In the opening moments of Gregg Araki's "I Want Your Sex," Elliot (Cooper Hoffman) stumbles out of a fancy home, sporting a silky pink bra and a bloody nose. He looks confused, scared, and in utter disbelief about the scenario he's found himself in. It only gets worse from there when he spots a naked woman floating face down in the pool.
Araki, known for his in-your-face style of filmmaking, quickly sets the tone of "I Want Your Sex" by opening the movie as if it were some kinked-up riff on "Sunset Boulevard." From those disorienting opening moments, the movie brings the audience back to how Elliot found himself in the position of being at his boss Erika's (Olivia Wilde) home, while she's unresponsive in her pool.
Elliot lives with his best friend Apple (Chase Sui Wonders), who is constantly having to help Elliot cover his share of the rent, all while he eats her food. Elliot desperately needs a job. He winds up interviewing for Erika at her gallery, where she spends the entire time half-listening to Elliot while she scrolls through her phone. It would be a shocker if Erika even knew Elliot's name, but she hires him on the spot.
It's not to long before Erika proposes a sexual relationship to Elliot. Erika is erratic and unpredictable but conducts her entire life like a business meeting. She offers no frills, no comforting language to ease him in; she just wants to know if he's interested in a dom-sub sexual arrangement with her (take a guess who assumes what role).
This feels like a no-brainer for Elliot, who is in a relationship with Minerva (Charli XCX, suddenly ubiquitous in movies), where sex is asked for and usually denied due to her studies. Elliot and Minerva's relationship isn't stagnant because of the lack of sex, it's stagnant because it doesn't seem like they like each other. Erika's proposition to Elliot feels like it fell into his lap from heaven above.
As these sorts of things go, Erika and Elliot's relationship gets tricky. From the opening moments of the movie, Araki shows the audience this won't end well for Elliot. That's not spoiling the movie or removing any of the tension upfront, because Araki and co-writer Karley Sciortino bake the movie's tension into the interactions between Wilde and Hoffman. Wilde's Erika is an over-the-top caricature, but Wilde makes it impossible to look away from every choice she makes within her performance (it's officially Olivia Wilde Summer, thanks to this and her marvelous "The Invite"). Hoffman is game to keep up with her; they find a way to create electric chemistry between two characters who shouldn't really have any chemistry at all.
"I Want Your Sex" marks Araki's first feature film since 2014's "White Bird in a Blizzard." The filmmaker was a staple of the indie film scene in the 90s, best known for his "Teen Apocalypse Trilogy," which consisted of "Nowhere," "Totally F***ed Up" and "The Doom Generation". Those films are brazen in their depiction of sexuality, as most of Araki's films have been. "I Want Your Sex," while much more frank than your average independent film today, finds Araki a bit toned down with the times, in comparison to his work from the 90s. He takes every opportunity in his latest to comment on the changing landscape in the depiction of sexuality. "I Want Your Sex" is a clarion call to the "do we even need sex scenes?" generation.
Araki knows that times have changed, just like everyone else does. His fans shouldn't expect a grimy movie that engages their senses in the same way as his previous work. "I Want Your Sex" is a glossy examination of an inappropriate - but consensual - relationship, the madcap fallout from Elliot's decision to enter into such a relationship, and the abuse of power coming from the other end. "I Want Your Sex" is fun and entertaining and will please those familiar with Araki's work.
| Movie title | I Want Your Sex |
|---|---|
| Release year | 2026 |
| MPAA Rating | R |
| Our rating | |
| Summary | Indie filmmaker Gregg Araki is back with another bold, in-your-face film about sexuality and power dynamics. |