So if you haven’t heard by now, Fifty Shades of Grey has become a global phenomenon. Raking in close to $500M at the box office in under a month, it has caught the attention of movie-goers everywhere. The movie, an adaptation of E.L. James’ book of the same title, stars Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan as Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, respectively.
As someone who did not read the books, I was definitely excited to see the movie, if only just to figure out what all the hype was for. After seeing it with some of my friends and about 100 other young to middle-aged women, I was left disgusted. Going into it, I knew that BDSM — Bondage and Discipline (BD), Dominance and Submission (DS), Sadism and Masochism (SM) — played a big role in the relationship between Anastasia and Christian, but was disappointed by the way it was portrayed. With promises to be a BDSM fantasy with roots in fanfic (the book started off as Twilight fan fiction), the movie did not live up to expectations. There were only about twenty minutes of sex scenes in the entire movie, and the rest was a glamorized portrayal of the unhealthy relationship between Anastasia and Christian.
To be clear, I have no problem with people who are into BDSM. It’s a personal choice and totally not anyone’s business but his or her own. With that said, the way Christian Grey got his BDSM-on with Anastasia was damaging to the way in which people see BDSM on the whole. Anastasia did not exactly like the idea of signing the contract which laid out her duties as Christian’s partner, and what he demanded he be able to do to her. Her insecurity in signing the contract is evident throughout the whole film, and shows her uneasiness towards the way she is treated by him. The idea of BDSM is damaged due to the lack of consent given by Anastasia and how it is not an expression of her own sexual desires, but Christian living out his through abusing her. BDSM is an expression of two people who are into that, not an excuse for domestic abuse.
Fifty Shades of Grey glamorized the abusive relationship between Anastasia Steele and business mogul Christian Grey. It portrayed Christian as the world’s most eligible bachelor, who has a mysterious past and a cold heart. It goes on to sexualize his stalkerish actions in which he goes to extreme lengths to control Anastasia’s every move. The movie (and book) were made to be fantasy-like for anyone who’s ever had an inclination towards a man in a suit — *raises hand* — but ended up making domestic abuse seem like a sought-after luxury. The interactions between Christian and Anastasia are tense and scary at times, but because he is wealthy and attractive, it is supposed to be thought of as sexy? What if Christian Grey wasn’t an incredibly attractive millionaire? Would abuse be a turn-on then? The way Christian treats Anastasia in the movie was hard to watch at times, and damaging for society overall. It sexualizes domestic abuse, which is already a major problem in the world we live in. We do not need a movie being seen by millions of people to tell us that this kind of treatment is okay or normal by any means.
I would venture to say the second movie in the trilogy will not be nearly as successful as the first, due to the widespread controversy surrounding it. I think a lot of people, myself included, were curious to see what the movie would be like, and came out displeased. The movie was shockingly terrible, soundtrack excluded. In all seriousness, if you haven’t seen the movie yet, save yourself the money and listen to the soundtrack instead. With songs from Beyonce, Ellie Goulding and The Weeknd, it’s a better use of your time and money than the movie ever would be.