[UPDATE: Alex B. pointed out that Dafoe actually had a dick double for Antichrist. I was under the impression that Gainsbourgh and him did all of their own sexy stuff, but also found that the shot of the penetration was done with porn actors. This still doesn't take away from the fact they used unsimulated sex in the movie, though. I think my question still stands about whether this is a selling point.
Also, Nate K. posted the box office earnings along with the budget of Antichrist (you can check the numbers in the comments section). This was the commercial success I remember it being, but it has been included in the Criterion collection. That inclusion tells me that a lot of people with good taste think highly of this flick, and I think being stamped with the Criterion logo makes it a success.]
Willem Dafoe has now joined Lars Von Trier's newest movie, Nymphomaniac. Shia LeBeouf signed on early in pre-production and has been publicly announcing that he is more than willing to participate in the unsimulated sex. The same gimmick that (in my opinion) fueled the success of Antichrist, Von Trier's 2009 flick.
My question to all of you is whether the real sex is a valid selling point. It's not unheard of, Vincent Gallo was famous for the fellatio scene in his 2003 movie, The Brown Bunny. That one--on the other hand--is a little more unnerving considering Gallo wrote, directed, and starred in the flick where Chloe Sevigny gave him head. I can only imagine the conversation before hand.
"Okay, Chloe, you're going to have to give the star a blow job. For real," Gallo-director says.
"For real? As in, actually putting the star's penis in my mouth?" Sevigny clarifies.
"Well, yeah. It's in the script. I want to do the brilliant writing justice." Gallo-director says.
"Okay. I mean, I guess I did sign on for his."
"Great! Let's shoot this scene!" Gallo-star says.
When I watched Antichrist I was a little off-put by the close-up penetration. It didn't add anything to the story for me and was more distracting to the overall effect of that scene. I thought it was beautifully shot, but couldn't shake the image of a wiener just ramming in there. Was the movie good? I didn't think so, but that is easily arguable. I know a lot of people who really liked it. Did the real sex have an added effect? Again, I don't think so. But this time, I think supporters of the movie would be hard-pressed to convince me otherwise. I think it was a shock gimmick to get people into the theatre.
So I was bummed when I saw that the crazy old Hitler sympathizer was at it again with Nymphomaniac.
So I ask:
Is this an actual selling point driving people to buy tickets?
Maybe it worked the first time, but is it going to work again?
How far can you really take artistic pornography?
