Category Archives: Sex Scenes

1996, Abduction, British, Detective, Mental Illness, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Stalker, Suspense, Unusual

The Cold Light Of Day (1996)

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From NetFlix:

A troubled former cop uses an innocent young woman as the unsuspecting bait in his plan to catch a serial killer. A well-crafted thriller featuring gripping performances from a talented cast.

Once again I stumbled onto this off-beat serial killer film offered under NetFlix streaming. While not as professionally smooth as mainstream films, the plot, details, and acting is not bad (or should I say, has the feeling of an indie film).

Filmed in the Czech Republic, the actors speak with British accents. Subtitles are available. (By the way, that is currently one advantage of NetFlix streaming over Amazon – only NetFlix offers subtitles.) None of the actors are familiar to me. Anna, the child character, is acted very well by a child actress. Also the serial killer (whom we see throughout the film) is really creepy.

My only complaint is that a bad policeman who bullies innocents into confessions never gets his comeuppance.

Not at all a complete waste, just different from the usual styles.

1996, British, Explicit sexual discussion, Love Story, Motorcycles, Nudity, Sex Scenes, Transexual Theme, Unusual, Wonderful acting

Different for Girls (1996)

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From NetFlix:

Karl Foyle (Steven Mackintosh) and Paul Prentice (Rupert Graves) were boyhood friends back in the 1970s, but when they run into each other in present-day London, they learn that a lot has changed. For starters, Karl has become Kim and has no desire to go back to her past. As for Paul, he’s just an aging punk with no future. The two rekindle their friendship and are surprised to find their relationship becoming much deeper than they expected.

NetFlix Watch Instantly almost never offers mainstream films but instead has a catalog of rejects, failures, second rates, and an occasional find. If you look up Rupert Graves in IMDB you will find his appearance in 75 productions. For example, he was DI Lestrade in the Sherlock Holmes TV series. Now try to find a film with Rupert Graves in NetFlix Watch Instantly. Voila! Now you are a kid in a candy store. Just for the fun of it choose “Different for Girls”. Talk about different!

Probably you have never seen a film as unusual as this well-done British gem. For those of you with delicate sensitivities, beware. Not only is this an eventual love story between a straight man and a male-to-female transsexual, but there are anatomical discussions and instances of explicit nudity and intercourse. Having been warned you should now ignore the warning because this film is a non-prurient story of an admittedly unusual relationship.

As I watched the performance of the transsexual character Kim, I sensed a slight bit of masculinity, but SHE was a beautiful and very feminine young woman. In IMDB I could not find the woman playing Kim until it hit me. SHE is played to perfection by Steven Mackintosh whose own resume listed 94 entries. Steven Mackintosh was Winston in Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998).

During filming Rupert Graves was 33 and Steven Macintosh was 29.

If you are in the mood “and now for something completely different” (quoting from Monty Python), go no further.

2011, Based on a Book, Basically Sad, British, Imperfect, Love Story, Mediocre, Melodrama, Not Feel Good, Orchestral Music, Quiet, Sex Scenes

The Deep Blue Sea (2011)

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From NetFlix:

This remake of the original 1955 film, adapted from a Terence Rattigan play, stars Rachel Weisz as a wedded woman who falls hard for a younger man. Her determination and emotional obsession lead her into tragic conflict with the morals of the day.

Up to a certain point good acting made the story interesting enough to watch. But in a pub scene disappointment set in. Have you ever seen an amateur production in which the actors are unable to deliver a strong emotion without recourse to yelling? At this point my opinion of Rachel Weisz as an actor fell quite a few notches.

Both Simon Russell Beale as the affectionate but dull husband and Barbara Jefford as his insufferable, snobbish, and cruel mother did a wonderful job.

Tom Hiddleston, the lover, you may recall as Loki in “The Avengers” or as Capt. James Nicholls in War Horse (2011).

At least we had the sobbing violins to tell us when something sad was happening.

Try some other film.

