Nudity in film
Nudity in film relates generally to a non-
pornographic film or
television program in which one or more of the
actors or other participants appears
nude onscreen, often called a
nude scene.
See also: Nudity in art.
Few
American films dare to show both, male and female
genitalia (in what is called by many as being a
full frontal nudity scene).
In many cases objects are used to obscure the view of an actor's primary
erogenous zones. This can prevent films from receiving an NC-17 rating from the
Motion Picture Association of America, which usually leads to commercial failure for films targeting the mainstream theatre market in the
US. Some nudity may be found in PG and PG-13 films as well, particularly when it isn't presented in a sexual context (i.e. a scene in the PG-rated
Footloose in which a minor character is seen taking a shower from behind after a
PE class).
In many instances, the presentation of nudity is perceived inconsistently between the sexes; male buttocks are shown more often than female buttocks, because the latter are deemed more erotic. Male rear nudity in a film does not preclude a PG-13 or PG rating, although female rear nudity almost always receives at least a PG-13 or R.
Despite the market demand for female nudity from some segments of the population, female nudity is a source of major controversy to American society in general when it appears in an environment that is supposed to be
family-friendly, such as when
Janet Jackson's
breast was exposed during a
Super Bowl halftime show (
see Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy).
The
genitals are rarely shown, and the
penis is never shown erect, because of the NC-17 code threat. Like female genitalia, male genitalia is considered pornographic by a large portion of the American public, or at least those who actively censor. The burgeoning sales of pornographic material suggests that the primary source of America's sexual mores as they relate to the human body in its natural state is social concern for the welfare of children.
The tastefulness of nude scenes is hotly debated in the
US. Adding nudity to films can increase audience interest and pre-release publicity. However, some
movie critics take a negative view of gratuitous nudity that has little to do with the plot of the film.
Some actresses refuse nude scenes out of personal values or the belief that it will harm their reputation.
Elisha Cuthbert [
1],
Lindsay Lohan [
2] and
Eliza Dushku [
3] are among those who have stated that they will never do a nude scene.
Overall, the United States considers nudity more offensive than most European countries, which conversely consider
violence, which is often very present in American films, offensive. Sociologists and evolutional psychologists have suggested that violence serves as a substitute for sexuality in cultures that are sexually repressive, which gives greater meaning to the mantra: make love, not war. However, the two are sometimes linked. Low-budget horror films of the 1970s and 1980s sometimes featured strong sexual content, suggesting the link between sex and death seen in the idea of having sex in a disaster situation prior to dying. Nudists assert that nudity itself is not sexual, and don't agree with the connection between the censorship of sexual behavior and the censorship of nudity.
|
Audrey Munson, the first leading actress to appear nude in the film Inspiration. |
The portrayal of nudity in motion pictures has long been controversial. Several early films of the
silent era and
early sound era featured nudity; in response to objections voiced by several groups, scenes of nudity were forbidden in films from the major
US studios from 1934 until the late 1960s under the
Hayes Code. During this time, the only acceptable cinematic displays of nudity in the
US were in naturist quasi-
documentary films and
foreign films. Other portrayals were in early
pornographic films which, due to limited means of distribution, were not widely seen.
The 1959 film
The Immoral Mr. Teas by
Russ Meyer, in which the main character was overcome with fantasies of nude women, was the first non-naturist feature film to openly exhibit nudity. The 1964 film
The Pawnbroker became the first movie under the Hayes Code to show a woman with bare breasts. In 1966,
Blow-Up became the first English-language film to show a woman's pubic hair, although the particular shot was only a few seconds long.
In 1968, film studios abandoned the Hayes Code for the voluntary
Motion Picture Association of America rating system. Nudity could then be legitimately included in a commercially successful film. Presently, genital nudity is still rare in
US cinema. Further, it is commonly considered by censors more acceptable for a male's genitals to be depicted in a flaccid state. The film
Angels and Insects (1996) was the first to be given an
NC-17 rating specifically because an actor had an erection.
A large amount of genital nudity, especially in a sexual context, often lead to an
X rating, which de facto banned many films, as many movie theaters refused to show films with this rating. Nevertheless, many X-rated films became culturally significant, including
Midnight Cowboy (1969) and
A Clockwork Orange (1971). Today, most nude scenes only lead to an R rating from the MPAA, instead of NC-17, the contemporary equivalent of an X rating. Many films that were once rated X have been "re-rated" R.
Films with nude scenes that have garnered significant attention include:
Inspiration (1915), the first leading actress (
Audrey Munson) to appear nude.
