9½ Weeks [1986]

CAST

Kim Basinger as Elizabeth McGraw
Mickey Rourke as John Gray
Margaret Whitton as Molly
David Margulies as Harvey
Christine Baranski as Thea
Karen Young as Sue
William DeAcutis as Ted
Dwight Weist as Farnsworth
Roderick Cook as Sinclair
Olek Krupa as Bruce
Michael Margotta as Michael
Victor Truro as Gallery Client
Julian Beck as Dinner Guest
Dan Lauria as Janitor

STORYLINE

    The title of the film refers to the duration of a relationship between Wall Street arbitrageur John Gray and SoHo gallery employee Elizabeth McGraw. John initiates and controls the varied experimental sexual practices of this abusive relationship to push Elizabeth's boundaries. In doing so, Elizabeth experiences a gradual downward spiral toward an emotional breakdown.

    Elizabeth first sees John in  NY  City at a Chinese grocer, and later at a street fair where she decides against buying an upscale scarf. John finds her and produces the headscarf and the two go on a date.  they begin dating and Elizabeth is increasingly subjected to John's behavioural peculiarities; as he increases the sense of danger and pushes her normal boundaries. He gives her an upscale gold watch and instructs her to use it to think about him touching her every day at noon. She takes this imperative even further by masturbating at her workplace at the designated time.

    Elizabeth wants to incorporate  John into her life and meet her friends, but he makes it clear he only wishes to work out with her in the evenings and instructs her to see her friends in the daytime. Elizabeth is then left alone at his apartment in the evening. She examines his closet until she discovers a photograph of him with another woman, April Tover. John calls her and asks her if she went through his things, declaring that he will punish her. She admits that she has. When he returns home he tells her to face the wall and receive a spanking. Elizabeth attempts to go away but finds the door locked, she shouts at him and he slaps her,  and she or he slaps him back. He then rapes her.

    John begins to regulate all aspects of Elizabeth's life,  like picking out what she should wear and choosing what she will eat, brushing her hair and feeding her. Elizabeth becomes increasingly hooked on John for mental and emotional stability as she loses her sense of self. She follows him to figure one day and brings him lunch. She mentions to him that she would really like to "be one of the guys". As a surprise, John contrives for her to crossdress for an appointment at a bar. On leaving the establishment, two men hurl an insult once they mistake John and Elizabeth for a gay couple.  the lads chase them and a fight ensues.  the 2  men begin assaulting John and drop a knife. Elizabeth picks up the knife and stabs one among the attackers in the buttocks and both attackers flee. Elated from her triumph, Elizabeth exclaims she loves John. They strip and she or he reveals a wet tank top and the two have passionate sex at the site of the crime.

    Following this encounter John begins to form the BDSM-style relationship dynamic more obvious in public. During a visit to a bed store, he asks Elizabeth to "spread your legs for daddy"  ahead of the saleswoman. They visit a store for equestrian accessories and John whips Elizabeth on the leg with a  hunting crop before telling the salesman, "I'll take this one". At his apartment, John asks Elizabeth to crawl onto the ground and pick up the money as he throws it on the ground. Elizabeth reluctantly obliges before stopping and saying "This is stupid, John". John insists that she crawl and devour the money and takes off his belt, whipping items within the apartment. Elizabeth says, "John, don't play with me like that", but John continues to insist that she crawl. Elizabeth protests that "It's only a game" before John unexpectedly begins whipping the bottom directly next to Elizabeth demanding that she crawl. Scared, she screams, "No! Don't touch me!" and begins to cry. John continues to inform her to crawl and pick up the money, grabbing her. Elizabeth shouts "I  don't need to pick up the money!" John continues to tell her to pick up the money. She eventually grabs the cash around her, crying, before John declares, "Elizabeth you're keen on this game, don't you?" and sits beside her with a smile on his face. Elizabeth says, "I hate it" and throws the cash in his face.

    Elizabeth is shown as confident and sexy reception with John, but increasingly withdrawn at work and ruminates over her previous lover. She goes to the countryside to go to an artist named Farnsworth and secure an exhibit.

    Elizabeth is asked to satisfy  John in a hotel room. There he phones her and asks her to wear what's in the drawers. She opens the drawer to get a scarf to be used as a blindfold. Elizabeth removes her dress and waits for John. He arrives and says "It was an easy thing that I asked you to do, now do it"  pertaining to the blindfold. Elizabeth reluctantly puts on the blindfold together with his help. John touches her briefly before a lady enters the room speaking Spanish and starts caressing Elizabeth as John observes them. Elizabeth shows signs of hysteria and the woman tries to reassure Elizabeth and removes her blindfold. John then takes the lady into the next room,  in view of Elizabeth and begins to remove her clothes. As he attempts to kiss her neck, Elizabeth violently intervenes and then flees the hotel, with John in pursuit. They run until they find themselves in an adult entertainment venue. Elizabeth enters an area where a group of men are watching a couple have sex on the ground. Elizabeth, visibly upset, notices John watching her and she or he starts kissing the man next to her. John moves toward her and they embrace.

    

    During a successful opening, Elizabeth's gallery exhibits Farnsworth's work. The humanity and reclusive of Farnsworth may be a  clear contrast with the frenzy of the partying crowd. Farnsworth, clearly uncomfortable at the party, sees Elizabeth as she retreats to a corner in tears.  hooked into John for her emotional stability, Elizabeth phones him. She wears an outsized cuff-like, metal bracelet.  the subsequent morning, we see Elizabeth has spent the night at John's. She gets up and opens his closet, clinging to the suits she finds there for a flash and cries as she looks over at him asleep. She begins to gather her things and John awakes. Realizing she is leaving, he attempts to bring her back by sharing some details of his family before saying "I want you to understand there's been lots of other girls,  plenty of women, but I never felt anything like this before". Elizabeth tells him that it's too late as she leaves the apartment. John begins a mental countdown from 50, hoping she is going to come back by the time he is finished. At the start of the movie, Elizabeth is shown walking among the gang, although at this point she is crying.