Hey kids, I think it’s time we have “the talk,” you know, about S-E-X. Okay, no, we’re not going to do that. But do you remember what that experience was like? Did you have it? Who was more uncomfortable, you or your parents? These are the basic questions when it comes to that talk. To be honest, when my folks called me for it, I just told them it wasn’t necessary, since I’d already learned that at school. Now, I don’t know if my school was kind of progressive, so it taught us about sex quite early, or if my parents just took too long to try and impart us some sexual wisdom (yeah, that doesn’t sound quite good). The thing is that even when I had those sex-ed lessons at school, I already knew some things about it. I wasn’t really that young. I was probably about twelve when my friends and I would giggle about it, and what it may feel like. I’m not going to go in to too many details, but what’s interesting is that all we knew (nothing really) came from the choreographed scenes appearing in movies. I’m not talking about porn or very explicit movies, but those scenes in box office films like Titanic.
Now, it’s not like everyone experiences their sexual awakening thanks to the movies they watch. But, let’s think for a moment about how this arousing blossoming has been portrayed in films. Generally, but not exclusively, this theme is developed in stories about teenagers exploring their sexual drives and how they deal with it. Nowadays these films have become more popular and most of them explore the idea in a very cliché manner. It’s either the story of the rebellious kid who “matures” too soon, or the one of the troubled child who channels their frustration through sex, parties, and other “adult” activities. However, this is a subject that many filmmakers have dealt with in their works. Here are five movies that portray sexual awakening in a deeper way.
Heavenly Creatures (1994) Dir. Peter Jackson
This film, based on a true events that happened in a small town in New Zealand during the fifties, revolves around two girls who meet at school and develop an intense friendship where they create a fantastical world. In this alternative reality, both girls are the royal couple of a realm where no one can tell them what to do or how to behave. Soon, through these fantasies, they explore their sexuality with each other and end up in a romance that will lead them to trespass the limits of the fantasy. As they’re willing to do anything to be together, they end up dealing with plenty of consequences.
Bang Gang (A Modern Love Story) (2016) Dir. Eva Husson
A group of kids decide they want to engage in sexual activities in the wildest possible way. Their plan is to host a sex party at the house of one of them and live stream it on a secret website, so they can share it later. At the party, they play a sort of “spin the bottle” where they’re challenged to either consume drugs or share an intimate moment with each other. This, naturally, is a critique against the apathy that many young people show nowadays, making it seem like there’s not a bright future for our generation. In that way, that violent and abrupt sexual awakening shows a reality many are experiencing.
À ma sœur! (2001) Dir. Catherine Breillat
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHRJRbM2EAg
Two teenage sisters talk about how they wish their first sexual encounter to be like. The older one, a beautiful girl, dreams of meeting the love of her life and losing her virginity with him. The youngest, a little overweight girl, who looks as if her physical look has made her bitter, thinks the opposite, that men are creepy and that she wants to have sex with someone she doesn’t really care about. Soon, during a vacation trip with their brother, the romantic one will meet a young Italian man with whom she will explore her sexual desires. However, she’s not the only one who will experience a sexual awakening, since the little sister will also discover this by witnessing her elder sister’s relationship.
North Sea Texas (2012) Dir. Bavo Defurne
A teenager, who feels he’s quite different from other boys his age, starts a friendship with his neighbor that will soon make him experience excitement like never before. Keeping it a secret from his family and close ones, both boys will soon discover their sexuality in the company of the other, not with all the problems this relationship might bring to them, including the protagonist’s dysfunctional family.
Belle de Jour (1967) Dir. Luis Buñuel
Experiencing a sexual awakening doesn’t necessarily refer to our first sexual encounter, and this Luis Buñuel film is quite an example of this. This film is the story of a woman who has been married for a while but doesn’t experience her sexuality in a passionate way with her husband, until she starts having a double life as a prostitute and soon engages in surreal (I mean it’s Buñuel) fantasies where all her drives blossom in masochistic scenes.
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