive. Marie is not a sexual object, but the subject from whom desire emanates, a sexual being without shame, in control of her sexuality, driven by her own volition and decision, not to satisfy the man, but to satisfy herself.
2/ The man is denying sex to his partner, and not the opposite. This is both a metaphorical representation of the domineering male sexuality -in movies and in society- that always wants to control and objectify female sexuality. However, it is a wonderful point of start to see how a normal woman, as any man, would find this disturbing and painful to put up with. By not having sex, Marie craves touching and being touched, opening the door to her desire and being desired, share her desire with the man she loves -- Physical and emotional touch.
3/ Marie is not ashamed of her sexuality, and the paths of sexual exploration that she follows, although sometimes confronting, show that sex, per se, is not what she is looking for. However, she needs the sex, even in raw form, as any man would.
4/ This movie shows that sex is necessary in a relationship to build a relationship, beyond the emotions you put into it. Otherwise is bound to fail. This is specially daring, as most movies will show and put on a pedestal abstract and non-real romance and love, and show that daring women end badly, and that satisfying men's urges is natural, but satisfying your own is unnatural.
Marie is wonderfully played by Caroline Ducey, who is able to portray innocence and passion with great easiness and in a very convincing way. Also great is Sagamore Stéenin as Marie's macho jerk boyfriend, and François Berleand as the middle-aged unattractive man who initiates Marie in bondage. I especially liked how the character of Marie changed her clothing while she was changing, from virginal white minimalistic dresses to very sensual red feminine ones, and the inner strength she got by exploring her sexuality.
The dialogs are brilliant, especially Marie's monologues and thoughts, and serve to show, from a philosophical point of view, that culture, morals, and gender division have reduced female desire to what men want it to be. There is a mix of candor and heat percolating all of the dialogs, and a lot of depth.
The sexual exploration of the character is sometimes very harsh to watch, mostly because they are paired to a a great emotional distress (loneliness, self-hatred, despair, and shame). At the same time, by confronting all of that, Marie is facing her own demons and putting her shame aside.
The sex scenes are not that scandalous. In fact, most of what looks like real sex is actually simulated fake sex. What is real is the bunch of erected penises there, who were due, because we women are sick of seeing fully naked women shown all around in movies while men barely show their pecs and, in the best case, their buttocks. Beyond this, most of the shocking scenes are intended to make you think, not to make your horny. Three scenes deserve a special mention: 1/ the gynecological examination of Marie by the Medicine students. To me the most invading shocking scene, despite being part of the life of any woman. 2/ Marie's sexual fantasy in a brothel. 3/ The scene of a real birth, of the head of a baby coming out a woman's vagina.
The movie is so daring, so no-mainstream, so thoughtful and sensitive in the exploration of the female Eros, that I was really disappointed with the end. I was really annoyed. To define womanhood and woman's strength by maternity is so traditional and conventional that really ruins the great job done in the rest of the movie. It is like a slap on the face. If you want to be daring do so to the very end, all the way along.
This is a great movie, not always easy to watch, and not for everybody. However, it has so many good things that I wonder what where the critics watching and if they had heir brains switched off when doing so.
The sexual act is not the object of the movie, but the analysis of female desire and sexuality. In fact, this movie is a philosophical reflection on why female sexuality is culturally and gender repressed, and justified only when benefit men, never as a natural expression of women's nature. The movie reflects on the nature of woman desire. Is it the same as man desire? Do women have the same sexual needs? Do they express their desire the same as men do? Does a woman really need sex in a relationship for the romance to work? What is it romance?
The elements that director Catherine Breillat uses to explore what female desire and how it works are:
1/ The main role, Marie, is a very sweet looking girl with barely sensual physical features. No big lips, angular face features, curves or full breasts. Actually, Mary is almost childish, very innocent and virginal looking. However, she has a very strong sex drive. Marie is not a sexual object, but the subject from whom desire emanates, a sexual being without shame, in control of her sexuality, driven by her own volition and decision, not to satisfy the man, but to satisfy herself.
2/ The man is denying sex to his partner, and not the opposite. This is both a metaphorical representation of the domineering male sexuality -in movies and in society- that always wants to control and objectify female sexuality. However, it is a wonderful point of start to see how a normal woman, as any man, would find this disturbing and painful to put up with. By not having sex, Marie craves touching and being touched, opening the door to her desire and being desired, share her desire with the man she loves -- Physical and emotional touch.
3/ Marie is not ashamed of her sexuality, and the paths of sexual exploration that she follows, although sometimes confronting, show that sex, per se, is not what she is looking for. However, she needs the sex, even in raw form, as any man would.
4/ This movie shows that sex is necessary in a relationship to build a relationship, beyond the emotions you put into it. Otherwise is bound to fail. This is specially daring, as most movies will show and put on a pedestal abstract and non-real romance and love, and show that daring women end badly, and that satisfying men's urges is natural, but satisfying your own is unnatural.
Marie is wonderfully played by Caroline Ducey, who is able to portray innocence and passion with great easiness and in a very convincing way. Also great is Sagamore Stéenin as Marie's macho jerk boyfriend, and François Berleand as the middle-aged unattractive man who initiates Marie in bondage. I especially liked how the character of Marie changed her clothing while she was changing, from virginal white minimalistic dresses to very sensual red feminine ones, and the inner strength she got by exploring her sexuality.
The dialogs are brilliant, especially Marie's monologues and thoughts, and serve to show, from a philosophical point of view, that culture, morals, and gender division have reduced female desire to what men want it to be. There is a mix of candor and heat percolating all of the dialogs, and a lot of depth.
The sexual exploration of the character is sometimes very harsh to watch, mostly because they are paired to a a great emotional distress (loneliness, self-hatred, despair, and shame). At the same time, by confronting all of that, Marie is facing her own demons and putting her shame aside.
The sex scenes are not that scandalous. In fact, most of what looks like real sex is actually simulated fake sex. What is real is the bunch of erected penises there, who were due, because we women are sick of seeing fully naked women shown all around in movies while men barely show their pecs and, in the best case, their buttocks. Beyond this, most of the shocking scenes are intended to make you think, not to make your horny. Three scenes deserve a special mention: 1/ the gynecological examination of Marie by the Medicine students. To me the most invading shocking scene, despite being part of the life of any woman. 2/ Marie's sexual fantasy in a brothel. 3/ The scene of a real birth, of the head of a baby coming out a woman's vagina.
The movie is so daring, so no-mainstream, so thoughtful and sensitive in the exploration of the female Eros, that I was really disappointed with the end. I was really annoyed. To define womanhood and woman's strength by maternity is so traditional and conventional that really ruins the great job done in the rest of the movie. It is like a slap on the face. If you want to be daring do so to the very end, all the way along.
This is a great movie, not always easy to watch, and not for everybody. However, it has so many good things that I wonder what where the critics watching and if they had heir brains switched off when doing so.