seX, sEX, SEX

That is a good point, I remember as a kid watching movies and my parents would tell me to cover my eyes in a kind of joking manner. Older people think that these scenes are quite vulgar and needless which i feel is probably true. There are very few scenes where the "sex" is artistic so for the most part it is not needed. I think the fact of the matter is SEX SELLS. If a movie has an amazingly beautiful girl who is clad in tattered clothes, males are going to want to watch it. The same if there is a good sex scene, it may seem cliche but guys will want to watch it.
Like we said in class, as time moves on some things become more taboo and some things become less taboo.

Of course there was sex in the old movies, just as there is sex in the Bible. (Consider those long lists of who begat whom, for instance.) What's different is the way it's portrayed.

In the black and white silent films, you see big puffs smoke shooting out of people's guns, because that's a visual cue that the gun has fired. So in battle scenes, people are shooting rifles up in the air to make the smoke come out, and it looks silly today, but it was necessary for the silent audience to register the gunshot.

In a similar way, a creative filmmaker could use sultry glances, subtle double-enendres, and other hints to send the message in a creative way. Imagine how you would convey the impression of a loud noise if you were filming a silent film? How would you convey a brightly lit room if you were doing a radio play? All media are constrained by certain limitations -- consider the complex rhymes of a rap song, or the fact that so-called "Reality TV" shows list "writers" in the closing credits.

Any constraint is an opportunity for creative expression, and trying to convey sexuality in a movie in a way that will appeal to both women and men is tricky.

Sex has always been a part of story-telling, so it may seem. It's guise and presentation has just been altered. Reproduction is necessary for life, so why not include some means of literature and film?

True, censorship has blocked much of the graphic representation and outright forthcoming advertisement thereof, but it still lingers in what we read and watch. For instance, the idea of film censorship: take the 1950s film production of "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers". The audience doesn't actually see Adam and his wife havign sex, but they foster a child. There are hints at it.

It's there, it's always been there, but it's just that sometimes we need to read between the lines.

Along with what other people are saying, sex was also kind of taboo for a long time in literature. This made authors be sneaky as to how they portrayed it, so even then sex was selling, even if people didn't know it. As for today, I think a lot of films use sex because it is such a passionate thing. The only thing more passionate would probably be anger (and revenge), which appear just as equally in film. I do feel like a lot of media nowadays do put it in there without any reason, but when it is done right it is enjoyable, and not just because of the usual male reasons, but because it often times is some sort of catharsis.

I just feel like movies and literature used to be more about expressing a message or telling a story and less about getting the HUGE ratings and money.

A good artist can rile up just a fascinating story using sexual tension as they can using actual sex. How many times you watched a tv series where you were just dying for the two characters to hook up but, of course, they never do, because if they did then the entire point of the show would fall apart. They only ever hook up like in the final season.

I agree with both Josh and Carlos that many times sex is used in television and movies to boost ratings or sales. More than anything else, this is a reflection of the social culture that has developed over the past few decades. Sex is something that is discussed openly in schools (sex ed) and is more generally accepted by the public. Because it maintains some of that taboo, it makes the movie or book exciting.

I agree with Alyssa. I think the whole have to have sex in every movie and every TV show has gotten old. To be honest I would love to watch a movie or a tv show where nobody has sex.

Sex does sell and I understand that is why many movies are made, such as Zach and Miri Make a Porno. Producers use these titles and make these movies because #1 sex, #2 it's funny sex. Pretty, half-naked girls in trailors for the movie draw people into the thought that "Oh, hot chick, I want to see that movie." Yeah, I agree in some aspects it makes things more interesting and sometimes when its 'funny sex/ sex scene' there isn't as much tension. But why every movie, every tv show? Sometimes it just gets old.
And can I just say this is my first blog with this many comments and so I would say its my most successful and that pumps me up! Thanks guys :)