The power of movies is a wondrous thing. The power of sex in movies is something else entirely.
Movie sex is abundant; it can awaken ones deepest desires, set one down the path of their sexual development, and act as an engrossing form of entertainment. All adding that most intangible of qualities, that certain something that has helped to enhance the movie going experience throughout history.
You don’t have to look far for movie sex in 2017, but to get the very best, a good list is paramount. So here it is guys, the most memorable movie sex scenes.
Gone Girl
Let’s start in the present, shall we? Only a few years have passed since master director David Fincher brought us his take on the Gillian Flynn novel, Gone Girl. But immediately upon release in 2014, the film hit a nerve with its audiences not only for its vivid storytelling but for its commentary on sex in society.
There are many moments to pick out from Gone Girl but the most memorable has to be when Rosamund Pike’s character Amy seduces ex-boyfriend Neil Patrick Harris, takes him to bed, and after giving him the time of his life slits his throat mid-coitus covering her naked body in his cascading blood. The act allowing her then to return home to play more games with husband Ben Affleck.
It’s pretty shocking and not easily forgotten. But the bizarreness of this scene coupled with Pike’s overt sexuality throughout the movie makes it an instant addition to our list.
Superbad
Where would sex be without a little levity now and then, and this is exactly why the Michael Cera starring Superbad makes our list.
Released in 2007, this fan favourite teen comedy acts as an awkward coming of age story regarding the sexual awakening of Michael Cera’s Evan and Jonah Hill’s Seth. But it is infamous character Fogell, aka McLovin – played wonderfully by a hilarious Christopher Mintz-Plasse – that steals the show with his laugh out loud sex scene.
After declaring, “It’s in! Oh my god, it’s in” while partying alone with his high school peer Nicola, Fogell is interrupted by Bill Hader’s Officer Slater and Seth Rogan’s Officer Michaels who not only ruin his big night but begin to berate him for ditching them earlier in the film. The scene is hilarious, a stand out among many in the film, and a worthy mention here.
American psycho
Based on the iconic and controversial 80s satire novel of the same name, Mary Harron’s American Psycho (2000) starring Christian Bale as a Wall Street serial killer, is a cult favourite and hilariously damning commentary on yuppie culture.
There are too many great (and often disturbing) moments to count in this stylish affair but there is one in particular that has become somewhat of an infamous scene for the movie.
Alton Williams, Editor of battleroyalwithcheese.com – a popular film blog of news, reviews and interviews — describes the scene as his top pick of movie sex scenes. “Out of the many, many films sex scenes I have seen, the one that sticks with me is the one in Mary Harron’s American Psycho”.
“In this scene Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) has sex with two prostitutes (Cara Seymour and Guinevere Turner) while listening to the song Sussudio by Phil Collins. Everyone should listen to Phil Collins while jumping one’s (or two’s) bones”.
The spectacularly choreographed intercourse, put together by Bale himself, plays out, as mentioned above by Alton Williams, to Phil Collins’ majestic pop track Sussudio. This paring makes this scene not only laugh out loud funny, as Bale flexes his muscles in the mirror behind the two girls, but epitomises the personality of this uber narcissist in one image. No list of memorable movie sex scenes can be complete without mentioning Patrick’s date night with Christy and Sabrina.
Black Swan
Darron Aronofsky’s dark and disturbing psychological thriller about Natalie Portman’s ballet dancer is already a tense affair. There is all kinds of thought provoking imagery taking place in 2010’s The Black Swan, and then THAT scene comes out of nowhere.
Portman’s rivalry with Mila Kunis during the movie is an intimate relationship to say the least, and when the two get together, leading to Kunis going down on Portman’s character in the confines of a gritty realistic framing, it becomes too hot to handle.
Culminating with Portman climaxing while Kunis is giving her oral sex, the scene is impossible to forget. The performances and how alive the whole scene feels makes the audience believe that these two are indeed this crazy for each other, and that all the panting, all the lustful stares, are more than Oscar worthy acting choices. This is a must watch.
Boogie Nights
A movie starring a 90s Mark Wahlberg as an aspiring porn star is bound to supply audiences with a few great sex scenes, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. But Paul Thomas Anderson’s breakout 1997 movie Boogie Nights, contains no more memorable scene than that early encounter with Julianne Moore.
Moore, who plays a veteran porn star in the flick, is pretending during a shoot to interview Wahlberg’s character for a job. This scene is typical cheesy porno type stuff but the scene kicks into gear when Moore asks Walhberg to pull out his penis – which in the film is ridiculously oversized – causing the porno’s entire camera crew to reel in awe. The scene is made funnier still as Moore comments, “that is a massive cock” then proceeds to screw him over her desk.
