Unsimulated sex

In the film industry, unsimulated sex is the presentation of sex scenes in which actors genuinely perform the depicted sex acts, rather than simulating them. Although it is ubiquitous in films intended as pornographic, it is very uncommon in other films.[1][2] At one time in the United States, such scenes were restricted by law and self-imposed industry standards such as the Motion Picture Production Code.[3] Films showing explicit sexual activity were confined to privately distributed underground films, such as stag films or "porn loops". In the 1960s, social attitudes about sex began to shift, and sexually explicit films were decriminalized in many countries.[4]

With movies such as Blue Movie by Andy Warhol, mainstream movies began pushing the boundaries of what was presented on screen.[5] Notable examples include two of the eight Bedside-films and the six Zodiac-films from the 1970s, all of which were produced in Denmark and had many pornographic sex scenes, but were nevertheless considered mainstream films, all having mainstream casts and crews and premiering in mainstream cinemas.[6] The last of these films, Agent 69 Jensen i Skyttens tegn, was made in 1978. From the end of the 1970s until the late 1990s it was rare to see hardcore scenes in mainstream cinema, but this changed with the success of Lars von Trier's The Idiots (1998), which heralded a wave of art-house films with explicit content,[7][8] such as Romance (1999), Baise-moi (2000), Intimacy (2001), Vincent Gallo's The Brown Bunny (2003), and Michael Winterbottom's 9 Songs (2004). Some simulated sex scenes are sufficiently realistic that critics mistakenly believe they are real, such as the cunnilingus scene in the 2006 film Red Road.[9]

  1. ^ Hohendal, Kristin (1 July 2001). "Film Goes All the Way (In the Name of Art)". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 December 2010. Retrieved 29 November 2009.
  2. ^ Gerrard, Nicci (3 October 1999). "Coming soon to a cinema near you". Thihe Observer. London. Archived from the original on 12 March 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2009. Catherine Breillat's controversial French film, Romance, has just been given an 18 certificate by the British Board of Film Classification. It will be granted the respectability of mainstream cinemas round the country. It has been passed because it is 'philosophical', not pornographic. It is about sexual relationships, not an aid to sexual gratification.
  3. ^ Dirks, Tim. "History of Sex in Cinema: The Greatest and Most Influential Sexual Films and Scenes". Filmsite.org. American Movie Classic Company. Archived from the original on 10 January 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2009.
  4. ^ Cookney, Franki. "Porn Was Legalized 50 Years Ago, This Is How The Business Has Changed". Forbes. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  5. ^ Corliss, Richard (29 March 2005). "That Old Feeling: When Porno Was Chic". TIME. Archived from the original on 24 February 2016. Retrieved 4 December 2009.
  6. ^ Jensen, Michael (November 2006). "Legitimizing Illegitimacy: Identity Spaces and Markets for Illegitamate Products" (PDF). Organizations & Markets Workshop. Chicago Booth. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 December 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2009.
  7. ^ "Explicit Euro-sex test for British censors". The Guardian. London. 22 February 1999. Archived from the original on 4 February 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2009.
  8. ^ Wilmington, Michael (27 August 2001). "Graphic Sex Scenes on Film Causing Little Fuss—for Now". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 4 September 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2009.
  9. ^ Dalton, Stephen (7 October 2006). "Sealed with a Glasgow kiss". The Times. London. Retrieved 10 January 2010.[dead link‍]