In our weekly seriesAnatomy of a Nude Scene, we're going to be taking a look at (in)famous sexscenes and nude scenes throughout cinema history and examining their construction, their relationship to the film around it, and their legacy. This week, Demi Moore pocketed a cool fifteen million 1996 dollars to play the lead role in the summer blockbuster-that-wasn't-to-be, Striptease!
The sprawling ensemble comedy was becoming hot again in themid-90s as the success of Pulp Fiction, Get Shorty, and other explicitly adult-oriented comedies were lighting the box office on fire. The darker the subject matter, it seemed, the better, so long as there was a heavy dose of comedy to balance things out. Tip the scale too far in one direction and the whole thing goes ass over tea kettle,leavinga movie that's either not serious enough or too serious to be funny. Andrew Bergman's adaptation of Carl Hiaasen's 1993 novel Stripteasehad that perfect mix of ensemble cast, adult subject matter, and being funny but not too funny.
That's not the kind of movie audiences tend to flock to, however, which is one of the many reasons why Striptease has become notorious more than it's become fondly remembered. Like a good number of films in the modern era, the pre-release hype for the film sank its reputation before it was even released. All the talk around the film centered on star Demi Moore's record breaking paycheck and that her real daughter Rumer Willis, thenjust 7years old, was playing her character's daughter.Some disastrous test screenings led to areshot ending designed to soften Burt Reynolds' character a bit, which only added fuel to the fire that the film was troubled.
But so much of the talk centered around Demi's paycheck. Of course, Demi Moore's pre-tax payday of $12.5 paled in comparison with the $20 million check Jim Carrey cashed that same summer—within two weeks of each other, no less—for the equally disappointing The Cable Guy. From a financial standpoint both films were marginally profitable, each costing around $50 million and grossing a little over a hundred million. They were critically maligned and not generally well thought of at the time of release,but time has been kind to both films as they took wild swings tonally and could only be properly appreciated over time.
In terms of paycheck to nudity ratio,aka thedebunked Halle Berry in Swordfish rules, Demi is nude for four minutes and forty seven seconds in the film, equalling roughly $2.6 million dollars per minute of onscreen nude time. True, that assumes she works for free for the rest of the shoot, but you know, math is hard. But fun. Even still, the amount of time she's nude on screen isn't quite commiserate with an outrageous paycheck, but this was a powerful actress at the peak of abilities and sexual volatility, seeing her naked in her prime was going to sell tickets to this one.
Or so everyone thought. The film stalled in North American with only $33 million dollars in tickets sold, less than two-thirds of its budget. It broke huge overseas, however, taking in over $80 million and like Showgirls the year before, exploded in popularity once it hit home video and the stigma of going to a theater is removed.That's howthe vast majority of sexy movies find their audience is on home video, we've seen this time and again, in this very column. Andrew Bergman maintains that it's one of his most profitable endeavors, and he co-wrote Blazing Saddles, so somebody's watching this movie.
Now, of course, the film is remembered for its terrific ensemble, starting with the late, great Burt Reynolds who deserved more recognition for his performance here as a randycongressman with a crush on Demi's character. Though Burt would be lauded for his work inBoogie Nights the following year, his comeback began here. The rest of the strippers are also great, including Barbara Alyn Woods, Pandora Peaks, and of course Rena Riffel, who made a big impression the year before as Penny in Showgirls.
Timehas also been much kinder to Moore's performance as well, and you can't help but appreciate her as an actress and a mother at this stage in her life. It gives the particular scenewhere her daughter sees her doing her routinean added poignancy, allowing her real daughter to see the power and beauty her mother possessed at this point in her life and career. As far as having her daughter Rumer there with her on-set while she danced nude, Moore told cheekily named CNN correspondent Bill Tush at the time of the film's release that...
...Moore said she didn't give it a second thought. "We don't shame the body, we encourage the body as something beautiful and natural, and my children bathe with me, and I walk around naked," Moore says.
Moore definitely didn't waste time, either, going nude for the first time just 16 minutes in, stripping down to "Cold" by Annie Lennox...
This is the same reason there was a lot of hype over Jennifer Lopez's performance last year in Hustlers. The performance is one thing, but to convincingly portray a stripper and do what those girls do on stage for the duration of an Annie Lennox song takes another level of talent. You can't help but admire the commitment that Moore brought to the role for which they paid her so much money. It's why she was one of the biggest stars in the world.
Catch up withour most recent editions ofAnatomy of a Nude Scene
—That Time We All Fell in Love with Kelly Preston in Mischief
—What Happened with Marisa Tomei's Nude Scene fromUntamed Heart
—Cybill Shepherd is Uncomfortably Relatable inThe Last Picture Show
—Penelope Cruz Does Very Different Nude Scenes Playing the Same Role inOpen Your EyesandVanilla Sky
—Joyce Hyser Becomes an 80s Icon inJust One of the Guys
—Charlize Theron Lands on the Map with2 Days in the Valley
—SirensMay be Plural, But All Eyes Were on Elle MacPherson
—Eva Green's Star is Born in Bertolucci'sThe Dreamers
—Phoebe Cates Takes a Dip and Becomes a Legend inFast Times at Ridgemont High
—Kim Basinger Gets All Wet for Mickey Rourke in9½ Weeks
—Molly Ringwald Does Her Only Topless Scene inMalicious
—Straw DogsRaises That Pesky Issue of Consent
—No Amount of Plausible Deniability Can Excuse What's Going On inCaligula
—The Devil's AdvocateFills Our Eyes with Double Vision
—Schlockmeister Ed Wood Transitions to Booby Movies withOrgy of the Dead
**Click Here to Read All Past Editions of Anatomy of a Nude Scene/Anatomy of a Scene's Anatomy**
