Unpop Culture

Film critic James Berardinelli recently performed a non-scientific survey of nudity in film and television, comparing various factors involving R-rated films and TV fare. What he found was this: since the year 2000, onscreen nudity in films has dropped significantly, while television (including cable, Netflix, and Amazon.com) has experienced an “explosion of adult-oriented content.” Says Berardinelli , …because the FCC lacks dominion over cable and Internet, there are no content restrictions. [For example,] Game of Thrones can have an exposition dump while naked characters are engaged in an orgy in the background. . . . The Internet essentially ruined the value of gratuitous nudity [in movies] because now anything in a theater seemed tame compared to what could be seen at home on a computer screen. Wise and winsome Christian commentary is essential in helping believers appropriately engage with our culture on this topic. Toward that end, I submit a recently-posted YouTube vi...

Game of Thrones seems to have it all: impressive storytelling, strong production values, gripping drama, enthralling intrigue, and shocking twists. This is no run-of-the-mill TV show. A ton of people, including many Christians, profess a love for the series. So, as a lover of speculative fiction myself, why haven’t I jumped on this bandwagon/love boat? The reason starts with one word: “Awkward”—actors often use this word when they refer to the filming of nude and sex scenes, and we can’t deny Game of Thrones has plenty of these. Yet many Christians find enough redemptive material in the show to watch it anyway. I’m among those who have reservations about the show’s graphic sexuality. But my problem isn’t ultimately that the sex and nudity are a potential stumbling block for those serious about moral purity. That issue is secondary . After all, we can shut our eyes or fast forward or use products like VidAngel to skip scenes that we find awkward. However, most ...

I had no idea just how much the number one thing I learned last year would affect this year’s output, or its popularity. Sex in the movies has been one of my biggest topics in 2014, and, except for one exception, all of my most popular posts this year dealt with the subject. I’m both honored and grateful that these ten articles have received greater exposure (no pun intended). We in the church would do well to utilize the “ law of love ” more often in our movie-watching and filmmaking habits. Counting our way up, here are this year’s top ten blog posts at Happier Far . 10. It Doesn’t Matter If Actors Willingly Undress for the Camera . It’s true that some actors in Hollywood seem to have no qualms about shooting nude and/or sex scenes. Such willing consent is, to some, undeniable proof of freedom and beauty. I’ve argued against this mindset elsewhere, but here I attempt to prove something foreign to modern sensibilities: such willingness is actually a moot point. 9. Is th...

We’ve gotten it into our heads that the sexuality on display in sex scenes isn’t “real.” Since intercourse (usually) doesn’t take place 1 ; and since the costars are (sometimes) not in an off-screen relationship, and therefore wouldn’t participate in such actions otherwise; and because film sets are (occasionally) sparsely populated during intimate scenes in an attempt to maintain professionalism, such actions shouldn’t be labeled as sexual. Let me share a simple illustration that helps us clear away the fog. In a recent Facebook discussion, I saw one lady make an astute observation (which I have only slightly edited): If you come upon your wife and she’s covered in “blood” and writhing on the ground while someone stands over her with a bloody sword, and then she sees you and says, “Oh, we’re just cosplaying and this is raspberry syrup,” you’d laugh and say, “Wow, that was realistic.” Whereas if she were naked with some guy and they were swapping spit and rubbing up on eac...

In recent online discussions related to Hollywood’s secret rape culture , I’ve come into contact with some delightfully likeminded individuals like E. Stephen Burnett , Editor at Speculative Faith . While we may not see eye to eye on all the related issues, we are still, as Stephen has said, “allied on what really matters.” Because the pornification of mainstream entertainment involves principles and practices that really do matter, I wanted to share a recent conversation I had with Stephen. Or, more honestly, this is a conversation in which Stephen said a lot of great things, and I wanted to share them with my audience. I’m still mulling over some of what he said, and my approach to questionable entertainment may still likely differ from his own. Nevertheless, I genuinely appreciate the integrity of his beliefs: how he desires to apply Biblical wisdom to controversial topics like this, and how his convictions have encouraged and challenged me. Below is a segment of our online co...

Several years ago, Kate Beckinsale was conned into signing a movie contract that required nudity—something she didn’t want to do. With her acting career in jeopardy, she found herself browbeaten by the director. “I was really disturbed and I was sobbing and begging,” she said . At long last, she gave in to intimidation and performed the nude scene, which made her feel “violated and horrible.” Afterwards, she secretly urinated in the director’s thermos in revenge. In the realm of television, actress Ruta Gedmintas faced her first sex scene for the HBO show The Tudors . “I was absolutely terrified and had no idea what was going on,” she later said . “I cried afterwards because I was thinking, ‘This isn't acting, what am I doing? My mum's going to see this.’” Would you believe me if I told you that stories like these are numerous? Sadly, it’s true. The amount of pressure and intimidation Hollywood places on actors—especially women—to undress for the camera is commonplace...

Have you heard of the word “sexposition”? The term was initially coined to describe the superfluous use of raunchy material in the HBO show Game of Thrones . While it’s universally acknowledged that the series has copious amounts of explicit sexuality, plenty of people are watching it. (Maybe I should say “because” instead of “while.”) Christians make up a percentage of the audience as well. E. Stephen Burnett recently posted a refreshingly forthright article on the matter: But “Game of Thrones” Still Has Porn In It . He points our gaze to the proverbial elephant in the room: Filmmakers and actors can simulate violence, simulate language, simulate other sinful behaviors. But to show nakedness and sex you can only actually 1) be naked and 2) feign to have sex. And let’s spare only a few details here: Unless the actor is himself/herself a goodness-of-the-body-denying, emotionless Gnostic Platonic ideal-person rather than a live human being, he/she will have physical and emotiona...