We’ve done the B-movies, both bad and good, now here’s a list of some mainstream feature films that left noticeable impressions with audiences around the world because, well, these movies were so risqué, they could possibly easily be mistaken for porn. So it’s safe to say that some of these movies, even if they made it into the Malaysian cinemas, would’ve been censored till kingdom come, of course. Also, most of these even had A-list Hollywood stars e.g. Tom Cruise, Shia LaBeouf, Christian Slater, Sharon Stone, just to name a few, in the casts.
What’s more surprising is that there were even a few that claimed that they had scenes in which were no way staged or simulated. By that, we mean that some of the scenes (read: sex) were real, for “artistic” purposes, they claimed. Which ones? Time for you to find out in the below list of “near-porno motion pictures”:
Basic Instinct (1992)
Basic Instinct is a 1992 American neo-noir and erotic thriller film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Joe Eszterhas, and starring Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone. The film is about a police detective, Nick Curran (played by Michael Douglas), who is investigating the brutal murder of a wealthy rock star. During the investigation Curran becomes involved in a torrid and intense relationship with the prime suspect, Catherine Tramell (played by Michael Stone), an enigmatic writer. The most popular scene in Basic Instinct was Sharon Stone’s police interrogation scene which involved a provocative leg-crossing move. Pretty sure anyone who has watched it remembers that one, the most paused moment in cinematic history.
Showgirls (1995)
Showgirls is a 1995 American drama film written by Joe Eszterhas and directed by Paul Verhoeven. It stars former teen actress Elizabeth Berkley, Kyle MacLachlan, and Gina Gershon. The film centres on a “street-smart” drifter who ventures to Las Vegas and climbs the seedy hierarchy from stripper to showgirl. Significant controversy surrounding the film’s amounts of sex and nudity preceded its theatrical release. In US, the film was rated NC-17 for “nudity and erotic sexuality throughout, some graphic language and sexual violence.” Showgirls was the first (and to date only) NC-17 rated film to be given a wide release in mainstream theatres. Distributor United Artists dispatched several hundred staffers to theatres across North America playing Showgirls in order to ensure that patrons would not be sneaking into the theatre from other films, and to make sure the film-goers were over the age of 17.
Wild Things (1998)
Wild Things (also known as Sex Crimes) is a 1998 American erotic thriller film starring Matt Dillon, Neve Campbell, Kevin Bacon, Denise Richards, and Theresa Russell. It was directed by John McNaughton. The story centres on a Miami area high school guidance counsellor, Sam Lombardo (played by Matt Dillon), is accused of rape by two female students, the wealthy and popular Kelly Van Ryan (played by Denise Richards) and poor outcast Suzie Toller (played by Neve Campbell), and hires lawyer Kenneth Bowden (played by Bill Murray) to defend him. Wild Things gained notoriety for featuring several sex scenes – in particular, one involving a man and two women simultaneously – that were more explicit than is typically seen in mainstream, big-budget Hollywood releases. The film has a MPAA rating of R for “strong sexuality, nudity, language, and violence”.
Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
Eyes Wide Shut is a 1999 American erotic thriller film loosely based upon Arthur Schnitzler’s 1926 novella Dream Story. The film was directed, produced, and co-written by Stanley Kubrick. The story, set in and around New York City, follows the sexually charged adventures of Dr. Bill Harford (played by Tom Cruise), who is shocked when his wife, Alice (played by Nicole Kidman), reveals that she had contemplated an affair a year earlier. He embarks on a night-long adventure, during which he infiltrates a massive masked orgy of an unnamed secret society. Eyes Wide Shut was highly popular because Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, an item in real life at that time, engaged in intimate scenes.
Jan Dara (2001)
Jan Dara (Thai: จัน ดารา) is a 2001 Thai erotic-period-drama film directed and co-written by Nonzee Nimibutr and co-starring Hong Kong cinema actress Christy Chung. It is based on a novel by Utsana Phloengtham. The film premiered at the 2001 Toronto International Film Festival. In Thailand, the film was controversial because its sex scenes tested the censorship bounds of the 1930 Film Act. However, it went on to win a Thailand National Film Association Award for Best Art Direction (for Ek Iemchuen) and Best Cinematography (for Nattawut Kittikhun). Jan Dara was also nominated for best screenplay and best sound.
The Brown Bunny (2003)
The Brown Bunny is a 2003 American independent art house film written, produced and directed by Vincent Gallo about a motorcycle racer on a cross-country drive who is haunted by memories of his former lover. The film stars Gallo and Chloë Sevigny in the two central roles, as well as a cameo performance by American former model Cheryl Tiegs. It was filmed on handheld 16 mm cameras in various locations throughout US, including New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Missouri, Utah, Nevada, and California. The Brown Bunny garnered a great deal of media attention because of the explicit and unsimulated sex in the final scene between director Gallo and actress Chloë Sevigny, who were an item in real life at that time. The film had its world premiere at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival.
NYMPH()MANIAC (2013)
NYMPH()MANIAC is a 2013 2-part drama art film written and directed by Lars von Trier. The film stars Charlotte Gainsbourg, Stellan Skarsgård, Stacy Martin, Shia LaBeouf, Christian Slater, Connie Nielsen, Jamie Bell, Uma Thurman, and Willem Dafoe. The story centres on Joe (played by Charlotte Gainsbourg), a self-diagnosed nymphomaniac who is discovered badly beaten in an alley by an older bachelor, Seligman (played by Stellan Skarsgård), who takes her into his home. As he tends to her wounds, she recounts the erotic story of her adolescence and young-adulthood (portrayed in flashback by newcomer Stacy Martin). There were rumours at first that Shia LaBeouf’s sex scenes with Stacy Martin were unsimulated but those rumours were later debunked because although their sex scenes were real, they performed by porn body doubles. The film was originally supposed to be only one movie, but because of its 4-hour, length Lars von Trier made the decision to split the project into 2 separate films. NYMPH()MANIAC has been nominated for the 2014 Nordic Council Film Prize.
BONUS:
Fifty Shades of Grey (2015)
Source: Universal Pictures
Sure, we’re getting ahead of ourselves here because the film adaptation of Fifty Shads of Grey will only be released in February 2015. However, if you’ve read the books and if the movie is going to be anything like the books, well, then it’s not exactly rocket science that it probably won’t make it into Malaysian cinemas. Fifty Shades of Grey is a 2011 erotic romance novel by British author E. L. James. It is the first instalment in the Fifty Shades trilogy that traces the deepening relationship between a college graduate, Anastasia Steele, and a young business magnate, Christian Grey. It is notable for its explicitly erotic scenes featuring elements of sexual practices involving bondage/discipline, dominance/submission, and sadism/masochism (BDSM). The second and third volumes, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed, were published in 2012. Fifty Shades of Grey has topped best-seller lists around the world, including those of the UK and US. The series has sold over 100 million copies worldwide and been translated into 52 languages, and set the record as the fastest-selling paperback of all time.
Got anymore that you’d like to add to the above list? Let us know in the comment box below!