Better Than The Novel

Rating: 7/10 (16 February 2015)

I have a tendency to read the books before the film nowadays, whereas I used to read the book after - if I enjoyed the film. The former applies to Fifty Shades. I began it in 2012, got about a third of the way though and got very bored. I hurried along when I knew the movie was coming soon. I gave the book a 2 out of 5 on Goodreads, or 4 out of 10 on my scale.
The writing is juvenile, and reads at the grade five reading level. It is a book marketed to adults, but it is embarrassing to read as an adult. The dialogue is very corny and doesn't flow naturally. This is where the film is better than the book. Yes, the dialogue is still poor, but it seems more natural than the novel. Here's an example. When Christian pushes José and says something like, "She said no, man!" But, in the book it's something like, "I think the lady said 'no'." That clichéd line really stuck with me and in a way, it sums up how trite the novel is.
Much of the audience reactions were that of surprise, which made me wonder how many had actually read the book. Even the abrupt ending had the audience gasping. I knew it would end abruptly, because this film is based on book one, which segues into book two and three. I don't really plan on reading the second and third books, unless film adaptations are gonna be released.
The sex scenes were quite tame compared to the book, which is expected, otherwise it would have gotten an NC-17 rating, which most theatres won't carry. There's a tampon scene in the book, which is basically Christian having sex with Anastasia while she is on her period. But, this isn't in the film.
A lot of the novel has internal monologue from Anastasia's perspective, and her thoughts and emotions don't translate to the screen well. She has multiple orgasms in the book, on more than one occasion, but it isn't in the film. The scenes do, however, show that she enjoys herself very much as a consenting submissive who is yet to sign a contract with her dominant, Christian Grey.
The viewer has to suspend disbelief about Christian being a self-made billionaire who knows people well. For a CEO who has a strong work ethic, he seems to have a lot of free time on his hands, and lives more like a trust fund baby from billionaire parents.
The cinematography is excellent, from the opening aerial shots to the one-point perspective of the elevator doors closing at the end. The two lines spoken by the main characters are "Anastasia" and "Christian."
With over two hours of screen time, this film would be much shorter minus the sex scenes. And like the rest of the cinematography, these scenes are filmed well. They do a good job to eroticize the sex, although I did let out a laugh here and there. Then there's a scene at the end where we feel Anastasia's pain, which seems more emotional than physical.
There isn't much of a deeper meaning or theme. There aren't many shades; it is pretty much black and white. Like the book, Christian describes himself as being fifty shades f****d up. We don't know much about him other than he is a billionaire of a company we know little about, he has mysterious marks on his chest, he was adopted, his real mother was a crack whore, and he is a talented pianist, and he can fly a helicopter. He doesn't smile much, and has an intense stare. He is not a psychopath, but he seems to only be able to express his sexual interest through sadomasochism. He himself was once a submissive. His mother's friend was his dominant when he was fifteen. Okay, so does this explain his behaviour? Yeah, they're consenting adults, but Anastasia wants more than just kinky sex. She is saddened by his constant desire to punish her, even though she enjoys it. She wants more. She wants a loving "normal" relationship.
While this film of Fifty Shades of Grey is better than the novel, it is still not an excellent film. The director really didn't have much of a script to work with, but she did a good job considering the bland plot. I would go so far as to put it in a comedy genre. Even more comical that it was released on the week of Valentine's Day. Also, males may even enjoy it more than females, since it shows more female nudity and orgasmic expressions. I give the film a 7 out of 10, but maybe I would have given it a 6 out of 10 if not seen in theatre, since I find the theatrical experience always adds to my enjoyment.

Justin