Halina Reijn on Bridging Hollywood’s “Orgasm Gap” With Nicole Kidman Thriller ‘Babygirl’

As a woman who has grown up watching and being captivated by the erotic thrillers of the 90s, I find it utterly exhilarating to see this new film that seems to be drawing inspiration from those very movies. Much like these films were my guilty pleasures back then, they somehow managed to validate my own desires in a way that felt alien at the time. It’s as if these movies were whispering to me, “It’s okay, girl, you’re not alone.”

Halina Reijn wants to bridge Hollywood’s “orgasm gap.”

“Let me tell you, it’s massive! I mean, truly massive!” I express passionately during our Zoom chat about my latest project, “Babygirl.” It’s disheartening to see that in most Hollywood films, the portrayal of female orgasms is often unrealistic, something that hardly aligns with the experiences of 99% of women.

In the film “Babygirl,” debuting at the Venice Film Festival, one can expect that the orgasms depicted will be more authentic and frequent. Following her successful U.S. premiere with the Gen Z slasher satire “Bodies Bodies Bodies” (2022), director Reijn is returning to the sensual themes of her initial work, which was the 2019 Dutch drama “Instinct.” This film explored a clandestine romance between a prison therapist and an inmate who is a sex offender.

In the upcoming film titled “Babygirl”, Nicole Kidman portrays a successful CEO who is married to the alluring Jakob, played by Antonio Banderas. However, their seemingly perfect marriage takes an unexpected turn when the CEO becomes romantically involved with a younger intern, Harris Dickinson, known for his roles in “Triangle of Sadness” and “Iron Claw”. The film is set to be released on December 20th by A24, the production company responsible for “Bodies Bodies Bodies” and the U.S. release of “Instinct”.

Before the film’s premiere at Venice, Reijn chatted with The Hollywood Reporter about infusing a feminist perspective into the 1990s erotic thriller, navigating the politics of the post-#MeToo era, and reintroducing sensuality in cinema. “As an audience member, I sometimes crave a steamy, seductive film featuring attractive characters that stirs a bit of desire within me.”

I thoroughly enjoyed your movie Bodies, Bodies, Bodies when it made its U.S. premiere, but the new film seems more connected in terms of theme to your initial Dutch work, Instinct. Does it feel more daring or challenging to delve into these themes on a grand American scale, instead of within the context of a Dutch art house movie?

In essence, we’re all dealing with similar challenges, yet the intensity might be greater in America due to societal repression, as compared to the Netherlands. However, what makes this film unique is its focus on self-love, contrasting with Instinct that delved into self-destruction. While working on Black Book, Paul Verhoeven advised me that when directing, one must always be answering a question. For Instinct, the question was: Why do I engage in actions I know are harmful, yet continue to do so? What lies within this civilized individual is a beast.

For ‘Babygirl’, the query was: How can I embrace every aspect of myself wholeheartedly? While I appreciate the traits that society finds acceptable, there are parts of me I dislike and feel ashamed about. I wanted to create a film as a means to convey that sexuality should be cherished and enjoyed. Rather than dwelling on thoughts like: ‘Oh dear, why do I harbor these forbidden, taboo desires?’, this is essentially the tale of a woman finding self-liberation.

How does sexuality and the film’s other themes play out differently in an American context?

Well, first of all, and this is what I found so fun doing Bodies Bodies Bodies, is that everything’s bigger in America. Whether you order a cola or hamburger, when you’re walking down the street, it’s all so much bigger than in Europe. So I really wanted to make a movie with a huge scale. Which is why Nicole Kidman is perfect for the film. Because you don’t get any bigger than her. She plays this very powerful CEO of a robotics company. And the affair that takes place is in the workplace, where, in America, less than in Europe, there’s a real hierarchy and a lot more rules about what’s allowed and what’s not allowed. Which heightens the sense of an affair like this being really forbidden, really taboo.

Your comment about Verhoeven brings to mind a connection, as if this movie seems inspired by the ’90s erotic thrillers he’s known for popularizing.

I found myself deeply moved by the erotic thrillers of the ’90s such as “Basic Instinct,” “Fatal Attraction,” “9 1/2 Weeks,” and “Indecent Proposal.” They resonated with me not just because they were entertaining, but also because they made me feel understood in a strange way. Despite being created by men and sometimes portraying women in less than favorable ways, I felt seen by these films. As a woman, I often felt like an outsider when it came to expressing my own desires, and these movies seemed to validate those feelings. Although the female characters usually suffered some form of retribution at the end of the film, they still gave me a sense that my darker impulses were not taboo. This movie is my response, a feminine perspective, to those films. It engages in dialogue with them while also poking fun at the male gaze. I aim to delve into the contemporary issues surrounding power and sex, but with a touch of humor as well.

How is it different to tell these stories in the post-#MeToo era?

It’s clear that significant progress has been made in terms of feminism and inclusivity since the 1990s, which is undeniably a good thing. This advancement has allowed me, as a woman, to direct films today. However, reflecting on the films from the ’90s, they often focused on desire, but I believe there are relatively few American movies that explore female desire and sexuality in depth. This topic still seems to be shrouded in fear. There remains a significant “orgasm gap,” which is alarmingly large, and while TV has improved, films, particularly big-budget Hollywood productions, continue to depict unrealistic female orgasms for most women. I aim to create an engaging, juicy film about sexuality that is truthful in its portrayal.

Those films, the erotic thrillers, you mention, kind of disappeared from the American movie scene.

In modern cinematography, there’s been a noticeable lack of sexual content. This is a recurring concern for director Paul Verhoeven who often questions, “Where has the sensuality gone in American films?” However, with recent releases like ‘Challengers’ and ‘Saltburn’, some degree of it seems to be returning, although it had been largely missing from mainstream movies for quite some time.

It appears as though we’ve grown quite apprehensive about sexuality. However, I believe there’s a widespread desire for it – a craving to approach sex candidly and find the humor in it. Modern times have brought forth crucial guidelines on consent, which are vital and essential. Yet, we remain creatures of instinct, and it seems necessary to acknowledge this aspect of ourselves. This, I suspect, is the root of the impulse to create these films.

At times, as an audience member, I crave watching a film that’s sensual yet sophisticated, featuring appealing characters who ignite a spark of attraction. It’s not explicit content; rather, we aim to create a captivating and thought-provoking movie with an undercurrent of allure. While such films have been present in European cinema, they haven’t quite reached the scale that I believe they should. I am thrilled to see this change, as I find it enthralling and exhilarating to immerse myself in a cinema filled with 300 people, enjoying a truly sensual movie together. I can’t imagine anything more delightful than that shared experience.

2024-08-30 12:55

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