We have long assumed that Hollywood workers simply do not have enough imagination to create new masterpieces and, in musical terms, they take a recognized hit as a basis and make a remix out of it.

Actually, now we will show and tell you everything ... Remember how spicy novels for adults by E.L. James? But the writer claimed that all her plots and images are original. Yeah, we, of course, believed, but double-checked. And it turned out that there are more similarities than differences!

"50 shades of grey": The protagonist of the frank drama, Christian Gray, is a very attractive 27-year-old billionaire with his own secret, or rather, shrouded in a veil of secrets, and madly in love with the main character.

"Twilight": The protagonist of the vampire saga, Edward Cullen, is also handsome, wealthy, with no less secrets and secrets, and lost his head in love with the main character, but only 10 years younger!

"50 shades of grey": The main character of the novel by E.L. James Anastasia Steele is a completely ordinary girl who loves to read books, and does not notice how she bites her lips all the time. After meeting the main character, she not only falls in love with him, but becomes obsessed with him.

"Twilight": It seems that here you can simply take and copy the previous paragraph. Don't you think so?

"50 shades of grey": Yes, we remember that Jose Rodriguez is Anastacia's best friend, who takes care of her and suffers from unrequited love.

"Twilight": Is it worth recalling how her best friend Jacob cared for and worried about Bella, who, for the sake of the happiness of his beloved friend, was able to sacrifice his feelings for her?

"50 shades of grey": Well, here are just dry facts ... Elliot Gray is a very cheerful half-brother of Christian (the main character), who has an affair with the blonde Kate.

"Twilight": Hope it doesn't match? But no, because Emmett Cullen is also no less cheerful half (!) Brother of the protagonist - Edward Cullen, who has an affair with the blonde Rosalie.

"50 shades of grey": Well, you already know everything yourself, except that this beautiful and self-confident blonde is Anastasia's friend!

"Twilight": In the film, it is simply impossible without spectacular blondes, except that this one is Edward's half-sister. They decided to confuse us and distract us!

"50 shades of grey": Mia Gray is Christian's half-sister. A talented girl, but with her own oddities, who is always ready to help and support the main character, and with whom all viewers only fall in love from series to series!

"Twilight": Ellis Cullen - Edward's half-sister, Talented, but with her own oddities, a girl who is always ready to help and support the main character, and with whom all viewers only fall in love with episode after episode! Well, sorry...

"50 shades of grey": Even despite a small role in three parts, fans of the erotic drama managed to notice and fall in love with the hero of actor Andrew Airlie, Christian's adoptive father, and also a successful businessman and lawyer.

"Twilight": And here we will not surprise you either, because Carlisle Cullen is also Edward's adoptive dad, however, successful in the field of medicine!

"50 shades of grey": It seems that the fantasy is already running out, but how else to explain that Grace Gray was assigned the role of Christian's adoptive mother, who loves him very much, and gave all the tenderness and care after the death of his own mother. And she gets along great with Anastasia!

"Twilight": Well, let's do it again, shall we? Esme Cullen - Edward's adoptive mother, who took care of him after the death of his parents, and by the way - became friends with Bella!

"50 shades of grey":"Villain" from the novel by E.L. James has a huge hatred for the Gray family, and even kidnaps Mia to lure Anastasia into a trap and take revenge on the main character.

"Twilight": But the vampire villain hates the Cullen family with all his heart and kidnaps Bella's mother so that ... Well, you understand!

"50 shades of grey": Don't you think we've seen these footage somewhere before?

"Twilight": Ah… So here they are!

