A Fistful of Sex! (Brad's Picks)

Shame.  Michael Fassbender.  Steve McQueen.  NC-17.  Can't wait to see it.  Now here's a whole lotta Sex that probably has very little to do with this weekend's exploration of addiction.


5.  Darth Vader's Trickster Sex in Revenge of the Nerds:  This was one of the first "naughty movies" I ever saw, or at least understood as a "naughty movie."  My cousin and I had my grandfather rent the movie from the local Blockbuster and we quietly watched the film after our grandparents went to sleep.  I remember the shock of the panty raid and the sorority surveillance, but Robert Carradine's sexual victory with cheerleader Betty as he disguises himself as her boyfriend via a rockin' Darth Vader costume and in the bouncy blue moon room.  When he unmasks, she's shocked...and in love.  It's ridiculous and watching it now it's incredibly creepy.

4.  Naomi Watts and Laura Elena Harring in Mulholland Dr:  David Lynch's nightmare Mulholland Dr. is one of the strongest experiences I've had in a theater.  I was 22 at the time and in college.  I was well into my movie freakdom and had already seen lots and lots of movies, but I really hadn't seen a lot of surreal cinema and Mulholland Dr kinda knocked me on my butt.  And somewhere within this dreamscape is an incredibly erotic lesbian encounter between stars Naomi Watts and Laura Elena Harring.  It's sexy, sure, but it's also incredibly sweet--lovely.

3.  Natasha Henstridge in Species:  A cheesy, kinda crappy sci-fi film with wall-to-wall nudity from Natasha Henstridge.  For 15 year old Brad it was a tough film to watch in the theater with mom.  Species is meant for home video.

2.  The Angry, Scary Sex of Basic Instinct's final scene:  Paul Verhoeven puts it all out there, his eye loves to linger and we love him for it.  And for the whole film we've been waiting for Sharon Stone to drive the ice pick into the writhing body of Michael Douglas.  Titillating for sure, but demented and scary to boot.

1.  Every Film Starring Jenny Agutter -- An American Werewolf in London and Logan's Run were very important to adolescent Brad.  They sent him on an Agutter treasure hunt that continues to this day.  Just recently I watched the dreadful Sweet William and the utterly mediocre I Start Counting.  But for every Dark Tower, there's a Walkabout, a China 9 Liberty 37, and an Equus.  Potent stuff.

--Brad