2011, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crude Talk, Drama, Gloomy, Mayhem, Medical Theme, Psychological Drama, Sex Scenes, Unusual, Violent

Perfect Sense (2011)

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From NetFlix:

After sparks fly between a newly single epidemiologist and a charming chef, a puzzling patient — a truck driver who’s lost his ability to smell — drastically alters the couple’s budding relationship in this sci-fi thriller.

To call this science fiction is entirely misleading. Basically it is a meditation on the importance of our senses and a “what if” assuming we lose those senses one by one.

Humanity without exception experiences an epidemic in which each person goes through a series of sense loses and negative emotions. Central to this story is the experience of a woman epdemiologist Eva Green and a chef Ewan McGregor as they go through these stages. Our hope is that they can withstand all these personal disasters and still succeed as a loving pair. I cannot give away the ending, but getting to that end could be somewhat harrowing.

Not for everyone, but a very original film.

2012, Acceptable Trash, B-movie, Car Chase, Crude Talk, Explicit sexual discussion, Gangs, Mediocre, Optimistic, Sex Scenes, Violent

This Means War (2012)

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From NetFlix:

Each determined to win the heart of a sexy blonde bombshell, two best friends and CIA spies turn their secret-agent skills against each other, heedless of the ever-widening trail of wreckage and collateral damage they leave in their wake.

“Acceptable Chick Flick Trash” fairly well summarizes this B-film. As you might expect you will encounter crude language, much talk about penises, flirting, sex scenes, etc. What you might not expect are all the CIA action sequences with lots of shooting. Except for the final action sequence that actually involves Reese Witherspoon, the other action sequences seem almost pointless.

Chris Pine you know as Will from “Unstoppable”. Tom Hardy is more of a newcomer to film. He was one of the fighting brothers in “Warrior”.

Having prepared you for the worst, you are now free to sit back and just enjoy the trash.

I LOVE TRASH!

2011, Based on true facts, German, Grim, Jewish Culture, Nudity, Polish, Sex Scenes, True Story, Violent, War

In Darknes (2011)

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From NetFlix:

As Nazis overrun Warsaw, many of the city’s Jews hide out in sewers, where they encounter Leopold, an anti-Semitic sanitation worker. His prejudice reflects the rift between Poland’s Jews and Catholics in this film inspired by true events.

This true story of a Polish Christian man who protected a group of Polish Jews hiding in the sewers to escape the German massacre of Polish Jews is not easy to watch. Be sure to read the final explanatory screen shots which tell what happened in real life to the characters in the film.

Sometimes the day to day details of grubby survival seemed a bit tedious. But the intent is to show that under stress we can accommodate and life goes on.

Also evident was the extreme prejudice of Polish Catholics towards Jews. At several times a Catholic Pole is surprised to learn that Jesus was a Jew.

At one harrowing point in the film, just above a group of Jews in the sewer is a Catholic church in which children are receiving their first holy communion. At that point a heavy rain starts such that the sewers begin to fill and threaten the Jews with drowning.

To encourage you to watch a somewhat grim film, I promise you a happy ending for the Jews in hiding (thanks to the Germans evacuating to escape the Russians).

2011, Could Be Hard To Watch, Dark, Disturbing Image, Grim, Horror, Mental Illness, Occasional gore, Sex Scenes, Violent

We Need To Talk About Kevin (2011)

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From NetFlix:

Eva’s relationship with her son, Kevin, has been difficult from the beginning. When the 15-year-old boy’s cruel streak erupts into violence, Eva wonders how much blame she deserves for his actions.

If your child delights in killing small animals and blinding his sister in one eye, you might think of taking drastic measures. Why these two parental idiots did not report their budding psychopath to the proper authorities is beyond me. In fact, I don’t know what they could have done. Can you say to some helpful member of law enforcement “Our son is a dangerous sociopath, could you suggest something ?”

Tilda Swinton stretches believability. She suffers almost in silence the outrageous behavior of her son Crazy Kevin for all of his 16 years. John C. Reilly plays a doting father who somehow never sees the psychosis in darling Kevin. Get real!

