Fifty Shades of Grey Review

So, I have a confession to make. This past Valentine’s Day, I saw Fifty Shades of Grey with Julia, numerous groups of women, and elderly couples.

Reviews for this movie were awful, with a 26% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 4.1 out of 10 on IMDB. Reviewers even said that there wasn’t a lot of sex in the movie, which is odd for a movie that is, for all intents and purposes, a movie about sex. Needless to say, I walked into this movie with very low expectations, and perhaps that benefited the movie.

Fifty Shades is not a good movie, but it is not the garbage that many people said it was. It’s mediocre. For starters, there is more “sex” than reviewers let on. The lead actress, Dakota Johnson, is shown nude for a large portion of the movie, and her counterpart, Jamie Dornan, is shirtless for a large portion as well. As for actual sexual acts? Well, there’s not as much as fans or curious viewers were probably hoping for. The earlier sex scenes, are treated with more care, and are a little more fleshed out. Once the BDSM aspect is brought into the mix, however, the scenes become more rushed. It’s as if the director just threw those scenes into the movie just for the sake of staying true to the source material.

Julia’s read the trilogy and had this to say:

All around, it’s what you’d expect if you’ve read the books. We all knew there couldn’t possibly be as much graphic detail as in the books for it to premier as an R rated movie, but it does a good job of capturing the spirit of their relationship. Considering how this story was modeled after Twilight, I was worried the main character, Anna, would be the same plain and ordinary type as Bella in order for you to imagine yourself in her place, but that wasn’t the case. Dakota Johnson was fantastic, and Anna’s personality and development was my favorite part of the movie. Jamie Dornan wasn’t enirely what I expected, but Christian Grey is a lot to live up to. This interview he did with Jimmie Fallon was hilarious if you haven’t seen it.

Dakota Johnson as Anastasia Steele was by far the highlight of the movie, but I admit it took me a little bit to determine whether she was talented or not. In the end, I concluded that she is actually pretty talented, and did a great job portraying a women who transforms from a shy, nerdy girl, into a confident and empowering young woman.

Jamie Dornan as Christian Grey, on the other hand, didn’t really bring anything game changing to the table, and I feel like they could’ve casted any guy with abs to play his role.

The movie looks great visually, as every scene and environment pops off the screen and has a great clean, crisp feel to it.

The soundtrack is also a highlight of the movie, headlined by artists like Ellie Goulding, Beyonce, and The Weekend.

The biggest problem with this movie is the boring story. Most people will see this movie for the sex, but people who are going in the hopes of finding a compelling, thought-provoking story will be very disappointed. Not once did I feel an attachment to the story, or any of the characters in it.

Also, the ending was poorly done, and was just another cliched cliffhanger that is, for some reason, required for the first movie of an inevitable trilogy.

2/5 grey, but somewhat juicy apples.

My Favorite Movies: 500 Days of Summer

 

Just to preface, I am a sucker for romantic comedies (also known as rom coms). Something about the feel good, corny, and usually happy endings just gets to me, and pulls at my very manly heartstrings. 500 Days of Summer, however, is not like your average romantic comedy.

The narrator makes this very clear in the opening minutes of the movie by saying, “You should know up front, this is not a love story.”

The premise of the film is pretty basic; a man falls in love with a woman who does not believe that true love exists. You can pretty much tell where this one is headed, right? Perhaps. However, the way the story is told is what makes this film not just your average romantic comedy. The narrative is what sets 500 Days apart from other rom coms, as it takes a Tarantino-esque approach at times by going into the future to tell what is currently happening in the film. The editing is very clever, and uses the film’s title to it’s advantage by telling the story of the two’s evolving relationship in a calendar-like sort of way by transitioning to different days out of the 500 total. The use of days and tones also gives the film character, and helps tell the story of how the relationship is going. For example, the good days are bright and sunny, while the bad days are dark and gloomy.

This is the film that made me a fan of Joseph Gordon Levitt’s work as an actor. His performance in the movie is a great combination of funny, sad, and at times, heartbreaking. You really feel for his character, especially in the emotional scenes (especially as a guy). Zooey Deschanel is also good in the movie as her usual cute, and quirky self. Her character goes through a major arc throughout the film as well, and her view on relationships completely changes by the film’s conclusion.

Director Marc Webb (Amazing Spiderman 1&2) really knows how to direct cutesy, romantic scenes, and his work in the recently rebooted Spiderman films support this, as the relationship between Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy are strongpoints for each film. The chemistry between Levitt and Deschanel is top-notch, and a big part of that is due to Webb’s direction. His biggest achievement, however, is that he makes their relationship feel so real and believable to viewers.

The soundtrack in the film is also a great addition, as artists such as Temper Trap and Regina Spektor add nice background noise throughout the film, and really add more emotion to scenes.

500 Days of Summer is not your typical rom com, and it works to the film’s advantage. The narrative adds character and makes the film unique, the chemistry between Levitt and Deschanel is believable, Webb does a really good job directing romantic scenes, and the soundtrack is Spotify search worthy.

Some people find the ending to be corn city, but I personally was a fan.

How do you like them apples? I like these apples a lot. They’re the type of apples that I would love to have my friends try, especially my lady friends. They never get old, and they’re sweet with just the right amount of sour.

5/5 Freshly picked apples.