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Does erotic fiction corrupt us into
performing sexual acts, or does it unlock a healthy curiosity? Thus is
the question in “The Chatterly Affair,” a fascinating imagining of the
consequences behind the controversial novel, “Lady Chatterly's Lover.”
What entails the film is not only the indictment of a book, but the
indictment of sexual freedom and expression under the hand of puritans
who somehow can not explore the novel without blushing. D.H. Lawrence
was ahead of his time depicting folks loving sex, and speaking in such a
vulgar manner, which was not completely off, in spite of the façade the
conservative society implied. This has happened all through society, in
spite of the fictional settings, and it continues to happen. People feel
that their sexual experiences and their joy for sex should not be
explored, nor explained. For reasons not fully known beyond the utter
stigma placed on sex.
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Why do we cringe at sexual descriptions? Why
do we blush at the prospect of sexual exploration, and seek
to destroy or scrutinize anyone who finds no bane in it?
Sex, between a man and a woman, man and a man, or woman and
a woman is a beautiful thing, and “The Chatterly Affair”
explores how such a concept shouldn’t be radical or thought
to be a corrupt notion. Sex is natural, and only dirty when
you do it right, as a wise man once said.
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And “The Chatterly Affair” is both utterly
thought provoking and quaint, while daring to challenge the audience’s
notion of depraved and or immoral.
Are two people sleeping together in marriage
more or less depraved than two people having an affair? Why? Does erotic
fiction rot our minds, or does it just allow us to feel much more
liberated and open in the sense of sexuality? Writer Davies manages to
evoke so many questions and, for the observant audience, topics for
debate about sex and society, while Hawes’ direction presents a glossy
atmosphere within the lives of the two jurors who find themselves
seduced by the novel and end up in a tangled affair with one another, in
attempts to both liven up their own private lives, and become as
adventurous as the events in the book depict. It’s a well done drama
with the backdrop of moral debate, and I was thrown by it.
Fiction both of the erotic and fantastic
unlocks our imaginations, and whether it can be considered corruption is
debatable. “The Chatterly Affair” dares to raise that debate in an
entertaining view of one of the most controversial novels of all time.
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