In Danish film director Lars von Trier's controversial new movie “Nymphomaniac,” the actors are apparently partaking in actual sex; not simulated sex acts. In an interview with MTV News, Shia LaBeouf, one of the stars, and a kiddie fan favorite for his turn in the “Transformer” series, implied he would be taking part in the graphic sex scenes - and would be willing to go as far as the director asks him to. He said: “[Von Trier] is very dangerous. He's the most dangerous dude that I've ever showed up for.” Admitting his fears, he went on: “I'm terrified. I'm so terrified, which is why I have to go. We'll see what happens.” Asked how far he would take it, he went on: “[The film] is what you think it is...There's a disclaimer at the top of the script that basically says, we're doing [the sex] for real... and anything that is illegal will be shot in blurred images, but other than that, everything is happening.”
The last time I can remember such a spectacle being constructed around a film was during the making and release of the 1989 Mickey Rourke film “Wild Orchid.” In that movie, it was rumored that Rourke, and then girlfriend and costar Carre Otis, during the already graphic sex scenes, actually had intercourse in front of the cameras. Sometimes, these news leaks, ahead of a film's release, must be regarded as publicity stunts, but they also point to a sick and disturbing trend within the main-stream entertainment industry that has been accepted for many years; mainly because it works. The origins go way back to the 1960s, when the innocent sort of sexy-coyness, perfected by the blond-bombshells, particularly Marilyn Monroe, failed to excite the new, and more jaded, audiences of the beat-nick and hippie generations. This began the sexploitation phenomena in films: that were created solely to titillate. Since then, with the advent of the so-called Golden-Age of Porn in the early-1970s, hard-core pornographic imagery has slowly, but methodically, crept its way into pop-culture.
But, what is most troubling about the LaBeouf film, besides the full frontal nudity and sex in the film, is that this man got his start in show-business as a Disney child-actor; much like the demonic cadre of current female superstars: Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Selena Gomez. I wonder what is going on in the Disney Corporation for there to be such a high-number of their former child stars who, upon turning 18, become sex-icons: is it some-sort of satanic spell? But, after making the jump into adult roles, LaBeouf became a hero to boys and a heart-throb to young girls for getting cast in the mega-hits “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” and “Transformers.” This has insured him a life-long following of juvenile followers; he has been nominated for several Teen Choice and Nickelodeon Awards. Sadly, what they see him doing, will almost automatically become acceptable; especially to the lost and neglected who are always in search of an idol to emulate.