Beyond the Secretary...

[sincerely_helene]

I'm not sure if any are as obsessed with movies involving aspects of mind control as myself, but I thought I would give this one a go anyway. Essentially, its just a list thread. If this has already been done, could someone please be so kind as to provide a link?

I'll start off with a personal favorite of mine:
Dangerous Liasons

This is a MUST see for anyone who enjoys a good mental orgasm. The classic version is availible in both French and English, and takes on a more serious tone than the others.

For those who prefer a little more humour with their Liasons, give the John Malkovich version a shot. They pretty much butcher the English language, but aside from that it's still well worth the watch (and you get to see Uma Thurman's boobies.)

For Colin Firth fans (like myself,) check him out in "Valmont." Same storyline, different jokes, a more British take.

I'm hesistant to list "Cruel Intentions," (as I have not yet seen it,) however, I have been told it is yet another telling, but with a modern day spin.

The second at the top of my manipulation list would have to be:
Girl with a Pearl Earring,

... and comes with a strong warning: Men, you are likely to fall asleep.

Yes, it is a bit of a chick flick, but also one of the best examples of a dominant controling a submissive without any real physical contact. Even despite the absense of sex and nudity, it still ranks higher on the arousal scale than any porn I have seen.

This one stars Colin Firth as famed painter Vermeer, and is essentially just a possible theory into the history behind his most acclaimed masterpiece.

 

[TaintedB]

I love recommendations threads of all sorts: movies, books, music, so I hope people keep posting. Is the idea to list movies that have a power-exchange or kinky feel to them? If so, a kinky cult classic that was not intended to be a kinky cult classic is Closet Land. It's old, but worth digging for a copy to see.

I never saw Dangerous Liasons. What was "of interest to this audience" about it?

 

[sincerely_helene]

I love recommendations threads of all sorts: movies, books, music, so I hope people keep posting. Is the idea to list movies that have a power-exchange or kinky feel to them? If so, a kinky cult classic that was not intended to be a kinky cult classic is Closet Land. It's old, but worth digging for a copy to see.

I never saw Dangerous Liasons. What was "of interest to this audience" about it?

Hi Tainted! Thanks for the reply. Yes, the idea is movies that have a power-exchange feel to them. Intially, the intent was was primarily those which demonstrated a degree of mental control, but I see no reason why physical bondage and discipline favorites can't be listed as well. Both genres are difficult to come by unless you accidentally stumble across them in the movie store. That was how I found the two I previously mentioned.

Dangerous Liasons is basically about a man and woman who get off on manipulating others. For their latest challenge, they decide to place a wager on whether or not it will be possible for the smooth-talking Valmont (the leading man) to bed a passionate, but virginal heiress who's heart already belongs to another. If he suceeds before the eve of her arranged marraige, the lady with whom he places the bet (a previous wife and longtime obssession for Valmont) will give herself to him eternally.

It's hard for me to answer your question about why it appealed to me, beyond that it explores such a profound level of dominance from an angle that far surpasses the typical BDSM kink scenario. If you have ever seen or read Lolita, you might have a better understanding of what I am meaning.

 

[sigsauerprinces]

sincerely_helene-i adore colin firth have you seen fever pitch? its good and he's really really good in it... also love actually, he's good in that.

cruel intentions is one of my favorite movies ever, i'd highly recommend it

 

[AngelicAssassin]

A B movie ~ Abandon

Because the ending/revelation came on so fast, you got the feeling the writer realized the script had hit the 90 minute mark and felt had to stop for the concept to sell. That or the edit room had a boatload of dénouement laying all over the floor. Let's see "suggested by the book Adam's Fall ~ Sean Desmond." Might have to pick up the book to see what got lost in translation from page to screen.

 

[sincerely_helene]

sincerely_helene-i adore colin firth have you seen fever pitch? its good and he's really really good in it... also love actually, he's good in that.

cruel intentions is one of my favorite movies ever, i'd highly recommend it

My friends often mock my longtime obsession with Colin. All I have to do is see him on the cover of a movie case, and I have made my decision for the evenings rental. "Love Actually" was the first time I had ever seen anything of his, and just hours later I found myself on the "Blockbusters" website printing out a copy of every movie he ever appeared in. I have not yet seen "Fever Pitch," and I'm running out of Firth material at a rapid rate. I will likely make it next on my list before I resort to his made for TV specials (I hear he starred in a remake of "Pride and Prejudice."

