Will Feminists Object to Unconscious Prostitute Fetish Film?

April 16th, 2011 7:23 AM

If feminists can't be moved to protest NBC glamorizing the Playboy clubs, what will move them? The Huffington Post suggests another target, a new (Australian-government-funded) film called "Sleeping Beauty" about a prostitute with a uniquely servile sales pitch:

This is no fairy tale story. Emily Browning stars in the new film "Sleeping Beauty," starring as the newest member of a mysterious and shady high-end prostitution service specializing in bizarre and very discreet fetishes. Browning's speciality is especially disturbing: she takes strong drugs to knock her out, allowing men to have their way with her without her remembering what happened in the morning. 

Will filmmakers consider the possibility that this will increase the sales appeal of this flavor of prostitution? Or increase the appeal of knockout date rape? The tension in the film apparently comes from the Browning character becoming obsessed with what has happened to her while she was knocked out.

Working against any feminist objections: the film is directed by a woman (Julia Leigh) and is praised in the trailer by a woman (director Jane Campion).