You think you know what you're getting into, and I think that's the problem

Rating: 8/10 (29 September 2016)

Expectations destroy movies. It happened with THE MATRIX sequels. It happened with TRON: LEGACY.
And it happened with this movie. Let me explain.
Every criticism I've heard for this movie either speaks to its nature of irritating the feminist movement, a true lack of understanding of BDSM culture, or not enough shown in the sex scenes to truly satisfy the viewing audience.
ALL of those things are based on expectations, not true evaluations of the film you're seeing.
If you are someone that is in touch with what BDSM is, you will be looking for it here, a kind of statement to the kind of lifestyle and the practices with which you are accustomed and proud to finally see detailed on the screen in front of you, and you will be disappointed to find it lacking. If you consider yourself a feminist, you will probably be irritated with Anastasia's behavior, expecting her to at some point get even with Christian for his overall treatment of her, which of course never really happens. And if you are looking for pornography, I have to admit I've seen racier scenes in other movies than this one.
So what is this movie? And who is it for? The answer came to me one day when I was asked what it was about. Although I can easily remember the plot and the story, describing its genre was challenging. Is it a romance? Not really. Is it pornography? No. Is it a comedy? No way. Well then, what the hell is it?
And that's when it struck me. It was right at that moment that it hit me as to why I liked this movie when nobody else did. Why it intrigued me in a way that seemed to elude everyone else.
No, I'm not referring to a lack of expectations.
It's gray. The movie IS gray.
I've never been fond of classification, not for the sake of argument and certainly not when it comes to people. Labels should be left strictly for filing cabinets. Addressing thing with labels manipulates them, and reduces them a little with every label you add. I try to keep things simple. It was good. Or it was bad.
I liked this. It was unique.
Since FIFTY SHADES OF GREY never really defines itself at all, you do have to wonder where all the expectations are coming from. It never claimed to be a movie about BDSM culture. Not every woman in movies has to be the perfect representation of the purest feminist ideals. And porn is already readily available on the internet at virtually no cost. Trying to define it is challenging because I don't think it really has anything to define itself in the first place. It's a little bit of everything. It teases at ideas, flirts with possibilities. Like the relationship between Christian and Anastasia itself, it flutters back and forth between where you expect it to go and where you've never been before.
It literally is fifty shades of gray.
I can understand why for most people this might not be a good thing. A lot of people need to have things spelled out, defined so that they know where to put it in their minds. But if you can let all of that go, and try to go into it without truly expecting anything, you may be surprised at what you find.
To solidify my opinion, I will leave you with what intrigued me the most in this film, and what will have me going back for its sequels. It might seem trivial at first, but perhaps if you really sit back and think about it, it might intrigue you, as well. No, it wasn't the sex.
The butler/driver, Jason Taylor, played by Max Martini. He reinforces something that can easily be overlooked, if you don't really notice it. Once I did, it made me wonder about the mysterious Christian Grey. I hope that I'm not seeing something that isn't really there, not setting myself up for disappointment later, but
It was the scene in which he is bringing Anastasia to Christian, near the end of the movie. She asks, "How is he today?" And Taylor responds, "He is a bit preoccupied, I'm afraid." The man looked genuinely concerned.
Think about that. This man, this servant of the seemingly dominating Christian Grey actually WORRIES about his boss. It made me think about the people that worked for him, the woman who served dinner to Christian and Anastasia while they were busy discussing the contract. These people seemed to genuinely care about Christian, all the while knowing what he was doing. How is this possible?
Unless there is more to Christian than meets the eye.
It was enough to interest me in the future of these movies, and I hope it isn't just something I saw that wasn't really there. To add, it was not the only thing I liked about the movie. I loved the shots, the various scenes that set the stage for the story. Visually speaking it was very beautiful. The soundtrack is amazing, as well. The actors sold me, delivering solid performances. I find Dakota Johnson charming, and Jamie Dornan keeps Christian an intriguing mystery.
The dialogue, in spots, is a bit off. I've been told it was taken directly from the book, and that was actually where most people had the highest criticisms with the writing.
For my money, it's a unique story that I hope only gets more interesting. And yes, I am aware that I am in the minority this time.
But I just don't care. I enjoyed this film. If you can go in with an open mind, maybe you can, too.