I finally saw "Cruel Intentions," and admit that I was somewhat dissapointed. Maybe I was just expecting too much because they did such a fantastic job with the other three versions of Liasons. Won't say it was the worst movie I have ever seen, but comparitivly speaking, I was a little suprised. I rolled my eyes at the irrelevant lesbian kissing scene, and they made one of my favorite characters come off like an obnoxious b movie airhead! I'll probably still end up renting the sequels, though.

Thanks for the Firth recommendation!

 

[sincerely_helene]

Re: A B movie ~ Abandon

Because the ending/revelation came on so fast, you got the feeling the writer realized the script had hit the 90 minute mark and felt had to stop for the concept to sell. That or the edit room had a boatload of dénouement laying all over the floor. Let's see "suggested by the book Adam's Fall ~ Sean Desmond." Might have to pick up the book to see what got lost in translation from page to screen.

Never even heard of that one. I'll have to look it up. Thanks for contributing.

 

[snowy ciara]

<snippage> (I hear he starred in a remake of "Pride and Prejudice."
<end snippage >

Ooooh... You have to get it. There's a scene where he dives into the lake, which isn't so great, just a guy diving into a lake. But then of course, he has to get out of the lake. Think fluffy white shirt and breeches plastered to a nice bod by water. Nice bit of eye candy, there.

 

[MastrJ]

As a guy, I'm not all that taken with Colin Firth as eye candy, but I have to admit I really enjoy him in the movies I've seen. Love Actually was great. I also liked him in Bridget Jone's Diary. I haven't seen the more period pieces he's done, but I plan on it some weekend I have off and nothing better to do.

The fact that all of you women gushing over him gives me hope that women actually like a slightly bungling but well meaning man.

 

[snowy ciara]

Going on the Colin Firth Hijack.. I can't remember if it was in "Bridget Jones' Diary" or if it was in "Edge of Reason", but Bridget had a major thing for Colin Firth. (Remember the interview in Rome. HEE!) I find it terribly ironic in a good way that he was in the movie..

 

[incubus'_sub]

LOL Helene, one of our businesses is a video shop and we have a poster of the girl with a pearl on the door at the moment. I think of you whenever I see it. I've watched a bit of the movie, but must say it was putting me to sleep as well. Colin Firth apparently doesn't do it for me, although did he play the horse blinding boy in Equus years ago?? As a horse breeder & owner that may have put me off somewhat.

James Spader does it for me, lonnngggg before Secretary (which I didn't much like either). I loved his character in Sex Lies & Videotape and there's another fairly weird movie of his about people who reenact fatal car crashes.

I'm loving The Practice at the moment too. The big clue is that James Spader & Incubus are so alike in looks that they could be clones, although Incubus is more vivid in his colouring, darker eyes, brighter hair. The character in The Practice is so like him that even Incubus himself can see it, a similar warped view of the world and a very strong personal morality which may or may not coincide with the law of the land.

 

[sincerely_helene]

Ok! Due to popular demand, I'm officially changing this to the "Favorite Mind-control/Colin Firth/James Spader Movie of all Time Thread." Absolutely no complaints here!

SNOWY: I recall a similar creek scenario in "Valmont," one of the afore mentioned "Dangerous Liasons" versions. Even as positively horrendous as he looked with his long hair and skinnny frame, (the film was shot some time back,) his portrayal still quite more than redeemed him in my eyes. (puuuuuuurrr.)

I very much eagerly <<insert pant here>> await the forthcoming Jone's sequel.

MASTRJ: Unfortunete for you, most of his period pieces are more geared towards feminine tastes. Here is a list of all the ones I can recall at present time, in case you still wish to give them a try. A couple of them I have already listed prior.
Girl With a Pearl Earring: as previously mentioned, is not for everyone.
Valmont: Also previously mentioned. I'm far too biased to offer a fair assessment. I would think most of the male gender would find it too "wordy." Nothing blows up.
Pride and Predjudice: Haven't yet seen.
Circle of Friends: The only film of which even I won't rent because the back of the cover nearly put me to sleep.
The Importance of Being Earnest: MIGHT BE ONE YOU COULD ACTUALLY ENJOY! It still has that "English," romantic flair, but with a little humour. Not the best acting, yet hearing Colin Firth and Rupert Everest Attempt to sing "Lady Come Down" more than makes up for it.

P.S. If you study him enough, and brush up on your accent, you will have 'em lining up at your doorstep!

INCUBUS'_sub: You should not have told me about the poster! I understand that most of the time such promotional props get tossed in the trash after their time has passed, which especially annoys me after an evening of staring at my naked walls.