Accidentally found out that the pseudo-vampire pseudo-passions of "Twilight" did not end there. Inspired by the far-fetched problems of the coexistence of a human and a vegetarian vampire, one E. L. James broke out into a creative - or not very creative - ladies' romance. Instead of a pomaded bloodsucker, the reader is offered an equally glamorous sadistic pervert. Otherwise, judging by the reviews, attributes like off-scale sexuality, wealth, universal worship and adoration of the female sex remain with the newly-minted Edward Christian. The image of Bella is even more easily recognizable: a gray-gray "mouse", which only according to vampire perverted concepts SUDDENLY turns out to be the One. And, just like Bella, the Main Character does not suffer from intelligence, quick wit, outstanding external data, kindness, or anything at all. At least, I did not find a single note about Anastacia's personal qualities in any review. However, it’s to blame: the Main Heroine is pathologically modest and shuns guys (except for the Coolest - the Mary Sue brand must be kept). Hello Bella. What does not prevent Anastasia on the hundredth (?) page from going to bed with a terrible pervert vampire. Hello logic. Note! The main character, she is Mary Sue, she is Bella, she is Anastasia, she cannot have a simple name. Olya, Katya (Kat, if in a foreign manner), Suzy, Jen - it's boring and vulgar. It is much more romantic to call a girl Anastasha, Isabella, Christianida, Almahabra or - a classic of the genre! - Reclamation Dark. Or Steele. But about signs of MS not now. Unlike the romantically inclined Myers, James generously seasoned the book (trilogy, oh my God!) with sex. They say that the reusable descriptions of the process are very, very monotonous, I don’t know - I didn’t even have enough for the first part of the “masterpiece”, which I honestly admit. I don't understand otherwise - how can you make a book out of sex ONLY?! A complete, readable book? I'm not against sex and I like to flip through some porn story when I'm in the mood. Well, what, no worse than the average porn, and the plot is just as uncomplicated - to masturbate, no more. I don't mind watching beautiful erotica - "Bitter Moon", "Eyes Wide Shut"... "Cage" there too, to some extent (erotic art house?). But to disguise drochevo as serious, semantic literature? This is already from the category of fiction, sort of like calling "Twilight" a deeply thought-out drama. Why is Fifty Shades so popular? The first reason: money, power, a beautiful life, embodied in Prince Charming. Rich Pinocchio Christian Gray SUDDENLY falls in love with an awkward mess and puts a car, pebbles and other small, but insanely expensive female pleasures at her feet. Everyone wants to dream of something like this. And how your friends would envy you! Reason two: sex. It seems to be clear, but I want to dwell in more detail. Here is not a specific male bang, where he savoryly signs how He pours lubricant into the vagina for the most not indulge and stuffs various toys into all holes (or voluptuously cuts tender places with a knife - a sadist, after all). But this is not a cloying "feminine" version of "slightly physical" love, where "his broad muscular shoulders resembled mountains," but "her beautiful body, exhausted, sank into a harsh but gentle embrace" (although something from it, I suspect, did was taken). The author chose the golden mean: like "I'll fuck in my mouth", but like "butterflies in my stomach." In addition, all this is served with a seasoning of expensive, refined, but, of course, very delicate BDSM. Again, I'll draw an analogy with "Twilight": Edward is a vampire, and it seems like it's very, very bad, but in fact the reader gets a shiny nyashechka with bonuses like super strength and eternal youth. In "Fifty Shades" it's the same: like the Main Hero is a sadist and a pervert, but multiple orgasms are pouring, as if from a cornucopia, on our modest girl. In addition, there is a reason to admire yourself, an innocent victim, in a sexy black outfit. Reason three: the crisis of feminism? I don't know, because I don't recognize feminism as such. It is wrong to put a man and a woman on the same bar - we are equal, but not the same. And this is clearly reflected in the novel: the dominant man provides for the woman who takes care of the family and children (yes, such a prosaic HE awaits the heroes of Fifty Shades). If we discard the veil of love, a man takes sex from a woman, a woman takes provision from a man. And in the book, both the first and the second are presented at the highest level! The fourth reason: the lack of the first three points in the life of the beautiful half of humanity. The novel is primarily popular among young girls who are still digesting the image of the Prince Charming in their minds, or ladies of Balzac age, who by their age have already earned indigestion from beggar "princes" in holey socks. In summary: do you recommend reading it? No, sorry for the time. Do I recommend watching? I am sure that for those who have a healthy sense of humor, the porn analogue of "Twilight" will give a lot of reasons to laugh.

