Christian Grey Series

[Buffy Summers]

it frightens me greatly to think that millions of women look at this relationship and think "romance" or even "acceptable"...

Interesting that you say that because as I watched the film (2 hours of my life that I'm never going to get back...not even Jamie Dornan could save that or make me watch it again) I was sitting there thinking, "The sad thing is people think this is romance."

 

[Skanky Vamp]

Interesting that you say that because as I watched the film (2 hours of my life that I'm never going to get back...not even Jamie Dornan could save that or make me watch it again) I was sitting there thinking, "The sad thing is people think this is romance."

Were you paid to see it? Otherwise my opinion of you just took a hit.

 

[Buffy Summers]

I Amazoned it. My love for Jamie overrode my judgement. And it was so much worse than I ever thought it could be.

But it has eclipsed Eyes Wide Shut as my official worst movie ever. I would rather watch Howard the Duck. I would rather watch Twilight. I wouldn't even fast forward through it to select Jamie parts, that's how bad it is.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

I Amazoned it.

Oh. That's not bad. I just envisioned you sitting in a darkened theatre with sticky seats, staring up at the screen thinking.. be still my beating heart. Watching it hidden in your home so no one you know would actually see you lessens the impact of seeing it.

 

[The Bronze]

But it has eclipsed Eyes Wide Shut as my official worst movie ever.

It was absolute garbage but I'm not sure it makes it to the top of my worst ever movie list. I think that honour goes to The Zero Theorem. Walked out after an hour of feeling like I was at work rather than the cinema.

 

[Ethan Reigns]

Having watched the film and no clue about the books I can only think of one interesting question this might answer. What was it about Ana's lack of personality that would get Christian to start breaking his own rules? The guy has done this before and could find someone else to go along with it again so there's no need to change. Seriously it was like watching two cardboard cut outs interact. 
@Nix I'd suggest reading my review in the movie forum instead and saving yourself some time and money 🙂

Cardboard cutouts? It should have starred Marc Blucas (Riley Finn). He is excellent at playing a cardboard cutout. I haven't read or seen 50 Shades of Grey but it's beginning to sound like 9-1/2 Weeks - kinky and not in a good way.

 

[Buffy Summers]

9 1/2 Weeks is The Godfather compared to this garbage. They didn't have to make a badly-made movie out of a badly-written book, but they did.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

They didn't have to make a badly-made movie out of a badly-written book, but they did.

I'll bite.. how could they have made it a good movie?

 

[Lyri]

As much as I hate to say it - this story, in the hands of a decent writer who knows how to research her subject, could have been good. It could have been FAR better than what we got. Or what THEY got, I'm not including myself in this group, lol.

Which the writers of the movie had the opportunity to do. But instead, they stuck close to the source material, as far as I know, and it was just as bad as the book.

I found out today that James has hired her husband to write the scripts for the future movies, so the opportunity is now gone forever.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

Which the writers of the movie had the opportunity to do. But instead, they stuck close to the source material, as far as I know, and it was just as bad as the book.

But wouldnt everyone complain if they altered it from the book? I mean, I think its far that say that a large number of people that saw the movie read the books.. I guess. Maybe not.

 

[Lyri]

But wouldnt everyone complain if they altered it from the book? I mean, I think its far that say that a large number of people that saw the movie read the books.. I guess. Maybe not.

I think it depends on HOW they changed it. They didn't have to change the story drastically, they could have just done a tiny bit of research into the lifestyle and made it even slightly like how people really live in this world. I mean, there was a HUGE outcry from people in this community when the book came out and it was revealed that the characters used zip ties. That is apparently a major no-no, as they can cause serious, irreparable damage and there's no real way to get yourself out of that situation if something goes wrong.

So in that respect, they could have changed that aspect of the story, but kept the actual storyline in place and no one would have minded all that much.

In saying that, The Maze Runner movie was changed drastically from the book and from all reports, the sequel will be changed even more. There has been some harsh words from the die hards and I was quietly annoyed when I saw it, but the movie was good and it stands as it's own piece of art, so people weren't really all that upset.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

the characters used zip ties.....they can cause serious, irreparable damage

So can the Magic Wand, which they are now actually labelling as a torture device, but people still use them recreationally without thinking about the dangers. One sub actually SUED their dom because he left her tied up and left the wand on and she now has nerve damage. So...