A Daughter of the Gods (1916) was the first film in which a major star (
Annette Kellerman) appeared fully nude.
Tarzan of the Apes (1918), Tarzan at eleven years old (
Gordon Griffith) is nude for much of the first half of the film; the breasts and rears of African natives are shown briefly.
Ben-Hur (1925), Roman soldiers pull off a woman's top, exposing her breasts; rear nudity of galley slave; bare-breasted maidens in parade scene.
Ecstasy (1933),
Hedy Lamarr bathes and runs through forest nude.
|
Richard Gere nude in American Gigolo (1982). |
Unashamed (1938), typical nudist
exploitation film of the 1930s, showing bare breasts and buttocks.
Summer with Monika (1953), film by
Ingmar Bergman which features the first nude scene in postwar European cinema.
Harriet Andersson's bare buttocks are seen briefly as she runs down to beach to skinnydip in the lake.
And God Created Woman (1956), opens with a shot of a nude
Brigitte Bardot sun-tanning herself.
Le Mépris (1963),
Jean-Luc Godard film which features several extended shots of
Brigitte Bardot's bare buttocks.
Promises! Promises! (1964),
Jayne Mansfield becomes the first mainstream actress to appear nude, baring her breasts and buttocks, in an American film.
The Pawnbroker (1964), first
US film to show a woman nude from the waist up and be granted a
Production Code seal.
Blowup (1966), first mainstream feature to show female pubic hair (in this case,
Jane Birkin's).
I Am Curious (Yellow) (1967), explicit portrayal of sex and nudity in a non-pornographic film.
Planet of the Apes (1968),
Charlton Heston is stripped of his loincloth, in rear view; one of the few instances of adult nudity in the last months of the Production Code era.
If... (1968), frontal nudity in shower scene by three of the film's male actors.
British Sounds (1969), experimental film by Jean-Luc-Godard which features an extended close-up of a woman's pubis.
Medium Cool (1969), first mainstream American feature to show full male and female nudity.
Women in Love (1969), known for a nude male wrestling match between
Alan Bates and
Oliver Reed.
Last Tango in Paris (1972),
Maria Schneider appears fully and casually nude in several long scenes. In one scene,
Marlon Brando spreads margarine between her buttocks before
sodomizing her (simulated), and in another he rubs her breasts and pubic region with a wet sponge while she bathes in a tub.
1900 (1976), featured a scene in which the characters of
Robert DeNiro and
Gerard Depardieu visits a prostitute. Both actors are seen completely naked as the woman visibly fondles both their penises. The scene was edited out for the US release of the film, and later reappeared on the
1993 NC-17 re-release.
Equus (1977), featured extended full frontal and rear nudity from
Peter Firth and
Jenny Agutter.
Pretty Baby (1978), which featured nude scenes of actress
Brooke Shields, who was eleven and twelve during the shooting, raising allegations of
child pornography.
Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979), Brian appears naked on a balcony in front of a crowd.
10 (1979),
Bo Derek's nudity in
10 is limited to a darkly-lit bedroom scene, but the movie made her an overnight
sex symbol and led to a profusion of nudity in her later movies.
American Gigolo (1980), first full frontal of a major Hollywood actor (
Richard Gere).
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), a scene in which
Phoebe Cates emerges from a swimming pool and removes her top has been endlessly imitated and parodied.
Prénom Carmen (1983), Maruschka Detmers appears nude for much of her screen time, including one close-up shot of her pubic area.
Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984),
Suzanna Hamilton strips in the woods and performs two other long scenes casually in the nude. Her full-frontal nudity is frankly presented with particular emphasis on her ungroomed pubic and underarm hair.
James Joyce's Women (1985),
Fionnula Flanagan appears casually nude and
masturbates in full view of the camera while reciting a
monologue.
Je vous salue, Marie (1985), highly controversial film by Jean-Luc Godard which presents Myriem Roussel as a modern
Virgin Mary who appears nude (and in intimate close-up) for much of her screen time.
Henry & June (1990), the first film to receive an
MPAA NC-17 rating.
Basic Instinct (1992), known for a scene in which
Sharon Stone uncrosses her legs, revealing her genitals.
The Crying Game (1992), the sex scene between
Stephen Rea and
Jaye Davidson is pivotal to the movie's plot, since, showing Dil's (Davidson's) genitals, it reveals her to be a transvestite rather than a biological female.
Crash (1996),
Deborah Kara Unger is nude in several scenes. While in bed with husband
James Spader, her
labia majora is clearly visible. Spader then sodomizes her (simulated) as she continues talking.