If you've watched Fifty Shades of Gray and the Twilight saga, you must have noticed a lot of parallels between these stories. However, E. L. James, author of 50 Shades, has stated that her story is original and very different from the vampire saga. What do you think?

Christian Gray Vs. Edward Cullen

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Christian Gray is a handsome, rich, mysterious 27-year-old millionaire with a secret who has a crush on the main character.

"Twilight": Edward Cullen is a handsome, rich, mysterious 17-year-old with a secret who has a crush on the main character.

Anastasia Steele Vs. Bella Swan

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Anastasia Steele is an ordinary, clumsy simple book lover with a habit of biting her lips, who falls in love and becomes obsessed with the mysterious protagonist.

"Twilight": Bella Swan is an ordinary, clumsy, simple book lover with a habit of biting her lips, who falls in love and becomes obsessed with the mysterious protagonist.

Jose Rodriguez Vs. Jacob

"Fifty Shades of Gray": José Rodriguez is a good friend of Anastacia who is in love with her.

"Twilight": Jacob is Bella's good friend and in love with her.

Keith Kavanagh Vs. Rosalie Cullen

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Kate Kavanagh is a beautiful and confident blonde. Anastasia's girlfriend, in a relationship with Christian's half-brother Elliot.

"Twilight": Rosalie Cullen is a beautiful and confident blonde. Edward's sister, in a relationship with his half-brother (and his own) - Emmett.

Elliot Gray Vs. Emmett Cullen

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Elliot Gray is the protagonist's cheerful half-brother who is in a relationship with Kate.

"Twilight": Emmett Cullen is the protagonist's cheerful half-brother who is in a relationship with Rosalie.

Mia Gray Vs. Alice Cullen

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Mia Gray is Christian's slightly odd but talented half-sister.

"Twilight": Alice Cullen is Edward's slightly odd but talented half-sister.

Jack Hyde Vs. James

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Jack Hyde is Anastasia's former boss who molested her. Has a dislike for the Gray family. He kidnaps Mia to lure Anastasia into a trap.

"Twilight": James is a vampire who tries to attack Bella. Feels hostility to the Cullen family. He pretends to kidnap Bella's mother to lure her into a trap.

Grace Gray Vs. Esme Cullen

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Grace Gray is Christian's adoptive mother who took care of him after his mother's death. Very good attitude to Anastasia.

"Twilight": Esme Cullen is Edward's adoptive mother who took care of him after the death of his parents. Very good with Bella.

Carrick Gray Vs. Carlisle Cullen

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Carrick Gray is Christian's adoptive father. He is a successful lawyer and businessman.

"Twilight": Carlisle Cullen is Edward's adoptive father. He is a successful doctor.

Karla May Wilks Vs. Rene Dwyer

"Fifty Shades of Gray": Karla May Wilkes is Anastacia's loving mother who lives far away from her. I recently married a guy named Bob.

"Twilight": Renee Dwyer is Bella's loving mother who lives far away from her. Recently married a guy named Phil.

According to materials:

The phenomenal success of the eponymous literary brainchild of the British writer E. L. James It's easy to explain - it was this 50-year-old lady who had the audacity and ingenuity to sell the most ordinary pornographic fan fiction under the guise of a book to women of Balzac's age all over the world. Yes Yes, "50 shades of grey" was originally a fanfic for beloved "Twilight". It was called "Master of the Universe", and the main characters were Edward and Bella. However, unlike young girls who are not very surprised by this kind of writing (in the same AO3, one of the largest archives of fanfiction, you can’t stumble upon such a thing), for mature aunts, an erotic BDSM romance has become a real revelation, making it seem to tremble extinguished instincts and unraveled the most secret desires.

Dropping down, I swallow it deeper. Ha! My inner goddess rejoices. I will do it.

