FIFTY SHADES DARKER || As Fifty Shades Of Grey was nominated for an Academy Award this past year (Best Original Song by The Weeknd) , I had to push past my declaration to never see it. Like I’ve heard the books are, the film is borderline pornography, which paper-thin characters in an almost non-existent plot (that’s what you get from your “Twilight fan fiction”). Now, because the film made $166 million off a $40 million budget (and an opening weekend of $85 million over Valentines Day weekend… a record at the time which Deadpool would go on to demolish the following year with $132 million) the sequel is here, promising new character developments and a darker nature. This time, it does not appear to be about the virginal Anastasia and pushing her boundaries with Mr. Grey. This time, Mr. Grey is crawling back to her and all the rules are off the table. That means they can share a bed and as the trailer says “no more secrets.” But guess what, there are secrets, specifically regarding women who may have tried to turn Grey away from his BDSM before.
Dakota Johnson looks fine in the role, perhaps wearing a little too much makeup (in my personal opinion) but fitting the dresses nicely and delivering what passes for dialogue in the film, and this film will likely still make money, just as the Twilight franchise did. And despite passing the first one off completely (save for the Oscar nomination), I may actually even see this one, if only to see the gorgeous Dakota Johnson. But even the trailer feels slightly watered down and recycled, with the “Crazy In Love” redux from the original (by the original artist, Beyonce, mind you) is covered in much the same way by recording artist Miguel, to much less effect. Still, the imagery is glossy, the tuxes and dresses look sharp, and there’s apparently a masquerade theme this time around, as the both the trailer and poster clearly point out. So I guess, get ready to “slip into something a shade darker” come Valentines 2017.
Release Date: February 10, 2017
Directed By: James Foley (Sam Taylor-Johnson directed the previous)
