Could You Tell Two People To Pretend To Do It?
Watching a sex scene in a movie, when done well, can make think; "Man, these are some great actors. I really feel like I'm watching two people having sex." Well, you don't have to have thought those exact words, you can think whatever you want, but you get the general idea. But when you are watching a great sex scene, have you paused to think about what it must be like to be the director? How strange it must be to tell two people how to act to make it look like they are having sex.
In case your curiosity was sparked (or even if it wasn't),Vulture was curious enough to ask ten famous directors about ten rather famous sex scenes. With all the rules and regulations it can be hard to make the scene the way you want, but each director found a way to make their sex scene pretty memorable. Here are some of the highlights from a few of the directors:
Paul Feig,Bridesmaids
You just have to face it like it’s any other highly choreographed scene and find the physicality. The only way we were able to get through it is by making each other laugh, so it became this hilarious wrestling match — if you really look at it, it’s less like a sex scene and more like a crazy fight. Jon was so game, and he and Kristen were literally just trying to crack each other up. We kept saying, “Let’s get more absurd,” because we had the safety of knowing it would be ridiculously funny
Catherine Hardwicke,Thirteen
That scene was wild. The welfare worker gave us the rules at the beginning: She said, “They’re not allowed to get closer than three inches near his nipple zone. They can touch his pants, but not pull them down.” This and that. When we actually went to film it, I wanted the camera to do a 360-degree long take — I wanted you to feel terrified watching it, without letting us cut away or feeling like the editor was controlling it at all — so the welfare worker and I were hiding behind the couch and crouched over this little monitor. Here I am trying to do the take and then all of a sudden, she yells out, "Stop! Cut! Nipple violation!"
Leslye Headland,Sleeping With Other People
The way the sex scene was written in the script, it was incredibly graphic. I literally go through every single thing that they do to each other, from “He kisses her here” or “She takes off her underwear” down to “He ejaculates inside of her.” But at the top of the page, right before the sex scene, there was this big disclaimer in bold print and underlined: “You will not see any nudity during this scene.” So while you were reading something that was basically porn, you had been told right up top that there was no nudity. The reason I did that is because I knew it was never going to get as intense as what it said on the page, but I needed actors who were sort of almost willing to do that.
John McNaughton,Wild Things
When it comes to nudity, I always ask my actors a question, “Have you read the script?” I’m not going to pull a trick on an actor: “Oh, I know it's not in the script, but do you mind taking your clothes off?” What I've found often with the actors is a lot of trepidation up front — they'll say, “Oh, I'm uncomfortable with this and I won't do that, etcetera” — but once they feel they're not being exploited or tricked in any way, they start to get into it. Once they do that, the clothes start flying off, and things that they said they wouldn't do at first, they really don't have a problem doing them. They push it further once they're in the comfort zone.
Paul Verhoeven,Showgirls
I never shoot a sex scene if I feel that what I'm proposing is fantasy. I always use my own experiences with sex throughout my life, with different women. I use that as a source of reality, and I don't want to go beyond that: If I ask an actor or actress to do something, I want to be sure that it's not my fantasy leading me but what has actually happened to me and what I really know. Of course, that being said, everything in Showgirls is a little exaggerated. The lights, the colors, the dialogue, the movement of the camera — I took things one step further than reality. That's a reflection of what Vegas is, this extreme accentuation of real life.
The full article is truly a fascinating look into how directors approach sex scenes in their movies. It can be very strange for everyone involved, but when it is done right... well, you know... If you want to read more, head over toVulture.