 

[EVIL UU]

I don't really object to the sex-stuff in the book, which is - at best - utterly ludicrous at times, what I mind is the pernicious and lingering message in pop culture (found in BtVS too to a lesser extent) that broken men can be saved through a good (preferrably a virgin) woman's love... It's the idea being passed on that as long as you stay by his side, through whatever manipulations and abuse (mental or physical), that he will eventually come around and become the 'prince charming' you always wanted... now I'm not saying that all women who read Fifty shades... are going to end up in abusive relationships, certainly not, but how can we expect young women not to be influenced by the powerful idea that they're somehow a cure and that it is not to be feared when a man is overly possessive or emotional manipulative because it just means he "loves you that much"?

I strongly disagree with the idea of artists' social responsibility. I don't believe that any artist, E. L. James included, as disgusting as I find her, should care about influences and messages. Just do what you want!

 

[Buffy Summers]

I'll bite.. how could they have made it a good movie?

1. Cast someone else in the female role. She sucks and if she wasn't Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson's daughter, she wouldn't have gotten the part. Kristen Stewart would even have been a better choice. (lol - actually casting Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson would have been great)

2. Write a script with a cohesive storyline, with a beginning, middle and end, and have someone write it who knows how to write. The first Hobbit film actually stops part way through the book, but you don't feel like they just cut it off half way through the film. At the end of FSOG, it's like, "What the hell?"

3. Don't make Christian Grey act like a serial killer. I would rather have a relationship with his character from The Fall, who actually is a serial killer, than with Christian Grey. He's clearly a psycho. You take the main ideas from the story in the book - shy girl meets billionaire who shows her the world of BDSM - and leave out the mind games and toxicity. Actually make it a romance. You can make Christian "anti-romance" but then have him actually have a character-altering moment. The character should go on a journey. He is the same throughout the entire film - becoming obsessive about Ana does not equal his character learning how to love.

4. Make the sex scenes sexy. lol

This would equal a trashy but watchable movie. Even if you are going to cater to the lowest common denominator, you can have the thing made well.

But wouldnt everyone complain if they altered it from the book?

Lyri's Maze Runner example is a good one, but let's face it: FSOG is NOT the Maze Runner. Whether you liked the book or not, it's decently written. FSOG is not. So you can either make a good movie, or make a shit movie that follows the book. Which is what they did. To go back to the Hobbit - they altered that in some pretty significant ways, which allowed them to make 3 films of it. It's slightly annoying if you are a die-hard fan, but it's not insurmountable or something that will make you outraged.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

To go back to the Hobbit - they altered that in some pretty significant ways, which allowed them to make 3 films of it. It's slightly annoying if you are a die-hard fan, but it's not insurmountable or something that will make you outraged.

Right, but that was expanding one small book into three movies and it was done knowing it had a built-in movie fanbase with the original movies. They did not know what the turnout for 50 Shades would be, so I think they followed the book to at least appeal to them.

The rest I can speak unintelligently about:
"Don't make Christian Grey act like a serial killer" but isnt that how he acted in the books? I mean, I have heard more than a few women that adored the book character. So..
Points 1,2 and 4 I cannot comment on.. save for one thing:

That would be like... amazingly AWESOME had Stewart and Pattinson been cast. That would have just been brilliant. I WOULD have seen the movie then, actually.

 

[Buffy Summers]

I think they thought the turnout for 50 Shades was going to be massive. This wasn't some obscure book with a small loyal following - it's a book almost everyone has heard of.

What I'm saying about Christian is that the fact that he acted like a serial killer in the books is a reason for them to change it when they made the movie. The movie shouldn't repeat the mistakes of the book. I can't/shouldn't comment on women who adore the character. I'm sure someone would be offended. The fact is, you have to give people a reason to like a character, and they just didn't with this one (actually, with either main character). He has to have some redeeming quality and he just has none. Liking an "unattractive" girl is not a redeeming quality.

