A quick follow-up

Just caught how the New York Times’ covered the deaths of Maria Shneider and Lena Nyman. Not surprisingly, their approach is far superior to Time’s. Both women get thorough obituaries which flesh out (no pun intended) their lives and offer their perspectives on the erotica films that made them famous.

Shneider is quoted as saying, “I felt humiliated, and to be honest I felt a little raped, both by Marlon and by Bertolucci. After the scene, Marlon didn’t console me or apologize. Thankfully, there was just one take.”

Nyman‘s thoughts, on the other hand, are more accepting. “You know,” she said, “some people get shocked about sex. I was shocked that everyone was so shocked. It was such a quarrel about that movie. Wow!”

This could be due to the different attitudes of the people making the movies, or perhaps the women’s different dispositions. Regardless, the Times recognizes the importance of giving the women a voice.

Finally, there’s a great critical op-ed piece by Manohla Dargis which contextualizes Last Tango in Paris and I Am Curious within their time and relates them to the contemporary portrayal of sex and romance in American cinema. This is a bit of a stretch to tie in because neither of the aforementioned movies were American, but it’s a great point nonetheless.

So much better.