Fifty Shades Darker – Review

Fifty Shades Darker, the second film adaptation of the Fifty Shades trilogy, proved to be just as much of a chore to view as the first instalment was.

The main problem is that it is simply too long. At nearly two hours, the film endured several monotonous periods which could have easily have been trimmed or better yet – been cut completely. The fact that there were so many lulls in the viewing makes the sudden plot twists even more mind boggling. For instance, the plot twist involving Ana’s boss, Jack Hyde came out of nowhere. He had barely featured in the film to that point, so it really felt like the filmmakers were trying too hard to surprise the viewers with the twist.

There are also a number of problems in Fifty Shades Darker related to the plot of the film, which is probably more of the novel’s fault than the films, but was still an issue. What was going to happen proved to be incredibly predictable, mainly because of how the plot was written of course, but this was not helped in the slightest by the body language of lead actress Dakota Johnson, which telegraphed what was going to happen next to an even greater extent.

A lot of criticism has come in for lead actor Jamie Dornan as Christian Grey, with plenty of critics feeling that he does not have the presence or ooze enough power in his role, which after viewing the film, is a fair assessment. The reaction of the female contingent in the cinema when he first appeared on the screen told me exactly why he was cast in the role: he is attractive. That literally must be the only reason he was cast in the role because there does not appear to be any other redeemable qualities about the man.

Fifty Shades Darker is not the most exhilarating viewing but, despite all the negative press will no doubt be a box office success. That is for one reason and one reason only: the extremely adult content to be seen within. Take that out of the equation and the film and the book series too would have flopped. The sexual nature of the film has intrigued and still intrigues many, and undoubtedly the third instalment Fifty Shades Freed to be released next February will also be a box office success.

Rating: 1.5/5