And then - it's a matter of technology and competent marketing. The popularity and discussion of the book grew like a snowball, two sequels were quickly released, and then a regular film adaptation, initially doomed to success, arrived in time. Someone will go out of curiosity, someone - "purely neighing", someone - in anticipation of a sensual erotic melodrama (and scenes of BDSM sex), and someone will be dragged by force. One way or another, two sequels are already in development, and you have to accept the fact that the picture will be an important media event.

He only lightly touched my hand, and the hormones are already making a pandemonium.

Let's make a reservation right away, the producers approached the film adaptation of a potential blockbuster with all thoroughness. Placed at the helm Sam Taylor-Johnson ("Become John Lennon"), sat behind the camera Seamus McGarvey, for a second, the operator "Avengers" And « » , the composer became Danny Elfman- And so on and so forth. A real team of professionals who, even if they wanted to, would not be able to cheat. Therefore, one should not be surprised that from the technical side the film was shot almost flawlessly. Noteworthy is the soundtrack, which is sure to top the Billboard charts.

Never trust men who dance well.

The movie tells about the beginning of the relationship between the innocent and dreamy student Anastasia Steele and the handsome billionaire philanthropist Christian Gray, who practices BDSM. The film ends in mid-sentence, literally cut open by the leather belt of the upcoming sequel, so nothing more important will be there. Although the book was inspired by " twilight”, the screen version rather glances to the side "Nine and a Half Weeks" Adrian Laina, however, without the metaphors and symbolism of the latter. The stumbling block, as often happens, was the ego of writer E. L. James, who had too much power in the process of making the film and especially writing the screenplay. For, no matter how millions of copies of fanfiction are sold, it still will not become high-quality literary material, especially if you transfer ridiculous dialogues to the screen almost letter by letter.

He kisses my neck. I tilt my head to the side to give him more space. Sitting down, Christian slowly pulls my jeans and panties off my legs.

The consequences were not long in coming: timid attempts to sit on all chairs and tell the sensual story of sexual relations between a man and a woman were trampled under the thick leg of the mother of the original source, who instead enriched the film with an idiotic plot, unconvincing behavior of the characters and the general absurdity of what is happening. No wonder the lead actor Jamie Dornan there are two facial expressions throughout the film: "God, what am I saying" and "God, what am I doing." Dakota Johnson, we admit, she is very sweet and convincing in the role of a student who knows carnal pleasures, but it’s useless if phrases are put into the mouths of the heroes, from which the entire auditorium is filled with laughter.

The most important puncture of the film adaptation creeps up next: there is simply no chemistry between the main actors. "No" from the word "none". At all. That is why all the sex scenes look strained, forced and almost as sterile as the office of the protagonist. And this is even despite the fact that they are there for about 10 minutes at most. Forty-year-old aunts will see more soft porn on the Ren TV channel after midnight.

Please don't hit me, I whisper pleadingly. He furrows his brows, widens his eyes, blinks a couple of times.

Too ludicrous for drama, too timid for BDSM erotica, the film was embarrassed by its target audience, who came to see "it", but offered nothing in return. Empty, helpless and pitiful, from which side you do not come. After all, it's pardonable for an erotic melodrama to have a bad plot, but it's no longer permissible to be non-erotic.

What is 50 Shades of Grey, and what didn't make it into the movie?

Moscow. February 13. site - A film based on the 2011 erotic novel "50 Shades of Grey", written by the British E.L. James. This is the case when the movie is better than the book, but still not good enough to spend time and money on it.

original source

50 Shades of Gray started out as fan fiction for the vampire saga Twilight. Former television studio employee Erica Leonard (real name E. L. James) read Stephenie Meyer's Twilight novels before deciding to write something herself. Soon, she decided to abandon the images of the chaste vampire Edward and his dull girlfriend Bella in favor of the liberated businessman Christian Gray and the not very self-confident student Anastasia Steele.

The woman posted what she wrote on the Internet, and the story, unexpectedly for her, became in demand - so much so that E.L. James wrote two sequels to the novel - "50 Shades Darker" and "50 Shades Freed". The books in the series have been translated into 52 languages ​​and sold over 100 million copies worldwide (in terms of sales speed, the novels overtook the books from the Harry Potter series and the same "Twilight").

