Sex scenes that actually add to the work

[VeoKye]

Huh... I actually know the sex scene in FSN that OP is talking about and it's not actually that OOC.

While I do admit it comes out of left field and a participant isn't exactly eager, the "expanded universe" does explain why it has to happen the way it does(though Realta Nua did replace that scene with MANADRAGON). That particular route does have at least one more sex scene which is basically pointless and gratuitous and there's one more during the final route as well but overall the sex scenes in FSN do serve the story on some level. Eliminating them doesn't detract from the story, but having them in adds to it (UBW sex scene adds to the relationship between two characters and HF sex scene(s) are milking the sympathy cow for all its worth).

Now compare that with the sex scenes found usually in VNs and you'll understand why I'm far more lenient with FSN...

 

[Fox12]

Berserk, almost all of them. The scene with guts and caska adds to their development, reveals guts's serious PTSD, and causes a massive change in the character dynamics of the main trio. The scene with Griffith and Charlotte shows us how vulnerable Griffith can be. It also shows us that he can use people for personal satisfaction, reveals a dark sadistic side to his personality, and causes his ultimate down fall. I've compared this series to Oedipus Rex many times, because every action has lasting consequences. I also find it interesting that sexuality is always equated with psychology or violence in Berserk. It feels very Freudian and deliberate. Whether it be with Griffith and caska, guts and caska, guts and gambino, or Griffith and the feudal Lord, Miura seems to always build a conscious link between very primal aspects of human nature.

The sex scenes also add to the themes of the work, not just the story and characters. The work just doesn't work withou them. It reminds me a little bit of David lynch, actually.

 

[4173]

Dan and Laurie (both times) in Wathchmen.

Whichever Crank movie had the sex scene at the race track.

A fair number of times in Heinlein's work, off the top of my head I Will Fear No Evil and Lazarus Long family stories (in that the scenes themselves are important, not to necessarily endorse or condemn all his positions (heh) on sex in those stories).

Certainly some of the time in GoT, off the top of my head: Khal/Dany 1, Jamie/Cersei at Winterfell, Jamie/Cersei while

Spoiler

Joffery's lying in state

, certainly at least some of Tyrion/Shae, Jon/Ygritte 1, Jon/Ygritte in the caves (despite the silliness).

 

[Azure23]

The sex scene from The Lost Boys.

Two sexy people with hilarious 80's hair getting down with each other while a song with some of the worst lyrics ever plays in the background.

"Cry little sister!!! Cooooome to your brother!" What?! Why?!


Can't help but laugh at that movie. That wonderful, wonderful movie.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

The sex scene in Irreversible is integral to the work. I will not link it because it is absolutely NSFW and it is very hard to watch.

 

[Relish in Chaos]

The minute I saw the title, I was going to mention Berserk and Watchmen, but you lovely folks already did it for me.

Other than those two series, I can?t think of anything else. Closest is a hentai doujinshi based on the aforementioned Berserk, in which Guts had a dream where he and Casca have sex, then he wakes up on the boat and softly cries because he realises he may never have that kind of tender relationship with her again. It was so emotional I couldn?t even jack off to it.

two people crossing swords

Giggity.

 

[Lrbearclaw]

Just about the only example I can think of is the sex scene between Guts and Casca in Berserk. It was a really well done, really sweet scene that showed how far their relationship had become and how strong their bond was. Granted a lot of the sex scenes in Berserk do add to the work, but most of them are...less pleasant and I am kind of aiming for more happy scenes with this thread.

It also revealed just how deep Guts' scars were. It wasn't just 'we love eachother, let's have sex', in a way it's not even that that gives rise to the occasion - It's both of them feeling unable to ever get close to Griffith that drives them into eachother's arms "to lick their wounds" as they themselves claim. But more than that it showed that even at his happiest, Guts can't escape his past. He even says that the previous year he didn't think about his father or anything that happend back then, but this one moment with Caska makes it all come rushing back.

That is EXACTLY how I feel. Because you see (the movie and manga expound on this even more) that he is facing the demons he had from being REPEATEDLY raped as a boy and his issues with being touched that were borne from it. It made him a better and more believable character.

Also, Griffith's scene with the princess worked just as well for the opposite reason. (Though the movie DID draw it out a little longer than really needed.) You saw the desperation in him, that for the first time, he was broken and reacted STUPIDLY. He would have had her if he just waited a little longer, he was SO CLOSE to his dream and blew it. He fell from the sky like a wounded hawk, and that was illustrated in the scene.

But then, this is all further proof of why I call Berserk one of the best (if not the best) anime I have seen... on par with or even better than Zoids Chaotic Century (and Guardian Force).

 

[Theminimanx]

Well, the sex scenes in both FSN and Tsukihime both usually have plot reasons for being there. Doesn't prevent them from being incredibly awkward though.

But if I have to pick an example of sex scenes actually being written well, I have to point you to Saya no Uta. Now, the things in those scenes are often disturbing as all fuck (much like the rest of the game), but they do their job well. They get across the point they're trying to make, and then they move on to the next scene. Seriously, Saya no Uta might be the only Visual Novel I've ever played that has some brevity to it. Play it if you ever get the chance.

 

[Erttheking]

The concept of sex needing to be entwined with the narrative is always amusing. Particularly in movies that are solely meant to be for entertainment. People have sex. It's as normal as breathing and eating but no one questions gratuitous dinning scenes. Even if it's solely done for titillation, it still has a point and that is people enjoy sex. They like having it and they like watching it. Oh, I found OP's monocle.

