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The Loss of Sexual Innocence

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The Loss of Sexual Innocence
Film poster
Directed byMike Figgis
Written byMike Figgis
Produced byMike Figgis
Annie Stewart
Starring
CinematographyBenoît Delhomme
Edited byMatthew Wood
Music byMike Figgis
Production
companies
Distributed bySony Pictures Classics
Release date
  • 28 May 1999 (1999-05-28)
Running time
106 minutes
CountriesUnited States
United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$3.5 million[3]
Box office$400,000[4]

The Loss of Sexual Innocence is a 1999 drama film written and directed by Mike Figgis.[5] It tells the story of the sexual development of a filmmaker through three stages of his life, in a non-linear and disjointed manner.[6] The film stars British actress Saffron Burrows,[5] whom Figgis dated for several years.[7]

Plot

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The story at the center of the movie is the tumultuous life of Nic (Julian Sands), a British director beginning a new film project in Tunisia.

Cast

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Production

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The Loss of Sexual Innocence was based on a script called “Short Stories,” which Figgis had written in 1982.[8] His original concept was to have been a multimedia show featuring film, live performance and music. The success of Leaving Las Vegas allowed him to finance the making of the nearly two-decades-old cinematic project.[9]

Reception

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Stephen Holden of The New York Times wrote, "Those with no patience for avant-garde films will want to avoid The Loss of Sexual Innocence...Everyone else will find moments of surpassing beauty in this courageous, deeply flawed film." He was effusive in his praise for Figgis creating the film's atmosphere "through its mixture of music, beautiful outdoor cinematography and somber, silent acting." What he considered flaws were the Adam and Eve storyline and two scenes which he considered irrelevant involving an airport encounter between identical twins separated at birth and the humiliation of an obese 12-year-old Nic by a gym teacher.[10]

Like Holden, Roger Ebert delineated what type of movie it is by explaining it as "an 'art film,' which means it tries to do something more advanced than most commercial films (which tell stories simple enough for children, in images shocking enough for adults)." He rated it three and a half out of four stars, adding that it "plays like a musical composition, with themes drifting in and out, and dialogue used more for tone than speech....Not all of it works, but you play along, because it's rare to find a film this ambitious."[11]

Taking a more playful approach in his review, Jeff Millar of the Houston Chronicle came to a similar conclusion as Holden and Ebert and explained, "If you are an adventurous filmgoer, interested in technique, certainly go. If you like stories with 'stories,' which go from Point A to Point B with conflicts along the way, this film may be a little too atonal for you."[12]

Emanuel Levy of Variety was critical of the movie as commentary on Nic’s loss of innocence and the entire state of civilization, stating that "it’s in this intent that the film fails most conspicuously, giving Figgis’ skeptics the strongest ammunition to dismiss his work as pretentious and overreaching."[3] Desson Howe of The Washington Post was more scathing in his analysis and declared, "For me, at least, The Loss of Sexual Innocence is the highly cinematic equivalent of a smoke-and-mirrors job."[9]

Soundtrack

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Original Motion Picture Soundtrack:
The Loss of Sexual Innocence
Soundtrack album by
various artists
Released1999
GenrePostmodern, classical
Length65:48
LabelPhilips
ProducerMike Figgis
Soundtrack album listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Performed byLength
1."Africa"Mike FiggisMike Figgis4:24
2."Der Dichter Spricht"Robert SchumannJoanna MacGregor2:10
3."Doppelgänger"Mike FiggisMike Figgis2:06
4."Traumerie"Robert SchumannJoanna MacGregor2:47
5."Tango"Mike FiggisMike Figgis7:08
6."Nocturne In E Flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2"Frédéric ChopinJoanna MacGregor4:56
7."Twins"Mike FiggisMike Figgis6:40
8."Piano Sonata In C, kv. 545, The Ardento Section"Wolfgang Amadeus MozartJoanna MacGregor5:29
9."Tree of Knowledge"Mike FiggisMike Figgis4:05
10."Pathetique Sonata - 1st Movement(excerpt)"Ludwig van BeethovenJoanna MacGregor4:26
11."Dukes Award"Mike FiggisMike Figgis1:58
12."Moonlight Sonata - 1st Movement (excerpt)"Ludwig van BeethovenJoanna MacGregor5:51
13."Accident"Mike FiggisMike Figgis2:30
14."Loss of Sexual Innocence"Mike FiggisMike Figgis2:59
15."An Eye For An Eye"Mike FiggisMike Figgis1:21
16."Symphony No. 9 - Allegro Ma Non Tanto (excerpt)"Ludwig van BeethovenRoyal Philharmonic Orchestra1:44
17."Nocturne In D Flat Major, Op. 27, No. 2"Frédéric ChopinJoanna MacGregor5:14

References

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  1. ^ a b "The Loss of Sexual Innocence (1999)". Danish Film Institute. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  2. ^ a b "The Loss of Sexual Innocence (2000)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on December 29, 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
  3. ^ a b Levy, Emanuel. "The Loss of Sexual Innocence" (review), Variety, Tuesday, January 26, 1999. Retrieved October 26, 2020
  4. ^ "The Loss of Sexual Innocence (1999) - Financial Information".
  5. ^ a b Figgis, Mike (January 7, 2000). "Hollywood Beyond". The Guardian.
  6. ^ Plot summary of the film. IMDb.
  7. ^ Cooper, Tim (May 5, 2002). "A hint of Saffron". The Guardian.
  8. ^ Kaufman, Anthony. "Interview: Mike Figgis' Loss of Sexual Innocence," IndieWire, May 1999. Retrieved October 27, 2020
  9. ^ a b Howe, Desson. "At a Loss With Sexual Innocence," The Washington Post, Friday, June 25, 1999. Retrieved October 27, 2020
  10. ^ Holden, Stephen. "The Loss of Sexual Innocence: The Story of Adam and Eve, Sort Of," The New York Times, Friday, May 28, 1999. Retrieved October 26, 2020
  11. ^ Ebert, Roger. "The Loss of Sexual Innocence" (review), RogerEbert.com, Friday, June 18, 1999. Retrieved October 26, 2020
  12. ^ Millar, Jeff. "The Loss of Sexual Innocence" (review), Houston Chronicle, Friday, July 9, 1999. Retrieved October 27, 2020
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