I Want Your Sex tells the story of Elliot (Cooper Hoffman), a kind-hearted if unmotivated twentysomething whose fantasies quickly come true when he lands a job with renowned artist and provocateur Erika Tracy (Olivia Wilde). When Erika breaks down office boundaries and takes Elliot on as her sexual muse and subordinate, their sexually charged relationship makes him question his own desires, boundaries, and relationships with his uptight girlfriend (Charli XCX) and repressed roommate (Chase Sui Wonders). As the stakes heighten and power dynamics shift, the film mixes satire, romantic comedy, mystery, and murder through the colourful and edgy visual language for which Araki is best known.
The Garden Cinema View:
Through camp and comedy, I Want Your Sex is an entry way into Araki’s view on the sex lives (and sometimes lack thereof) of Gen Z. The film is full of easter eggs, cameos, and references to Araki’s past filmography that offer longtime Araki’s fans a glimpse into some of the imagery and motifs seen in some of his past films as well as some familiar faces.
The film takes a heterosexual relationship and showcases a unique dynamic that is not without its own Queering and breaking of convention. Traditionally heterosexual roles are challenged, which is a main point of internal conflict for the protagonist Elliot (played by Cooper Hoffman), whose ideas of sex and love get misconstrued and as he explores something entirely new to him. The film utilises magical realism and fantastical elements that highlight Araki’s unique style as well as his ability to push the boundaries of convention in his filmmaking.
Araki’s messaging through this camp and rather raunchy film is to encourage today’s youth to explore and take risks in their youth regarding sex and love, and he hopes this film will at the very least generate that discourse.
