9 1/2 weeks

So I've wanted to see 9 1/2 Weeks for quite some time now. I've read/heard a lot about it, how erotic it is, etc. Blindfolds, icecubes, subtle power play. Sounded good to me. Last night while I was babysitting over at Adam's house, I saw that it was about to come on sattelite, so I decided to watch it.

Well, I was a little put off at first, by the fact that John met Liz by buying her an expensive gift at a street market. But I was willing to let it go because it was something she had been admiring, and wanted, but couldn't afford. He didn't buy it because it was expensive and flashy, but because she wanted it so badly.

I was further put off when John had the ferris wheel operator stop the ride with Liz at the top, when Liz was obviously afraid to be up there. I think I understand what the movie was going for here, but I guess I'm just a stick in the mud. I sure as hell wouldn't let someone come near me if they did something like that, much less let them blindfold me.

The first "erotic" scene actually was pretty erotic, to me anyway. Out of the blue, John asks Liz to talk off her dress, then blindfolds her and traces her body with an ice cube. It's not like I haven't seen that before (or had it done) but it was interesting in the context of the movie.

The next erotic scene was anything BUT erotic. It had potential, but then again, maybe that's really not what they were going for. Liz and John sit in front of the refridgerator and she closes her eyes, while he feeds her everything from cherries and jello to huge globs of honey. Before it's all over, he's covered her from head to toe with all kinds of gooey, sticky crap. Pouring honey on and licking it off would have been nice, but this ended up looking more like the aftermath of one of the food fights we used to have in high school. And to top it all off, he feeds her a jalapeno pepper, which she gags and tries to spit out, as he stuffs more into her mouth. And yet she still doesn't seem to think there is anything wrong with all this. She still sticks around. It was all a little too reminiscent of Ayn Rand for my taste.

Even after this, however, I was willing to keep watching out of interest. I wasn't holding out any hope that this would be something to spark masturbation fantasies, but I was curious enough to see what would happen.

So, I watched as John talked Liz into keeping all her nights open for him, and him alone. I watched as he gave her the pseudo creepy stares from accross the room. I watched as Kim Basinger did a surprisingly good job at making Liz look torn... To do it, or not to do it?

Then, when Liz is left alone at John's house, she snoops a bit... Looking in his closet at his perfectly arranged, boring business suits. She opens his drawers and finds a picture of him and some woman. His passport. That's about it. She doesn't go through his financial information, or read his diary. Somehow John knows that she has done this, and calls to confront her. She reluctantly admits to it, and John comes storming home. I missed a minute or two here for some reason, but I believe he told her to leave. She becomes enraged, all things considered, I can understand why, and screams "Who the fuck do you think you are?"

To which he responds by throwing her down onto a table and raping her. I don't use that term loosely. I understand the dynamics that go into a mock rape or bondage type of situation. I've been in those situations. But there is a mutual understanding that must be reached first. Adam was quick to point out that you never hear the word "No" but shit... she was running from him and struggling to get away. But of course, she ends up enjoying it in the end. Did Ayn Rand write this movie? Anyone? Goddamn.

At this point, I turned the movie off. I just wasn't in the mood to process this sort of thing. I went into the movie with too many expectations, for one thing. There are plenty of things about the movie that may have been explained later. Maybe it was ALL a mindfuck type movie, and all of these things were planned between the characters beforehand, to be revealed to the viewer later.

Maybe I was just pissed off that it didn't live up to my expectations. I could have gotten into the bdsm aspect if it had been obvious to the viewer that it was a mutual thing. I'm sure there are others who wouldn't share my opinion. Maybe it's hotter for some people if these things aren't explicitly laid out, but are negotiated at more more subconcious and subtle level. But these people hardly knew each other, and had no basis for these subtle interchanges. I really make no secret of the fact that I am very into bondage and to a certain degree, other aspects of bdsm. And to me, the biggest part of the eroticism is trust and consent. If someone were to spy on Adam and I while he ties me up, it might not be obvious what exactly will happen, what has been negotiated and what hasn't, but I think it would be obvious that there is, in actuality, no force going on.

Unless there is something HUGE about this movie that I don't know about, because of not watching the entire thing, I must say, I am very disturbed that so many people think that it is so erotic.

If anyone has seen this movie, I would be curious to hear your thoughts. Email me or leave a message on my guestbook, please.

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