Motivation for this film was probably the fact that there are indeed disturbed (am I being too harsh ?) teenagers that enjoy shooting as many of their classmates as they can manage in one exhilarating afternoon. What in fact was going on in those families ?

Hats off to Ezra Miller who plays the monster as a teenager. It doesn’t get any creepier.

But then, don’t you have something better to do with your time?

2007, Psychological Drama, Redemption, Revenge, Sex Scenes, Suspense

First Snow (2007)

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From NetFlix:

A roadside psychic shares two predictions with overconfident salesman Jimmy Starks, and one of them — that he’ll be hit with a major windfall — seems to be coming true. Now, Jimmy must prepare for the other, more ominous part of the prophecy.

When I think of Guy Pearce I think of extreme tension, psychic stress, and physical torment. Indeed this taut film is no exception. You probably remember him as the tortured lead in “Momento”. He is no less tortured in “First Snow” which joins the long list of forgotten but worthwhile films.

J.K. Simmons plays the fortune teller. His film credentials are ample and recognizable. For only one example, he is Kyra Sedgwick’s boss in “The Closer”. At the very end of the film we see Shea Whigham deliver an impressive cameo as Vincent, Jimmy Starks’ despairing buddy.

What did Mae West say: “So many films, so little time”? (No, wait, that was not quite correct).

2011, Bullying, Crime, Detective, Dysfunctional Lives, Police Story, Sex Scenes, Violent

Rampart (2011)

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From NetFlix:

Dave Brown is a dirty cop with a mile-wide mean streak. As he roams the streets meting out “justice,” the LAPD sinks into a corruption scandal. The countdown to Brown’s judgment is on in this fact-based film co-written by crime novelist James Ellroy.

Have you ever known someone who is “never wrong”? Let me introduce you to Dave Brown (known affectionately as “date rape”). Each day of Dave’s life he sinks just a bit lower into bullying, corruption, murder, etc. Whenever the LAPD tries to restrain him and avoid scandal, he can deliver the most inventive self-justifying excuses you have ever heard. His twisted eloquence is actually entertaining. Unfortunately he more or less believes what he says. His usual inquisitor is Sigourney Weaver with whom I usually associate “aliens” (but in this case the “alien” is our friend Dave).

Woody Harrelson’s performance is excellent. But is it really entertaining to watch a defiantly corrupt man’s life go down the toilet ?

2011, Explicit sex, Explicit sexual discussion, Mostly About Sex, Nudity, Redemption, Sex Scenes

Shame (2011)

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From NetFlix:

Although handsome New Yorker Brandon Sullivan is outwardly reserved, inside he’s seething with an overwhelming sexual addiction. But when his uninhibited younger sister invades his life, Brandon struggles to control his self-destructive behavior.

First impressions count, as in, “this is a pornographic film!!!!”

Over the years I have reviewed many films. But this one sent my “explicit” meter soaring. Michael Fassbender spends a good deal of the time completely nude (full frontal included) and quite active sexually. In fact there are many nude attractive bodies in various positions and activities.

So much for the eye candy. But is there a point to all this (and does anybody really care) ? A severe addiction of any kind (sex, drugs, alcohol, smoking, neatness, gluttony) can control an individual and ruin that person’s life. In Brandon’s case most of his waking attention centers on his next orgasm to the point that he has no lasting personal relation, his work is endangered by the porn on his work computer, and he dismisses his sister as a nuisance who can only be in the way. Carey Mulligan as that sister Sissy portrays an emotionally needy and insecure young woman to perfection (while being as cute as ever).

Could I accept the “redemptive” ending ? Brandon reaches a low point and supposedly experiences an epiphany. He evidences this in a clever metro scene that seems to say he is on the mend. But in reality a cure for addiction requires much treatment: psychotherapy, group therapy, and possibly some helpful drugs (chemical castration anyone ?). But who needs reality in a movie ?

Loved the sex show, but gravitas is a bit missing.