Eyes Wide Shut (1999), gathered pre-release publicity for nude scenes of then married couple
Nicole Kidman and
Tom Cruise, as well as extensive nudity during an
orgy scene. Some film critics accused
Warner Brothers of
censorship when they reedited the film for an R-rating after the death of director
Stanley Kubrick.
Mulholland Drive (2001), the sex scene between
Naomi Watts and
Laura Harring has become popular on
peer-to-peer downloading networks.
About Schmidt (2002), a scene in which
Kathy Bates appeared nude while taking a whirlpool bath was much discussed, due to the fact that she was in her fifties and
overweight.
The Brown Bunny (2003), caused major scandal in the
Cannes Film Festival because of an explicit scene in which the main female character (played by
Chloë Sevigny) performs
oral sex on the main male character (played by
Vincent Gallo).
The Dreamers (2003),
Eva Green plays several long scenes in the nude as do her male co-stars,
Michael Pitt and
Louis Garrel. In one scene, Louis Garrel masturbates to a photograph of
Marlene Dietrich, in another Eva Green handles Michael Pitt's penis. In one close-up shot, Eva Green's labia majora is clearly visible.
See also: Nudity in American television.
In the
United States,
broadcast television stations can be fined by the
Federal Communications Commission if they show nudity of any kind. Exceptions are allowed depending on the context or time in which the programs are aired; i.e. a woman getting a breast exam or
breastfeeding, a
PBS documentary about the
indigenous peoples of the Americas, programs and films shown on the "
safe harbor", etc. When broadcast on television, theatrically released films featuring nudity are usually presented with the nude scenes edited out, or the nudity is obscured in some fashion (for example digital imagery may be used to clothe nude actors).
Nevertheless, starting in the late
1990s and early
2000s, a few drama series and TV films, such as
NYPD Blue,
Chicago Hope and
John Doe have occasionally used partial nudity, both male and female, to add more reality to their plots. Since these nude scenes were done in an acceptable context, and generally on the "safe harbor", little or no fuss was caused by them.
Janet Jackson's exposed breast on the
CBS broadcast of
Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show caused a major
moral panic in the American television public. Much discussion was caused by the event. FCC received a record number of complaints, and after public pressure, CBS was fined in millions and FCC increased fines for indecency.
On the day he would sign the new law that increases the maximum fine for indecency,
President Bush said that he will force industry figures to "take seriously their duty to keep the public airwaves free of obscene, profane and indecent material". He also said that "unfortunately, in recent years, broadcast programming has too often pushed the bounds of decency". [
4]
The
CBS network also received a US$ 3.6 million fine for an episode of
Without a Trace aired in December 2004 which suggested that young adolescents were participating in a kind of
orgy. The scene was not sexually explicit, but FCC received a significant number of complaints about that particular episode of the show.
The network did not apologize, saying that this episode of the program was very realistic and that "featured an important and socially relevant storyline warning parents to exercise greater supervision of their teenage children".
The FCC also dismissed complaints against a number of much more controversial shows than
Without a Trace, such as
The Oprah Winfrey Show,
Family Guy and
The Simpsons.
Cable networks are not subject to FCC rules and are somewhat more lenient towards nudity, although it is still uncommon. Several
premium cable services such as
HBO and
Showtime have gained popularity for, among other things, presenting unedited films. In addition, they have produced series that do not shy away their actors from nudity scenes, such as
Oz, Sex and the City, The Sopranos, The L Word and the American version of British series
Queer as Folk.It has been alleged that indecency complaints, rather than being motivated by a legitimately concerned audience, have been generated by "
family values" organizations, who instigate letter-writing campaigns based on word of mouth rather than eyewitness viewing. If true, this means that many, perhaps even a majority, of these complaints are filed by people who have never actually seen the segment or episode in question.
* Jones, Marvin. (1996).
Movie Buff Checklist: Male Nudity in the Movies. (5th ed.) Panorama City, Cal.: Campfire Productions. ISBN 1888211040.
* Hosoda, Craig. (2001).
The Bare Facts Video Guide. Bare Facts. ISBN 0962547492.
*
Skin, Mr. (2004).
Mr. Skin's Skincyclopedia: The A-to-Z Guide to Finding Your Favorite Actresses Naked. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0312331444.
*
Storey, Mark. (2003).
Cinema Au Naturel: A History of Nudist Film. Naturist Education Foundation. ISBN 0974084409.
*
Nudity in The Simpsons*
Nudie film*
Sex in film*
List of mainstream films with unsimulated sex*
No-nudity clause*
A extensive look at sex and nudity in cinema*
Celebrity Nudity database*
Nudography*
Naturist Guide to the Movies
