I tried not to get wrapped up in the debates surrounding the 50 Shades phenomena, however I have seen one too many Facebook updates of people being excited to go and see the film and just have to say my piece.
I saw a post on Tumblr the other day that simply read "50 Shades of Grey; showing that domestic abuse among straight couples is still more accepted than healthy relationships between gay couples". While there are definitely arguments against this, such a controversial statement may well have a point.
The reason so many people are finding a problem with 50 Shades is the issue of consent. Many people argue that 50 Shades of Grey glamorises abuse and rape, twisting scenarios that would be threatening in the real world so that they are exciting in the fictional world. This can lead to the lines being blurred (no pun on a terrible offensive song meant) and for people to misinterpret boundaries when it comes to sex. While 50 Shades fans defend the threatening behaviour in the story as a dom-sub relationship, real people who exist in such relationships recognise flaws in the fictional relationship that could prove to be dangerous.
In the porn industry, women are often portrayed as submissive objects and are often treated with violence. This too has negative consequences, as the younger generation consuming pornography can develop unhealthy and unrealistic attitudes towards sex. Some people have campaigned against the pornography industry, however others argue that they do not agree with such censorship.
Bringing such unconventional sexual behaviour into mainstream culture, 50 Shades of Grey was "bound" to cause controversy. While I know where I stand in terms of my attitude towards this film, I know that others will be polarised in the opposite direction, being of the attitude that the film is bohemian, exciting and breaking down barriers and taboo subjects. I feel more need to be done to define what consent is and what it means, and I think it will be interesting if this film changes people's perception of what they think consent is.
Some other blog posts on this issue:
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