*Takes it* Thanks, I've been looking for that for awhile now. *Polishes it and puts it back on*

 

[Relish in Chaos]

Because you see (the movie and manga expound on this even more) that he is facing the demons he had from being REPEATEDLY raped as a boy and his issues with being touched that were borne from it.

He wasn't REPEATEDLY raped, but yeah, the fact that it happened when he was a child and that it was because of his betrayal from his adopted father he idolised that it occurred is why it hurt him so much.

 

[Rariow]

Well, the visual novel I will apparently never stop talking about, Katawa Shoujo had sex scenes that really added to the plot and evolved the characters, even beyond the romance story that was going on. There were a couple exceptions, including one that was played for laughs and a few that were just purely gratuitous, but the good ones were really good. The fact that there were only 1-2 relatively short sex scenes per plotline in a VN that takes about 7 hours also helped.

Also, not necessarily sex scenes, but, as weird as this is going to sound, the thing the first Witcher game did with romance, where you'd bang a random lady and get a little pornographic card. It was sleazy as shit, really uncomfortable, and made the protagonist, Geralt, look like an absolute creep, which to me was perfect. I feel that it portrayed Geralt's character flaw of mostly treating women like sex objects in a really strong way, and brought you along by making you feel like an absolute sleazeball. Admittedly, it still felt really damn uncomfortable, and I avoided most of said cards.

 

[MorganL4]

The Blue Lagoon, the film that (along with a bunch of blue jeans ads) made Brooke Shields famous definitely added to the plot. I mean think about it, you have these two kids who get stranded on an island with no adult supervision, and they reach adolescence, they had hormones running through their veins and no one there to explain what was going on, so they did what literally came natural. Later in the film her pregnancy, and the child become important to the film... So while some see it as a means of perving out on underage sex; I see it as simply a realistic depiction of what would probably happen given the circumstance.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

No one will agree with me about the Watchmen sex scene, but that was one of my favorite scenes. Everybody thinks the scene with "Hallelujah" by Leonard Cohen is overkill, but I enjoyed the scene, it really symbolized how Dan/Nite-Owl is sort of a smaller human being without his suit than he is with his suit, the idea of his sexual strength coming back after saving the burning building was kind of nice, and I LIKE THE SONG, it was perfect, and I defy anybody to tell me otherwise.

Oh dear god. I was more disturbed by that than having to see Dr. Manhattan walking around with his big blue dong hanging out.

OT: I will say that although the actual romancing of your character of choice in the first Mass Effect is kinda rubbish, the actual sex scene is pretty good and felt genuine. You know, you're about to leave on an incredibly dangerous mission from which you might not return from, we should spend the night together. And it did feel tender and romantic too.

I also felt the (implied) sex scene in Sword Art Online was not out of place at all. It helped that they used the Sexy Discretion Shot so I didn't have to watch.

 

[Erttheking]

Surprisingly enough, the new Wolfenstein did a pretty great job of it, I'd write something out but there's a thing on Polygon [http://www.polygon.com/2014/5/20/5734482/wolfenstein-sex] that puts it better than I could.

That whole game is way more well written and acted than it has any right to be. Not that I'm complaining.

*Reads article* You know, I keep getting reasons to buy this game practically thrown at me. I really need to check it out the second it becomes less than sixty dollars. I just can't pay that much for games anymore.

 

[Random Argument Man]

There's a scene in "Looking For Alaska" where the point of the oral sex scene was to make things awkward and not sexy. Later in the book, there's a scene where there's no sex, but things are very intimate.

Although, the former scene will bite the protagonist's ass later on.

 

[Fox12]

The concept of sex needing to be entwined with the narrative is always amusing. Particularly in movies that are solely meant to be for entertainment. People have sex. It's as normal as breathing and eating but no one questions gratuitous dining scenes.

Clearly you've never read some of the slower chapters of lord of the rings.

Anyway, it's not just about sex fitting into a narrative, it's about everything serving a purpose to the story. This includes action, humor, and, yes, sex. A joke is good, but a joke that tells you something about the character is even better. A michael bay style fight may be fun, but a life and death struggle between siblings is more emotional and captivating. The difference is that I feel like sex is used less effectively than other story elements, and is usually just there for cheap thrills. This isn't bad, but it's possible to use it more effectively. After all, it's just another tool in the writers box. OP just wants examples of it bring used more effectively.

Of course, as a writer, I've always felt every scene needs to earn its place in a story. If it can't, then cut it.

 

[babinro]

It can add to the goal of porn...does that count?

Porn aside, I can't think of a movie, t.v show or video game that's contained a sex scene that actually felt necessary in that it enhanced the product in a meaningful way.

Game of Thrones contains the only POSSIBLE exception. The story of the khaleesi's character changing through her sex life was well supported through the sex scenes. This made them feel...appropriate. Any other instance of visual nudity/sex in Game of Thones has felt out of place to the point that it actively HURTS the quality of the show.

 

[Cooperblack]

Only films that comes to mind is - In the name of the rose and requiem for a dream.

 

[Belaam]

What immediately came to mind was the first Terminator. That sex scene -needed- to be there.

 

[squeekenator]

Only time I can think of is when we first see Jaime and Cersei getting it on, because that actually advances the plot and is the main source of Bran's personality for the rest of the series.