Sex Lies and Videotapes - A Review

 A Review 

For me, I didn't know what to expect from this film... I thought that it would be just what it said in the title. But I was wrong. There is a preconception with any film when you see the title to instantly guess the narrative of the film from the title, but until you sit down and watch the film in detail you might be surprised.

Sex,Lies and Videotapes isn't a Hollywood film, it is the beginning of the Indiewood era (late 80's and throughout the 90's). Written and Directed by Steven Soderbergh the film explores the relationship and the concept that people have towards sex. With character's who have different views on sex itself and a relationship with it. 

That stood out to me from the beginning of the film, being introduced to Andy McDowell's character Anne who doesn't really desire or in fact want to engage in sex, to her she finds it hard to talk about and is I felt a little bit timid and slightly disgusted with the idea of sexual intercourse with anyone or the act of even  satisfying herself as a women. 

She is a frustrated kept women, her husband is a lawyer in a big company who made her give up her career and in my view her life to be a house wife and to satisfy the idea of the man is head of the house and the sole bread winner, where as her life is concentrated on cleaning the house and cooking his dinner while he sleeps with her younger sister. 

All the concepts of what the title suggests are there, but unlike the preconception that most people have towards this film, it is a gritty real life story of a women stuck in a marriage that she thinks she can't escape from, a man who is frustrated with not being able to have sex with his wife so seeks out a mistress who happens to be his wife's sister and a man who can't even get an erection in front of another person and so finds it hard to release his sexual frustrations and becomes detached from life.

In my head I class this film as being like a William Blake Poem in a world full of Wordsworth poems, as at the time of the films completion in 1988, the industry was packed full of High Concept Blockbuster films that were an outlet for  cinema goers to escape reality of their everyday lives. Whereas Sex, Lies and Videotapes was a reminder of someone's life, about how miserable life can be and the harsh reality of being in a marriage and the frustration of being in it between a man and women. 

It also as I stated before highlights the relationship that individuals have with sex itself, also looking at the relationship that men and women have with sex and showing that men are more interested and engaging with sex as a concept but also breaking the stereotype using characters such as Anne and Graham who's relationship with sex has become disengaging and more  feeling like a discomfort about the idea of sex. 

I loved Graham's and Anne's relationship, they were from the very beginning attracted to each other but didn't know how to verbalise these emotions. Whereas John (Anne's husband) is seeking relief by having an affair his wife's sister as he isn't getting any at home. He is using Cindy(Anne's sister) who is the complete opposite of Anne, she is more adventurous and doesn't really have a care in the world when it comes to sex. She enjoys it, she gets her kicks from it and doesn't mind talking about it with a complete stranger. But Cindy knows that there is no strings attached and this is just sex, which is breaking the stereotype that women are sensitive about sex, that it is an act of love between a man and a women (or a gay relationship) and not just a consensual past time between two people. 

The film isn't Pornographic what so ever, the scenes involving sexual relations are hardly there or are done tastefully and sensitively. 

Andy McDowell's character Anne confronting her sexuality with a video camera

 Speaking of Graham, he is a hard character to actually understand when you first are introduced to him at the beginning of the film. He has an aura of awkwardness around him, you're not sure who is he and are a little bit suspicious of him as he is a stranger in the film, he is the strange guy who has just come in with little information about him.
Graham is John's old friend from school, he is a complete opposite to John and is more sensitive and inquisitive towards Anne. He is attracted to her instantly from meeting her and the sexual tension is there.
Graham confesses that he is impotent to Anne and is very open with her about his life and his videotapes which are interviews with women about their sexual experiences. He does not show them to anyone else and finds it easy to get turned on to them (which is a little bit strange but you have to watch the film to understand the character and why he does it) and to manage to get an erection. But it isn't in a perverted way there is an underlining phycological reason to why he is impotent.

Graham - watching his interviews back

In film- making terms this film is brilliant, the way the whole film was shot was simple and not complex. I liked the fact that it was shot softly, there was no harsh shots and there was always a soft filter on the camera which allowed the audience to be drawn in, it was almost romantic looking. Although this was distracting us from the harshness of the narrative itself, dealing with issues that are still quite important in today's society. The issue of infidelity is a issue that affects everyone in daily life and to see it on film can be a comfort to know that you are not alone.

The film itself was made on a budget of $1.2 million and grossed $25 million at the US box office showing that it was a great success in America as well as around the world.
The movie also had major success at the Sundance Festival and Cannes Film Festival where it was well received by the audiences.

If you were wondering whether to watch it or not I recommend you watch this film! It is a must see!!!!