This was an adult film choice? Nope. It was an insult.
It is a foreign film with subtitles and if this is some of the best Lesbian filmmaking has to offer than the USA needs to provide better adult entertainment. This film was more about pedophilia than sexuality (click on).
Evidently being young is being sexy in "Spider Lillies." Not ! I found it disturbing from the point of view of the 'youngness' of the actors. The story line was fine considering this was Japan which is chronically traumatized by earthquakes. The story line, as with many porn flicks, was simple and tragic to win empathy for the characters if not the subject, however, the youthfulness of the actors/actresses was similar to that of Olympic gymnastics. The day is gone when adults actually participate.
The film could not be rated as X either. It has no frank sexual encounters one would expect with erotica. Most of the film contained suggestion of sexual content rather than actual sexual scenes. The reason, at least to me, was obvious; there were undertones of pedophilia. The 'Barbie dolls,' the child living with her grandparent, all the childhood scenes in reflection of the loss of parents; all captured a fascination for young teens rather than sexual encounters with adults. The actual age of the 'most' actors was no doubt 18 years or older, however, all the characters were younger than the age of majority left to find solice in sexual expression or violence as an answer to being parentless. Some of the images of characters were reflected by consenting children in mimicking behaviors of sexual objects, green hair wigs and the like.
I found the choice for the film festival insulting to what I deem responsible filmmaking for adults seriously interested in love, love affairs and erotica. The choice reflected far to young an actor to take the sexuality seriously. The characters were stereotyped with males being violent and females being passive and 'flowery.' I thought the youthfulness of the actors was concerning to the type of film that might be available to the Lesbian community of the USA. In fact, there was audience reaction reflecting arousal by the film content. That didn't make my uncomfortable so much as I found it unsettling to the 'fantasy' associated with such youth and adult reaction.
It seemed all to clear to me the adults of the Lesbian community need filmmakers that care about their sexuality and appropriate expression of real love stories rather than erotica that serves poorly the sexual maturity of the audience which is obviously seeking entertainment in prestigious threater. When adults are told this is a film worth considering as a reflection of their sexual identity, then without a forum to demand differently in a society that is still seeking to oppress marriage among Lesbians, then the oppression of that adult expression will become an aspect of their reality. I was simply outraged at the choice for these women by the film festival. I want adult sexual content for American Lesbians reflective of the depth of their character and desire.
