Fetishes

This documentary of Nick Broomfield's, focusing on the S/M scene, and in particular, on a place in New York called Pandora's Box where ladies with names like Delilah and Raven 'entertain' their clients, is one-sided from the start, starting with negative preconceptions which it tries to convey to its audience.

However, this weakness aside, it is pretty uncompromising when focusing on the mistresses and their clients (whether male or female). I didn't get the sense it was poking fun, but it makes no attempt to understand or explore the scene either. So it remains fairly interesting but ultimately unengaging, mainly because of Broomfield's reluctance to go in there with an open mind and let the viewers of this documentary decide for themselves.

I can't really say that the idea of fetishes appeals to me too much - my 'knowledge' of S&M before seeing this film has mostly come from the 'trash' cinema that I enjoy watching. I've got to say that this film didn't particularly teach me anything about the scene and the people that enjoy being dominated by 'superior' women that I didn't already know, but established documentary maker Nick Broomfield's look behind usually closed doors makes for enjoyable viewing, even if it isn't particularly insightful or informative. The film focuses on New York fetish club 'Pandora's Box', and we watch as Broomfield films various sessions with the mistresses and their clients. These range from rather tame whippings to more obscure sessions involving concentration camp domination and 'infantilism'. Nick Broomfield's approach is very objective, and he films everything without ever making a stance on what he's seeing. Even his voice is very cold and lifeless, and it doesn't always make for compelling viewing. Ironically, the most interesting thing about this movie is not the filming involving S&M acts, but rather the insight into the dominatrix's lives and their thoughts on their jobs. One of the mistresses, a woman who calls herself 'Mistress Raven' brings up a good point during the film about the director making a documentary about a subject he himself has never experienced, and that pretty much sums it all up. This film is interesting for the most part, but Broomfield's closed mind unwillingness to partake in the acts that he's filming ensure that this is more of an expose than an analysis. Still, it's something of an eye opener, although people that are interested in this topic won't find out anything new, and those that aren't interested in it are likely to find out that S&M is, in fact, not all that fascinating.

I'm a huge fan of documentaries... when they're done right. How a documentary about dominatrices and fetishes could be somewhat boring takes a certain level of incompetence. But in spite of itself, this film did have its informative moments.

About 4 or 5 dominatrices from the same 'house' in Manhattan are featured. They are, supposedly, the best and most expensive in their field. I found them awkward and completely unintimidating. Scenes of them 'at work' looked like embarrassingly bad dinner theater or a high school play where the kids didn't learn their lines properly and are doing some very cringe-worthy ad libbing. None of them had a very commanding presence. They all looked like weak, underfed women to me. But the 'clients' seemed completely engaged and taken in with the scenarios or fantasies. I was amazed.

The real reason I was interested in this film was to know why anyone would pay for these services. And to Mr. Bloomfield's credit, he does have a good amount of client interviews that shed some light on that subject. I found the clients were far more varied and interesting than the rather predictable and clichéd 'mistresses'.

Mr. Broomfield maintained his distance at all times, even when he was offered a free 'session' to further his knowledge of the experience. I think he should have taken it and evolved from a vaguely judgmental voyeur to (possibly) a better film maker.

All in all, if you're into documentaries, there are loads of them much better than this. If you're curious about the world of fetishes, doms & subs, etc. give it a try but keep your expectations low. If you just want to see naked people getting spanked, there is a bit of that but, strange as it may seem, this isn't a terribly sexy documentary. In fact, most of it looks very unpleasant and anti-sexy.

If you want unseemliness then you should see the film that Nick Broomfield didn't make about all the places he researched before dwelling on Pandora's Box. As it is the film, plays on the safe side but does attempt to draw on the underlying motivations for people's curious needs.

The film's conclusion is that the dominatrixes that staff Pandora's Box, a high class brothel on Manhattan's 18th St just off 5th Ave, provide a much needed therapeutic environment. Mistress Raven's pleasuredome is just a good place to let off steam and maybe understand the forces, often found in childhood, that led to your particular quirk. And no it doesn't always have to involve pain.

There is an attempt to categorise people's various addictions: Whether to fabric of one sort or another, corporal punishment, constriction, socio-political roleplay (Jews who like to re-create Nazi fantasies, blacks regressing to the plantation eg.) and so on. Like other attempts in this direction, such as Katherine Gates book Deviant Desires, the filmaker is not exhaustive in his presentation of the full breadth of fetishism. But hey! We do only have an hour and a half.

This film exclusively centers around dominant/submissive themes. It errs on the side of good taste by only addressing the more palatable female dominating men or occasionally other women scenarios.

In short, Pandora's Box turns out to be not such a bad thing to open after all, just as long as you've got plenty of money.

A slight documentary following the mistresses of Pandora's Box, a fetish palace in New York City. Broomfield has filmed some fascinating subjects and a taboo topic, but seems to have learned very little himself.

He still plays on his own ignorance to illicit a sort of repulsion from his audiences. People in the know will recognize the misrepresentation, those who are not will be effectively manipulated. The film is never about understanding or demystifying fetishes and the people who are into them. The subjects of the film try to push Broomfield in that direction. But his repulsion and lack of respect for his subjects comes through in the end.

Nevertheless, the subjects of the film have won out despite the director and make for compelling viewing. For a better, more personalized examination of the S&M scene, check out Sick: The Life and Death of Bob Flanagan Supermasochist.