Fifty Shades Darker: Confused? You Should be!

(SPOILER ALERT!)

This year for Valentine’s Day, my good friend Mikaela and I decided to have a girls night. Since her boyfriend goes to college three hours away, mine is nonexistent, and movies are five dollars on Tuesdays, we decided to catch the sequel to the supposedly “highly anticipated film of the year.” right before getting a few Fifty Shades Darker inspired drinks with cleaver names: “Dark Temptation” and “Forbidden Fruit,” I wonder how they come up with these names. Nevertheless, they did the trick and by the end I was exclaiming that this should be nominated for Best Film of the Year.

But did it live up to the hype?

Once again, spoil alert!

Mikaela and I saw the first film to together back in 2015. We don’t watch such films but somehow feel comfortable enough to watch this together. I’m assuming because we know we will both find it hilarious instead of uncomfortable. Of course, the first film was terrible, no surprise there. The film projecting a horrible ending that left me wondering, was that it?

This time the film developers decided to bring in a new director, James Foley. There’s a saying that I have in these situations- “New Director, New Perspective.” New Directors effects the film’s essence and ultimately how  the film’s message will be delivered. It’s all about the aesthetics, baby!

I was not familiar with James Foley’s work, but I was hoping he would bring this film them justice. The pervious director, Sam Taylor-Johnson’s style was similar to that of Twilight. It felt like an amateur film: cheap. In the other hand, James Foley is able to focus on an item and create it as theme. In this case, it was a white rose. The whole time  I am left wondering if it’s an innuendo.

For the most part the film’s scenes were predictable. It got to the point where I called it before it happened. The trick is, whenever a character is sad, crying, reflecting on a traumatic event, a erotic scene is bound to emerge. I can’t for the life of me understand how this can take place  after talking about witnessing their mother’s death at a young age. But it not limited there, intamate scenes also occurs after a a heavy argument when the infamous Christine Grey becomes verbally abusive a yells things like, “Where the (bleep) were you!” YIKES!

Nevertheless, we are finally introduce to the previous lovers of Christine Grey: (whose names are unimportant and forgettable) The submissive and the cougar who they refer to as “Mrs. Robison (Referencing The Graduate 1967) The submissive pulls out a guy and tries to kill Anastasia but fails (of course) and Mrs. Robinson becomes jealous and is asked to leave. There is also Anastasia boss who comes out of nowhere and is a now a main villain. But the big reveal is Christine sudden marriage proposal which is a HUGE red flag!

Anastasia is clearly in a controlling and abusive relationship, not to mention that fact that Christine Grey is only with her and wants to merry her because she bares an uncanny resembles to his deceased mother, whom he could not save. It also known that his previous submissive had the same features as Anastasia and his deceased mother: Brown hair, brown eyes, fair skin, and thin.

Overall:

It felt like a lifetime movie that could have shorten. At least the ending didn’t leave me confused.

Score: I would give this film a 1 out 10 sober and 5 out 10 inebriated (only because it gave me some great laughs)