As fans get ready for the February 13th premiere of the 'Fifty Shades of Grey' film, one concerned Christian mother is using the opportunity to publicly warn her daughter of the potentially negative impact that the film can have on women.
"As you grow up, you will begin to date and engage in relationships with members of the opposite sex, but I feel I must warn you about how you should act in your future relationships with men," Movieguide contributing writer Michelle S. Lazurek wrote. "The movies you may watch do not portray women in a positive light. Hollywood does not view you the same way that God does. God wants to liberate you and allow you to be all you can be. He wants you to see yourself as special so you, as well as guys will cherish you as a special gift."
Fifty Shades of Grey is a film based on the 2011 erotic novel by E.L. James that was made famous for its depictions of bondage, dominance, sadism, and abuse in sexual situations. The original book was written as Twilight fan fiction, but was re-written by the author to be an original story that she self-published as an e-book. When Vintage Books picked up the publishing rights in March of 2012, the author was able to write two more books in the series, making it a trilogy.
So far, the series has sold over 100 million copies and has been translated into 52 different languages around the world. Amazon UK declared in 2012 that it had sold more copies of Fifty Shades of Grey than the entire Harry Potter series combined, and the book enjoyed the number one spot on USA Today's best-selling book list for 20 weeks in a row.
And if you think that's remarkable, the movie -- which hasn't even been released yet --has already attracted over 250 million views on its debut trailer so far. Online movie ticket agency Fandango is reporting that pre-sales of the movie have surpassed all expectations with over $60 million in tickets sold already. The largest concentration of those pre-sales tickets, Fandango reports, is surprisingly concentrated in the "Bible Belt" of Mississippi, Arkansas, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Alabama.
But it's this popularity that has Lazurek especially concerned as the depictions of abuse against women could be desensitizing our youth into thinking that this is acceptable behavior from normal adults.
"Daughter, I want you to know that this is not the way God wants you to view yourself as a woman or as a human being," Lazurek writes.
In all, there are five extremely important points that Lazurek makes about the film's depiction of sex and relationships, including the fact that "Bondage keeps you locked up, it does not set you free," "Lust does not equal love," "Pornography is not healthy for any relationship," "Biblical submission is not the same as sexual submission," and "Abuse begets abuse."
As a father of three daughters myself, I will happy rally behind Lazurek's message and encourage other Christians -- men and women -- to do the same by boycotting this movie. If the 83 percent of Americans who consider themselves Christian would not support this film, it might just go away.
"Daughter, you are a beautiful woman," Lazurek concludes. "You are adored and loved by God. You are beautiful simply because you are you. You are not a piece of trash to be dominated, abused or degraded. One day a man will love you for you, not for what you can do for him, sexually or otherwise."