Don't feel bad about falling asleep. I FORCED my best friend to watch it and she wound up sawing logs within the first ten minutes. I only know of one other who actually enjoyed the movie as much as I.

I don't recall a blind horse guy, but I do remember he had a role in "The Secret Garden" during his younger days.

I'm a bit of a Spader fan, too. I recall him mostly from his "Day's of our Lives," and "Pretty in Pink" phase. Even though I'm not particularly keene on blond hair, I wouldn't kick him out of bed for eating crackers. He plays the bad boy well. The only thing I don't get: tonight I tried to watch what I thought was "The Practice," but it turned out the show was actually called "Boston Investigation" or something to that effect. Did they change the name, or does he star in two series' now?

P.S. Is the movie you are thinking of titled "Crash?"
I might give Sex, lies, and Videotape a go.

 

[incubus'_sub]

OMG, was he in Days of Our Lives?? Tells you how long it is since I've watched that, although I was a fan when I was pregnant with my son, (he's now 30). These days I catch Bold & Beautiful occasionally, my favourite is Brooke, for some reason I identify with her & like to think I'm quite similar in looks.

Incubus is actually a dark brown eyed redhead, with very vivid dark red/auburn hair, so not a blonde. If you go back & search for one of his posts there's a photo with a flame background & yes, that's him. The facial features are very similar, even down to the cleft chin & the ATTITUDE is the same. DOM !!

The guy in Equus wasn't blind himself, he mutilated horses by blinding them, but I think it was one of Colin Firth's first big movies.

No, The Practice is The Practice, the last series & he plays Alan Shore in it, a lawyer rather loose with the law but big on what's right. Yes, the movie was called Crash & although most of it wasn't brilliant I loved James in it. Rent Sex Lies & Videotape. It's a bit slow, definately a chick flick, but Hell, I wish I had the chance to tell my story for him. mmmmmmmm !!!!

You are welcome to the poster, PM me your address if you'd like it. Promise I won't stalk you LOL LOL.

 

[sincerely_helene]

OMG, was he in Days of Our Lives?? Tells you how long it is since I've watched that, although I was a fan when I was pregnant with my son, (he's now 30). These days I catch Bold & Beautiful occasionally, my favourite is Brooke, for some reason I identify with her & like to think I'm quite similar in looks.

Incubus is actually a dark brown eyed redhead, with very vivid dark red/auburn hair, so not a blonde. If you go back & search for one of his posts there's a photo with a flame background & yes, that's him. The facial features are very similar, even down to the cleft chin & the ATTITUDE is the same. DOM !!

The guy in Equus wasn't blind himself, he mutilated horses by blinding them, but I think it was one of Colin Firth's first big movies.

No, The Practice is The Practice, the last series & he plays Alan Shore in it, a lawyer rather loose with the law but big on what's right. Yes, the movie was called Crash & although most of it wasn't brilliant I loved James in it. Rent Sex Lies & Videotape. It's a bit slow, definately a chick flick, but Hell, I wish I had the chance to tell my story for him. mmmmmmmm !!!!

You are welcome to the poster, PM me your address if you'd like it. Promise I won't stalk you LOL LOL.

Hello again, Incubus'_sub! Believe it or not, he used to play Jen's love interest years back. I think I was in my pre-teens at the time, and I haven't indulged in a single soap opera since.

Rest assured, I'm on my way to peruse the profiles after your recommendation.

Here is something special just for you! http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-25525/ I'm not really insane, the series truely does exist!

 

[MastrJ]

MASTRJ: Unfortunete for you, most of his period pieces are more geared towards feminine tastes. Here is a list of all the ones I can recall at present time, in case you still wish to give them a try. A couple of them I have already listed prior.
Girl With a Pearl Earring: as previously mentioned, is not for everyone.
Valmont: Also previously mentioned. I'm far too biased to offer a fair assessment. I would think most of the male gender would find it too "wordy." Nothing blows up.
Pride and Predjudice: Haven't yet seen.
Circle of Friends: The only film of which even I won't rent because the back of the cover nearly put me to sleep.
The Importance of Being Earnest: MIGHT BE ONE YOU COULD ACTUALLY ENJOY! It still has that "English," romantic flair, but with a little humour. Not the best acting, yet hearing Colin Firth and Rupert Everest Attempt to sing "Lady Come Down" more than makes up for it.

P.S. If you study him enough, and brush up on your accent, you will have 'em lining up at your doorstep!

