"Indecent, immoral", "outrageous and lascivious", "obscene" - sounds like a review of "Fifty Shades of Gray"? Nothing could be more wrong! The film "Ecstasy" deserved such opinions in 1933. Why? Because for the first time in the history of cinematography, it shows nudity and female orgasm on the screen ...
Crowds were pounding in French cinemas for the screenings of "Ecstasy" - in Paris, the film did not leave the poster for 22 weeks. Meanwhile, Pope Pius XI openly condemned him, outraged journalists dismissed his reverence and faith and blamed censors for allowing him to be distributed, and Adolf Hitler completely banned it from being displayed in Germany.
The orgasm scene in "Ecstasy" caused a worldwide scandal.
It was not much better overseas. In the United States, due to the protests of the Catholic Legion of Decency, supported by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the controversial production was released three years later, and in addition… censored. But why is this moving, but in fact quite banal film about love and the desire for motherhood become such a scandal ? This happened for three reasons.
Peak of indecency
First of all, she played the role of Eve, an unhappy young married woman, then little-known Austrian actress Hedwig Kiesler (who later conquered Hollywood as Hedy Lamarr), paraded in it without clothes . While it would not impress anyone today, in the 1930s, screen nudity was unacceptable. Ladies appearing how God created them could only be seen in secretly displayed pornographic films.
Due to her extraordinary beauty, Hedy was hailed as "the most beautiful woman in the world". However, she was not only pretty, but also extraordinarily intelligent.
More than one connoisseur of female beauty could turn a blind eye to a naked shank - after all, 18-year-old Hedwig was already called "the most beautiful woman in the world", and in "Ecstasy" one could admire her charms at least as much as she wanted. Director Gustav Machatý, however, went one step further and told the young girl to act out an orgasm.
I must admit that she did it perfectly. Although the controversial scene shows mainly her face and hands, the viewers could not have the slightest doubt as to what the heroine was going through . What was Hedwig herself feeling at that time? Marie Benedict describes her impressions in a historical novel based on the biography of this legendary actress and inventor, entitled "All the Lives of Hedy Lamarr":
Right after the premiere, due to the nudity and sexual intercourse scene - during which the director pricked me with a pin to make an orgasmic expression on my face - it was banned in several countries and in others were censored, which cast a shadow over my name. Although, of course, the scandal only fueled people's desire to see an unattainable movie.
Orgasm only with husband!
But it was not the naked scenes and the suggestive climax that caused the most sensation. The third reason that offended the defenders of morality (at least those in the US) the most was that the heroine of "Ecstasy" ... had sex outside of marriage.
This curiosity was inspired by the novel by Marie Benedict "All Lives of Hedy Lamarr", which was published by the Znak Horyzont publishing house.
Only when the sentence about a secret wedding of lovers was added (naturally preceding the lecherous act), Americans were allowed to officially watch the movie in theaters. Nevertheless, many viewers still felt the scandal of the obscene fragments and left the projection the moment Hedwig smoked a cigarette with a blissful expression on her face ...
How did the screen sex scandal affect Kiesler's career? As a result, she temporarily suspended her film career and began performing in the Viennese theater. There she was spotted by Freidrich Mandl, one of the richest people in Austria, an arms dealer cooperating with Hitler and Mussolini, among others.
He immediately fell in love with a beautiful girl and, despite her notoriety and her Jewish origins, soon married her. The marriage (as did Eve's movie relationship) failed . Hedwig managed to extricate himself from him. After the divorce, she fled to London and later overseas, where she changed her name and made a career as an actress and inventor. But that's a completely different story…
Inspiration:
Trivia is the essence of our website. Short materials devoted to interesting anecdotes, surprising details from the past, strange news from the old press. Reading that will take you no more than 3 minutes, based on single sources.
This curiosity was inspired by the historical novel by Marie Benedict entitled "All Lives of Hedy Lamarr", which was published by the Znak Horyzont publishing house.