"She is a beautiful woman, but when this trial is over, you will see her no differently than a gun, or a knife, or any other instrument used as a weapon. She's a killer, and the worst kind: a killer who disguises herself as a loving partner!"
--Robert Garrett, Body of Evidence
Body of Evidence steps into multiple subgenres in order to collectively form an erotic legal drama about the conflicting ways Western culture regards sexuality. Premised on a murder investigation that inevitably brushes up against the sexual activities of the deceased, it holds a light to more aggressive forms of consensual sexual expression that could easily be misrepresented by conservatives and liberals alike. Main character Rebecca Carlson even calls many Westerners hypocrites in a discussion where she scoffs at those who outwardly support conservative prudery while not truly aligning with it ideologically. The film might boldly look into aspects of sexuality even erotic thrillers do not necessarily touch upon, but it does also have more to it than the potential shock value of sexuality.
Production Values
Indeed, one of the key components of Body of Evidence is its performances from cast members like Madonna and Willem Dafoe. Madonna plays a woman accused of murder and Willem Dafoe plays her lawyer, a man who professes to not care about moral innocence or guilt as much as portraying clients in a positive light. The majority of the movie revolves around their professional and developing sexual relationship--the latter getting in the way of the lawyer's own marriage. The relationship involves a challenging of cultural norms that gradually becomes overt and gives both Dafoe and Madonna a chance to combine sexual performance with genuine character development. Julianne Moore has several scenes as the betrayed wife, a character who starts out seemingly content with her marriage but becomes furious when she discovers the affair. She may not have many scenes, but Moore provides a solid side character even if she later said she wished she had never starred in the film due to its allegedly terrible quality. Thankfully, despite critical hostility, Body of Evidence is not a terrible movie, just one that lets its lead characters and mixture of genres pull it along.
Story
Some spoilers are below.
After a wealthy, older man dies during sex with his younger lover Rebecca Carlson, who is viewed with suspicion because her name was in his will. Rebecca and her lawyer Frank Dulaney navigate a series of relational and legal twists and turns until they decide to have sex despite the fact that Frank is already married. The court case is used by different parties for various reasons, and evidence surfaces that Rebecca has engaged in suspicious behavior with other older men with heart problems, one of whom attends the trial and even testifies. Frank becomes more and more conflicted as his romantic relationship with Rebecca and the case intensify.
Intellectual Content
Rebecca's tendency to enjoy BDSM sexual acts despite the cultural suspicion of them leads her to push back against the entrenched prudery of people who secretly crave sexual connection and excitement while pretending like they are just as hostile towards sexuality as much of the culture seems to be outwardly. While this comment applies to sexual expression as a whole and not just to acts involving both pleasure and physical pain, she specifically calls out people with ideas about sexuality that contradict societal prudery and yet refuse to be open about it. Ever the ideologically transparent woman, she even says she looks to the animal kingdom for sexual inspiration, as they roughly have sex without hurting each other in a way that somewhat parallels her BDSM practices. Although she does not say it, humans are just a unique kind of animal--a very unique one, however [1]. What she ignores is that the behavior of non-human animals does not morally justify human behavior whatsoever. If something is morally wrong for a human to engage in, it does not matter if animals do it, and it likewise does not matter if animals do not do something that is ultimately morally obligatory. Animal behavior, like social norms and personal feelings, are red herrings.
Conclusion
There are so many important truths, nuances, and even paradoxes of sexuality neglected by conservatives and liberals alike that it would be almost impossible for a single film to thoroughly address even a tenth of them. There are too many logical facts to affirm and too many hypocrisies and fallacies to expose. Body of Evidence clearly targets the bondage/domination category of sexual behaviors, a category that even erotic thrillers do not always directly focus on. The special susceptibility of this kind of sexual expression to misunderstanding by prudish and irrationalistic people is particularly obvious in an era with a greater outward emphasis on ensuring sexual encounters are consensual. In addition to exploring this to some extent, Body of Evidence does offer very competent core performances and blend genres rather well.
Content:
1. Profanity: "Fuck" is exclaimed repeatedly.
2. Nudity: Full-body nudity is shown during and after some sex scenes.
3. Sexuality: There are multiple sex scenes with most of the bodies of the participants showing. Some of the scenes even involve BDSM-type activities.
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