tomgillespie2002 Michael Winterbottom is one of the most important and challenging filmmakers around. Over the past couple of decades, he has directed a prolific stream of interesting features across a variety of genres, refusing to settle on a particular style and seemingly always working on a minuscule budget. But no filmmaker is immune to producing a stinker, and after a successful 2002 which saw the release of the excellent double-header of 24 Hour Party People and In This World, Winterbottom hit a grey patch with Code 46 and 9 Songs. He would push the boundaries of what could be tolerated in terms of cinematic violence in 2010 with the divisive The Killer Inside Me, but 6 years earlier he would test the BBFC's waters with 9 Songs, a film that may still be the most sexually explicit film ever to be released in British theatres.It tells the story of two lovers: Matt (Kieran O'Brien), a British scientist, and Lisa (Margo Stilley), an American exchange student. As the film opens, the couple have broken up and Matt is heading to Antarctica to conduct research and reflect on their doomed relationship. He remembers their time together through the sex they had, and they had a lot of it. 9 Songs quickly falls into a pattern: Sex scene, concert scene, and then a trip back to desolate mountains of Antarctica. They met at Brixton Academy and share a love of live music, so between the sex we get to experience the various gigs they go to - the 9 songs of the title - shot guerrilla-style from afar over the heads of the audience, which is pretty much how most of us experience a concert. The sex is passionate, spontaneous and exciting, but love is much harder. As it becomes clear to both of them that they won't be together forever, they employ blindfolds and handcuffs to spice things up, but nothing can mask the distance opening between them.Winterbottom doesn't shy away from explicitness. We get to see full penetration, oral sex and even a money shot - pretty much everything you would expect from a cheeky browse on Pornhub. But what separates 9 Songs from pornography is the complete lack of sensationalism. There is absolutely nothing arousing about the sex, despite the attractiveness of the two leads, and this is likely what convinced the BBFC to pass it uncut (it's 'art'). The problem with 9 Songs is that the idea is infinitely more interesting than the execution. This is an incredibly dull and repetitive film, made all the more of a chore to sit through by the two thinly-realised and rather annoying characters at the forefront. Winterbottom seems to be trying to say something profound by occasionally switching the action to the South Pole, but it comes across as allegory on the level of a student-film. The concert footage is filmed with the same grungy energy as 24 Hour Party People - one of my favourite Winterbottom films - so there's some relief to be found in performances by the likes of Primal Scream, Franz Ferdinand and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, if you're into that sort of thing.

agostino-dallas I understand the religion preaching about movies like this. After all, intimacy has the "in" to highlight that some parts of our adult lives should happen INsice 4 walls, a closed door, don't forget the shades in the window and mostly important...it must have a roof above you too (skylight should be OK if helicopters are not crossing your roof). Then you are all set for your sexual activity, which like I just described seems like you're going to kill someone. And maybe this movie is trying to say it out loud: "sex isn't a mortal crime and you're not going to rotten in hell and having your genitals pierced and speared by sadistic demons forever". That's how a Korean girl pictured it on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRzFIBXIUg8) because you had sex, lost of it. But, the thing is, sex can really be a passport to heaven or hell mostly in your mind than on your body and I mean it in a not religious context. Irresponsible sex can also screw you and your partner in a non pleasant way, physically!! Let's remind people that STD like AIDS has not stopped. In addition, it is very likely that a couple, especially married couple, will have issues in their relationship if the sex life is dull. We can look at it in many angles other than just preaching about what you see. Funny that "how you SEE it" makes the whole difference because a blind person would never that judgmental approach!! Anyway, try to be open to what that really means even if you just watch the trailer. have your own opinion and think that sex for sex, without love, will always be just sex, and that is usually dull over time.

hjames-97822 There's one thing you can say for good, professional pornography. It's honest. It doesn't pretend to be art and most of the people making good porn know what they are doing and know their audience.This film is amateurish pornography parading as an art film. It succeeds at neither, but it did effectively ruin Ms. Stilley's career. (This was her first effort on film.) Basically this is one sex scene after another strung together with some very loud dated rock concert footage. The wine and cheese crowd will try and find some meaning in this thing. There just isn't any. All--every single one--of the sexual scenes is real. The film is unrated. The British censors gave it a certificate because they said it was vulgar but not obscene. I agree.There are very few sex acts you will not see and in close up with these two actors who claimed (of course) that it was all for art. They were testing themselves, they were pushing limits, they were all professionals and on and one. They are unable to simply say they had sex on film for money. O'Brien was 31 and she was 21 and a new actress. Why she let herself get conned into this role is a mystery.While the two actors claimed they really, really wanted to test their limits, it turns out they had limits after all. The director wrote a scene in which Mr. O'Brien would have graphic gay sex with another male. He admits he decided he wasn't ready to get that artistic. You will also see Mr. O'Brien have a real orgasm in some detail assisted by Ms. Stilley. She however, declined to consume his bodily fluids as was suggested.As Mr. O'Brien said in an interview, "It's just sex." And bad sex at that.

Rusha C Honestly, when I came across the movie, I was attracted to its cover picture along with its title. Seriously, the way movie started was really fascinating. But as it went on gradually, it became disappointing since I found hardly any content in it. The plot seemed to have lost somewhere. Kieran O'Brien was good. Margo Stilley, however, could have given it a better shot. One thing I was hooked to it because of its music,9 rock songs. Otherwise there are many other better pornographic pictures made till date. It is not worth buying tickets for this movie. Otherwise, if you really don't have anything to do but fetish, watch it.Lol!