At the very least he should be charming, and we should as viewers be able to see why this girl would go to such lengths for him, see how she could be won over. The film gives us no reason to see that character as anything but an obsessive psycho.

Another example is Nicholas Sparks books. They are not great works of literature BUT they make good films. That was what they needed to do with FSOG.

 

[The Bronze]

He has to have some redeeming quality and he just has none.

He has two. Money and looks. That appears to be enough for a large section of the population.

 

[Buffy Summers]

Which is exactly the problem with society lol

Jamie Dornan is in my top 3 lol - if you can't convince ME he's worth watching in a movie then you've done something terribly, terribly wrong.

Let's put it this way: I've watched Dracula: The Dark Prince with Ben Robson more than once. And that's not even as good as the terrible Rudolph Martin one. This one is much much worse but it's enough of a story that I will still watch the thing. You could not pay me less than a million dollars to rewatch FSOG.

 

[The Bronze]

I strongly disagree with the idea of artists' social responsibility. I don't believe that any artist, E. L. James included, as disgusting as I find her, should care about influences and messages. Just do what you want!

That's my general stance as well. Game of Thrones has been getting bashed a lot recently and it drives me nuts when people start talking about how it should be banned or boycotted. Don't like it, don't watch it.

 

[brinkster130]

Came across this and thought it was (mildly) interesting. Fifty Shades is not a serious literary piece nor does it pretend to be.....sometimes the amount of attention it receives makes me think people give it more credit than it deserves.

What would happen if we judged other books the same way we judge Fifty Shades of Grey? If we bottle that collective hate, can we begin to recognize how absurd some of it is?

• “Romeo and Juliet is an inaccurate representation of how teens fall in love.”
• “I will not read On The Road because that is nothing like a road trip I’ve ever been on.”
• “I refuse to read Wuthering Heights because it’s about an obsessive and controlling relationship.”
• “I refuse to read Moby Dick because it’s about an obsessive and controlling relationship between a man and a whale.”
• “I refuse to read The Moon is a Harsh Mistress because it’s an inaccurate representation of life on the moon.”
• “Stephen King’s IT is an inaccurate representation of ancient spiders who prey on the fears of the young.”
• “I refuse to read Green Eggs and Ham, because salmonella.”
• “You know that West Side Story is actually based on Romeo and Juliet, right?”
• “I refuse to read Interview With a Vampire because it is an inaccurate depiction of human/vampire relations. It’s really just a waste of the paper that it’s written on.”
• “Oh lord, kill me now. Is J.K. Rowling really writing another book in that series? Doesn’t she have enough money yet?”
• “You realize that Mr. Darcy is an egotistical, self-absorbed jerk, right?”
• “You realize that Heathcliff is an egotistical, self-absorbed jerk, right?”
• “I’m sure we can all agree that Bridget Jones Diary is just a terrible fanfiction of another terrible book.”
• “I refuse to read Girl With the Dragon Tattoo because dragons don’t exist.”
• “I refuse to read The Martian because potatoes don’t actually grow that quickly on Mars.”
• “I’m not going to read Journey to the Center of the Earth because that’s just not humanly possible.”
• “I mean, can we agree that Nabokov is romanticizing molestation here?”
• “George R.R. Martin just needs to stop. That series needs to die a fiery death.”
• “Running away with a pirate to an island full of buried treasure isn’t an adventure. It’s kidnapping. Robert Louis Stevenson should be ashamed of himself.”
• “I’m not reading Gone With the Wind because that author made waaaaaaay too much money off that book.”
• “I refuse to read Poe’s The Raven because it is an inaccurate depiction of the vocalizations of a bird from the genus Corvus.”
• “Guh. I can’t read The Aeneid, because it’s obviously just a fanfic of The Odyssey.”
• “Bleh. I can’t read Ulysses, because it’s obviously just a fanfic of The Odyssey.”
• “Ugh. I can’t read The Penelopiad, because it’s obviously just a fanfic of The Odyssey.“

Got. It. Yet? source