Leonard later admitted that the book was the product of a "mid-life crisis". "All my fantasies are there," she said in an interview.

Leonard's fantasies, apparently, were embodied in sex with elements of BDSM, because it is precisely such sexual practices that the protagonist of the book, Christian Gray, prefers. "50 Shades of Grey" has a large number of sex scenes, including the use of handcuffs, ropes, whips, and so on.

Be that as it may, the success of "50 Shades of Grey" is difficult to explain rationally. The book is written in monstrous language and is full of all sorts of clichés from tabloid novels. The plot is banal. A rich man with a perfect body and a hazy past that either attracts or repels the heroine. A modest and inexperienced heroine who falls head over heels in love with a man, wants to change him and, of course, changes him.

Journalists called the book "porn for housewives" and openly laughed at E.L. James. She said that she did not care: they say, she does not consider her novel as a work of literature claiming the status of a classic - it is just a "fascinating" and "passionate" love story.

Screen adaptation

As is often the case with literary phenomena, they decided to film the novel. The film "50 Shades of Grey" had an impressive PR campaign, in which, among others, the most popular singer Beyoncé was involved. The soundtrack to the film also included two of her songs, including a new version of the old hit Crazy in Love. Anticipation for the film was high: the trailer for the film broke records on YouTube views and spawned many parodies (one of the best with featuring Steve Buscemi), and hardware stores began to brace for increased demand for tape, rope, and cable ties.

For the most part, the movie follows the book. In case you didn’t know, the plot is this: a week before the university graduation, the philological virgin Anastasia Steele, at the request of her ill journalist friend, goes to interview the young millionaire Christian Grey. They soon start a relationship, but Gray doesn't want "romance" - he wants a connection based on dominance and submission. He is trying to persuade the inexperienced Anastacia to sign a contract, according to which he becomes her "dominant", and she becomes his "submissive" (sic!), but he can, in which case, stop him with the help of "stop words". The absence of a signed contract, which sets out the terms of their relationship and the "limits of what is acceptable," does not prevent Christian Gray from periodically tying up his beloved and spanking her on the pope.

It is known that E.L. James kept the filming process under control, sometimes even excessive. The director of the picture, ex-participant of the movement "Young British Artists" Sam Taylor-Johnson (who had previously shot only one feature film - a very nice biopic of John Lennon), admitted that James sometimes unbalanced her. Sources familiar with the course of filming explained: the author of the book simply could not understand that not everything written could and should be transferred to the screen.

The film is devoid of the inner monologues of the heroine - yes, the "inner goddess" Anastacia is silent. The audience was spared most of the sugary correspondence between the main characters. It is expected that screenwriter Kelly Marcel omitted or changed many moments that caused sincere bewilderment (for example, when reading a book, it was hard to believe that the heroine never got a laptop during her studies at the institute).

Anastasia's character has become less flat, compared to the book prototype, she even has some individuality. Rare funny moments and interesting finds of the film are connected with Anastasia (thanks to actress Dakota Johnson): whether it's a drunk call to Christian from the queue for the toilet or her facial expression in a photo with Gray, printed in the newspaper. As for the dominant millionaire played by Jamie Dornan, he can only be praised for his beautiful eyes (and this is not his merit).

Dialogue level "Why are you doing this?" - "Because I am!" will make anyone feel embarrassed for the filmmakers. Despite the fact that during the PR campaign the audience was prepared for something extraordinary (the slogan "Curious?"), what is happening on the screen is so boring that the two hours that the tape runs turn into torment. The declared sensuality in the film does not seem to exist at all, but this should have become its main attracting element.

This is a more or less standard melodrama, and if it were not for the status of a literary primary source and a large-scale PR campaign for the film, then it is unlikely that the pre-sale of tickets would have been so impressive. In general, to use the words of Christian Gray, sometimes it is better to say the safe word before the movie starts.

Anna Laletina