Not your average love story

Rating: 9/10 (14 February 2015)

I am disappointed that so many people seem to have missed the point with this film. Some of the reviews I've read might as well say, there's not enough action in it - it's not an action film! In the same way, stop judging it on what you expected it to be. I have read all three books, and now I have watched the first film of the Fifty Shades Trilogy. It would appear that my opinion differs greatly to others on this franchise. Firstly the film - I was wary after reading so many negative reviews, however I was curious after reading the books, so my husband and I went along. I was pleasantly surprised when he said he actually enjoyed it. It would seem that many of the negative reviews of this film are based on its lack of sexual content, to which I would disagree. In the book the sex scenes got repetitive and a little dull after a while. "Their eyes met and it wasn't long before they were in a passionate embrace...." Oh, and everyone has climaxed. Hmm... I agreed with some of the book reviews about how astounding it was that Anastasia went from virgin to sex goddess in 3 pages. However, this annoyance was removed in the film and what you saw was a passionate encounter between two people. I was also pleased to discover that they had completely omitted the inner goddess. That was also one of the big annoyances of the book. I felt that the film was a good replication of the book, and it managed to follow the story line well, without missing out any 'key' details. There were particular cringe worthy scenes that were removed, but I really don't feel this impeded the flow of the story. There have been comments about the flow of the dialogue in the film; however I think this helped capture the relationship between Christian and Anastasia. They had a few brief encounters and then they were having sex, this isn't the makings of a long term comfortable relationship. She's young and has a lot to learn, so of course it's going to be awkward.
I found the books very easy to read. I read one of them in a week. There are no complex words that weigh down the mind, but the writing style is a little juvenile. That being said, I did enjoy the story. This is not your average love story, but I think it does hit on some elements that do feature in every day relationships. Some of the interactions between the characters are relatable, but people seem to forget why Christian is how he is. His troubled past gets overlooked, but it is the reason why he has such a skewed perception on relationships.
I found the domestic abuse claims quite shocking. I do wonder if these people have actually read the book or watched the film. I've heard people say that this is going to set women back centuries! What utter nonsense. At the end of the film, Anastasia asks Christian to show her what it's really like. The results shock her, but she stands up for herself! When he approaches her, she says no. She was trying to make a decision on whether to go through with this or not, and that helped her make her decision. The entire encounter was consensual, which is the whole point of a dom/sub relationship.
I've often heard people say that in those types of relationships the sub is actually the one in control. They choose to relinquish control to the dom, and they can take that back at any time.
I've also heard comments that the book/film puts BDSM in a bad light. The interactions in the book/film are an extreme view of this type of relationship. This is all Christian has ever known, and as he said himself, he doesn't do hearts and flowers. It is my understanding that couple who practise BDSM actually have very healthy 'normal' relationships. They sleep in the same bed, and lead normal lives, however for a portion of their day, they assume roles in the form of dom/sub, and they both enjoy partaking in the activities.
The events in the film are not a true depiction of a dom/sub relationship. It's one step further. However, Anastasia's strength and determination seems to be trying to bring it back into the healthy realms. Just because this type of relationship isn't your type of thing, doesn't make it wrong.
So I may be the only positive review on this film, but I stand by my opinions. It's a good film - it's not porn and it's not domestic abuse. It's a troubled love story.
And, the cliff hanger ended has opened itself up to a compulsory sequel. See you in 2016.