The new bestselling film of the first book of the trilogy “Fifty Shades of Grey” stars the daughter of Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, Dakota Johnson as Anastasia Steele, and she is partnered by the respectfully hunky Jamie Dornan playing Christian Grey. Jamie is actually an Irish born actor who is married with one child, but lets get to the meat of the story. Seeing the book – in the flesh – of the film, actually makes the story a little more credible. Ana is a virgin – OK maybe she’s hugged and kissed one or two guys before but when she meets Christian she is innocent and soon falls crazily in love with the dominant billionaire. This is a relatively low-budget film relying heavily on interaction between the two stars which of course involves the Red Room of Pain and some written guidelines of how the submissive must agree to rules therein. Fisting in both front and back passages are not agreed to by Ana, who seems to have become quite savvy after innocently being de-virginised by Christian in a thoroughly old- fashioned way. I do believe that some members of the audience would not understand what the idea of fisting implied, but it is really rather revolting. Dakota has had to bare all – or almost all, to star in this film, and Jamie’s all-invading eyes feature strongly in the story, even making me wonder if he had lenses to make them seem more pervasive and dominant. Ana’s panties constantly pulled down in a number of scenes almost becomes repetitive and boring.
Poor Ana is portrayed as having a number of problems with her lover – most of all that she wants to caress her new lover which he denies her at all times, as well as him denying them the fun of sharing and sleeping in the same bed. She cries a lot which is totally natural for a woman in love who is trying to find a way to go forward with a strange but passionate man who claims he has been introduced to sadomasochism and bondage by a “Mrs Robinson” lover from the tender age of fifteen.
Having read the books I do know the outcome of the story but I worry how innocent young women will strive to make sense of this story. Clearly there is a big market for this new twist on a love affair and whether people find it amusing or take it all very seriously is up to them. Even young women can make their own opinions on what they find erotic or downright revolting. There has been a huge upturn in sales for products relating to sadomasochism and bondage which was always popular but with a much smaller margin of consumers. The huge whip with a lot more than nine tails, the riding crop, the hefty handcuffs, together with the blushing face of Ana combining erotic expectations, deep love and wrecked innocence will haunt you – but that is what Sam Taylor-Johnson – intends with her producing/directing skills. The sudden end to the story where the couple part as Ana descends in the lift from Christian’s appartment leaves us expectant and broken. Dakota has taken on a hefty task for a young actress to fulfill this part and her blushing innocence is highly convincing. No doubt the sequel will be there for us to see soon. Meanwhile it is interesting to try to imagine through this fictitious saga what the characters were going through emotionally to reach the point that they did, both in real life and and in the fantasy story.
Penny Nair Price