The scene is cheesy, funny, and undeniably hot, featuring Julianne Moore in an unforgettable performance, all capped off as she demands Wahlberg, “come inside her”. This is about as adult as sex gets in mainstream movies and the film is worth seeing for this scene alone. But also watch the whole thing because it’s a classic.
Mulholland drive
On paper, Mulholland Drive is perhaps not a film that instantly comes to mind. David Fincher’s bizarre and obtuse psychological drama about an aspiring actress becoming devoured by Hollywood, doesn’t jump out as being overtly raunchy, but there is a particular scene all fans of the film will know, and it is surprisingly titillating.
Naomi Watts’ starring character Betty is enraptured in a close relationship with new friend Rita (Laura Harring) and the two become more and more intertwined as the film progresses. And at one point in the film Betty finally gives into Rita as the two are lying in bed, her desires taking over. A kiss here and a bottom lip there, all leads to an incredibly hot scene that is also particularly tender.
It might not have the graphicness of say Boogie Nights or American Psycho, but it’s undoubtedly an arousing affair as these two beautiful women are unable to resist or keep their hands of each other.
The Notebook
This soppy romantic drama starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams is easy to poke fun at but if you have actually watched The Notebook (2004), you will know it’s an obvious edition to this list.
The two lovers are reunited as adults and after McAdams comes in from the rain, drenched from head to toe, looking great in the process, she and Gosling then finally get it on and neither holds back. The effectiveness of the scene has plenty to do with the build-up of course, their history together playing a factor, and also the fact that she is actually engaged to someone else.
This incredibly hot moment is a coming together of all their past frustrations, a release of tension as Gosling slams McAdams against the wall and then throws her down onto the bed. It’s rough, it’s hot, and monumentally passionate. It doesn’t get much better than this.
Wild Things
1998’s Wild Things is, as everyone who has seen the movie will attest, a must film to recognise. This erotic thriller starring Matt Dillon and Denise Richards is incredibly hot and tells the tale of a sexual assault accusation against a High School counsellor.
The film has become known not for its storyline but for the explicit sexual scenes that have gained it a lot of notoriety. The key scene in question really is something else and features Denise Richards in stunning form engaging in an incredibly hot threesome with Matt Dillon and Neve Campbell.
The film might not be a classic but this moment and others like it steal the show, making Wild Things an absolute must when checking off this list.
Titanic
Yes we all know the scene in question here, and yes, it’s not particularly graphic and kind of corny, but it is unquestionably memorable and for many of a certain age it was their first foray into movie sex and thusly the wider world beyond.
This is just the sentiment from Epiphora, a sex toy reviewer and blogger at HeyEpiphora.com.
“Maybe it’s because the movie came out when I was just starting to understand sex, maybe it’s because my crush on both Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio was so strong at the time, but I still love the scene in Titanic where they have sex in a car in the storage area of the ship. I think the thrill of the forbidden is the hottest thing about the scene — the way they have to escape below deck, where Rose’s despicable husband can’t find them, and how we don’t know whether this will be the only time they ever get to be intimate”.
Epiphora hits the nail right on the head. The forbidden love, the secrecy and danger as the two lovers are in the midst of a passionate romance aboard the doomed vessel.
Jack and Rose — played memorably by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet in James Cameron’s 1997 classic – find each other at their most tender, deep in the bowels of the ship, no longer content at longing looks and nude painting sessions.
This is the first time the two come together in this way, and in the backseat of a car make their desires official, steaming up the windows in the process. All while Rose’s husband to be smokes cigars on the ships upper deck.
It’s not the hottest but it is certainly memorable and a great addition to this list.
Friends with benefits
Mila Kunis here makes her second appearance on the list. Not all that surprising as the actress oozes sex appeal and makes a lot of fun acting choices. Starring here with Justin Timberlake in 2011’s Friends with Benefits, this hilarious film is a standout.
This is no doubt a popular choice, as Sean Evans of the film blog Back to the Movies – a site that shares its love of film with a passionate fan base – can attest. Sean names this sexy rom-com about two friends trying to have a no-strings-attached sexual adventure as an absolute standout.
“I love the sex scenes in Friends with Benefits” Sean says. “They’re the perfect mix of comedy and romance. It’s hilarious to see Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake giving regimented instructions to one another on what they like / dislike. It deserves a place on that list”.
Sean is absolutely right on this. Not only are Kunis and Timberlake great together on camera, producing a lot of hot moments with one another, but the added levity provided here pierces these moments, particularly in their first scene after becoming ‘friends with benefits’, making their sexual affair truly memorable.
Image Credit: IMDB: Gone Girl Movie Insider IMDB: American Psycho IMDB: Black Swan IMDB: Boogie Nights IMDB: Mulholland Drive New Line Cinema IMDB: Wild Things Paramount Pictures Sony Pictures