Actually I quite enjoy period pieces when I'm in the right mood. I even read Dickens for enjoyment. I know you didn't give it high votes, but I loved Dangerous Liasons. I'll definitely keep my out for Valmont. I should hang my head in shame as a Theatre Minor, but I've never even read much less seen a production of Earnest.

I've stayed away from Pride and Prejudice mostly because of, well, prejudice. I know enough about the genre of the story to not really want to deal very much with it. As a movie I'd be more willing to give it a go though.

By the way, my accent is pretty good. It tends a bit towards the toff, but it's a good accent. I can even flavor it with a continental flair after studying three of the European languages in college.

P.S. James Spader rocks. But the role I really like him in other than his 80's films is Stargate.

 

[sincerely_helene]

Actually I quite enjoy period pieces when I'm in the right mood. I even read Dickens for enjoyment. I know you didn't give it high votes, but I loved Dangerous Liasons. I'll definitely keep my out for Valmont. I should hang my head in shame as a Theatre Minor, but I've never even read much less seen a production of Earnest.

Wow! I'm not at all sure how you arrived at the conclusion that "Liasons" didn't meet with my approval. The whole inspiration behind this thread was to promote it, as it is one of my favorite all time movies.

 

[sigsauerprinces]

sex lies and videotape is a GREAT movie, well worth renting

i'm going to assume no one in this thread would object to me posting a few colin firth pics?

http://www.heavenlyrain.net/cf1.jpg

http://www.heavenlyrain.net/cf2.jpg

 

[sincerely_helene]

sex lies and videotape is a GREAT movie, well worth renting

i'm going to assume no one in this thread would object to me posting a few colin firth pics?

Yea, right. Like I'm going to dispute THAT!

 

[shyslyone]

i'm going to assume no one in this thread would object to me posting a few colin firth pics?

You certainly won't get any objection from me!! I adore Colin Firth. I fell in love with him in "Bridget Jones" and can't wait for the sequel (although it won't be AS good if I don't get to see him beat the crap out of Hugh Grant again - maybe they can work in another scene like that somehow - lol).

He even makes a teen-flick like "What a Girl Wants" tolerable - and that's saying a LOT!

 

[snowy ciara]

Oooh! I'd forgotten about Circle of Friends. I loved it, too. I was a bit pissed caused they changed the ending from the book. (Not gonna go into here, cause I don't want to ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it yet. PM me if you want it.)

Please don't throw rotten tomatoes at me or anything, but I'm not a big James Spader fan. He just doesn't do it for me. Kait refers to him as "the Accidental Dom". Helene, it looks like the show you found was the spin off from the practice. It's called Boston Legal . It stuck in my head, cause I saw a commercial for it and I was shocked and astounded. He's co starring with James T. Kirk! I mean, William Shatner.

 

[InnerDarkness]

James Spader does it for me, lonnngggg before Secretary (which I didn't much like either). I loved his character in Sex Lies & Videotape and there's another fairly weird movie of his about people who reenact fatal car crashes.

The first Spader movie that made me fall in love with him was Tuff Turf. 1985....loved him then, fell in love with him again after Secretary.

 

[InnerDarkness]

Dangerous Liaisons

I love this movie...it is on my top 10 best movies of all times. I don't know if there is one particular scene that does it for me above all others, but if there were one, it would be the scene where Valmont is leaving Marie de Tourvel after he finally had her and she now loves him. He is leaving and just keeps saying over and over, "It is beyond my control". I am on the edge of my seat EVERY time despite having seen in a zillion times already!

I saw Cruel Intentions with Sarah Michelle Geller and it was NOT as good....but did have some basic kink to it that was exciting to me. I DID NOT spend the 2.50 to rent Cruel Intentions 2 however.

 

[InnerDarkness]

oh and...

and apparantly I missed Cruel Intentions 3...

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0391891/

 

[incubus'_sub]

Thanks Helene. I wonder how long it will take the spin off show to reach Australia. The Practice is very popular here so hopefully they'll follow it up.

 

[MastrJ]

Wow! I'm not at all sure how you arrived at the conclusion that "Liasons" didn't meet with my approval. The whole inspiration behind this thread was to promote it, as it is one of my favorite all time movies.

I must have mis-read something while half-asleep or just didn't adequately express myself. I was under the impression (perhaps totally and completely wrong) that while you enjoyed it there was a different version of the story that you felt was much better.

For me the worst part of Liasons was when Keaneau Reeves shows up. As he's standing on the frozen moat/river calling up to the windows I just always expect him to punctuate his sentences with a proper 'dude'.