Fifty Shades Darker, the second installment of E.L. James’ erotic romance novel franchise, takes moviegoers on a journey through the terrifying and dysfunctional past of Christian Grey and loving, open, and semi honest relationship he’s worked so hard to regain with Anastasia Steele.
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I thought I’d take my husband to see Fifty Shades Darker and kickstart our celebration early. While we enjoyed seeing the movie (any movie for that matter) without our daughter in tow, and felt slightly uncomfortable watching softcore sex scenes while sitting next to complete strangers (many of whom, I must mention, may have been over 70 years old), we were less than enthused by the pace of the movie and how abruptly many scenes ended.
If you ask me, the movie felt rushed, but I said the same exact thing about Fifty Shades of Grey. If you ask my husband he would say, “the movie didn’t have a plot. There were so many moments when I thought, ‘, now, this could get interesting,’ and then the scene ended.”
One would think we would have left the movie theatre feeling aroused, but instead, the movie concluded with us debating its structural issues and how poor Jamie Dornan’s performance was in such a dominant role.
The chemistry between Dakota Johnson, who plays Anastasia Steele, and Jamie Dornan, who plays Christian Grey, is undeniable; but it seemed like Dornan was given fewer lines this time around, and instead of speaking, he filled the void with blank stares, lip curls, and heavy nose and mouth breathing. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a prime male specimen, but casting him in this role never ceases to amaze me.
I know books and movies rarely align, but there are many key points in the books where the plot thickens and leaves readers flipping through pages as quickly as possible on a quest to find out what happens next. This film, however, won’t keep me (or my husband) awake at night wondering about what’s to come of the relationship between Ana and Mr. Grey on the big screen.
The third film, Fifty Shades Freed, is set to be released on February 9, 2018.
Movie times: click here
Genre: Drama, Romance
Director: James Foley
Actors: Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Eric Johnson, Marcia Gay Harden
Rating: R (for strong erotic sexual content, some graphic nudity, and language)
Running Time: 1 hour 58 minutes
