The Loss of Sexual Innocence (1999)

Director:

Mike Figgis

Writer:

Mike Figgis (writer)

Release Date:

29 April 1999 (Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Confused, non-linear film tells the sexual story of a film director from his life at age 5, age 12, age 16...

Plot Keywords:

Tunisia | Murder | Italian | 1950s | Suicide By Gunshot

Cast

Julian Sands	...	Adult Nic
Saffron Burrows	...	English / Italian Twin
Stefano Dionisi	...	Luca
Kelly Macdonald	...	Susan
Gina McKee	...	Susan's Mother
Jonathan Rhys Meyers	...	Nic, aged 16
Bernard Hill	...	Susan's Father
Rossy de Palma	...	Blind Woman
John Cowey	...	Nic, aged 5
Nina McKay	...	Mixed Race Girl
Dickson Osa-Omorogbe	...	Wangi
Jock Gibson Cowl	...	Old Colonial Man
Justin Chadwick	...	Flash Man
Femi Ogunbanjo	...	Adam
Hanne Klintoe	...	Eve
Johanna Torell	...	Nic's Wife
Geriant Ellis	...	Nic's Son
George Moktar	...	Nic, aged 12
Mark Long	...	1st Detective / Man in Dream
Red Mullet	...	2nd Detective
Joe Cunningham	...	Policeman
Wesley Kipling	...	Nic's Brother, aged 3
Anthony Cleckener	...	One of the 'Four Boys'
James Younger	...	One of the 'Four Boys'
Malcolm Holmes	...	One of the 'Four Boys'
Jeffrey Coulson	...	One of the 'Four Boys'
James Bradley	...	Band Member
Nick Figgis	...	Band Member
David Medlycott	...	Band Member
Clare Jones	...	Baby Twin
Zoe Jones	...	Baby Twin
Marina Ilina	...	Novice Nun
Fabrizia Dal Farra	...	Novice Nun
Roderic Leigh	...	Boring Businessman
Rachel Boss	...	Italian Woman
Bruno Bilotta	...	Italian Man
Rodney Charles	...	Charlie
Phil Swinburne	...	Games Teacher
Cite Chebbi	...	Blue Child
Neziha Youssef	...	Blue Mother
Rami Chebbi	...	Blue Father
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Terry Crump	...	Undertaker (uncredited)
Linda Evangelista	...	Italian Woman (uncredited)

Directed by
Mike Figgis

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Mike Figgis		writer

Produced by
Mike Figgis	....	producer
Barney Reisz	....	co-producer
Annie Stewart	....	producer
Patrick Wachsberger	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Mike Figgis

Cinematography by
Benoît Delhomme

Film Editing by
Matthew Wood

Casting by
Jina Jay

Production Design by
Giorgio Desideri

Costume Design by
Florence Nicaise

Makeup Department
Essia Baaziz	....	makeup artist: Tunisia
Katya Thomas	....	makeup designer

Production Management
Andrea Borella	....	production supervisor
Jacquie Glanville	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Mounir Baaziz	....	assistant director: Tunisia
Paola Barbaglia	....	second assistant director: Italy
Amanda Blue	....	second assistant director
James Bradley	....	first assistant director
Alexis Cahill	....	assistant director: Italy
Marc Charach	....	third assistant director

Art Department
Karen Britcliffe	....	scenic artist: Newcastle
Giorgio Desideri	....	production designer: Italy
Gianni Fiumi	....	property master: Italy
Mark Long	....	production designer: Newcastle
Alberto Tosto	....	art director: Italy
Jessica Worrall	....	production designer: Newcastle

Sound Department
Ed Colyer	....	adr mixer (as Edward Colyer)
Mike Dowson	....	sound re-recording mixer
James Feltham	....	sound editor
Arthur Graley	....	foley editor
Arthur Graley	....	sound editor
Nigel Heath	....	supervising sound editor
Lionel Selwyn	....	foley artist
Jean Sheffield	....	foley artist
Julian Slater	....	sound editor
Julian Slater	....	sound mixer
Mark Taylor	....	foley mixer
Mark Taylor	....	sound re-recording mixer
Nick Watson	....	sound consultant: Dolby
Pawel Wdowczak	....	sound mixer

Visual Effects by
Steve Boag	....	offline auto-conform
Martin Bullard	....	optical coordinator
Charles Green	....	optical printer operator

Stunts
David Ambrosi	....	stunt diver

Camera and Electrical Department
Lucy Bristow	....	focus puller
Robert Brock	....	generator operator
Danny Cohen	....	focus puller (as Daniel Cohen)
Clive Coote	....	still photographer
Skander Dhaoui	....	gaffer: Tunisia
Kevin Edland	....	best boy
Mauro Falomi	....	clapper loader: Italy
Federico Falsini	....	video controller
John Higgins	....	gaffer
Ashley Horner	....	video assist operator
Stefano Marino	....	gaffer: Italy
Kory Mills	....	grip
Luigi Orso	....	key grip: Italy
Lotfi Siala	....	electrician: Tunisia
Liz Thornton	....	assistant camera
Andrew Wiggins	....	clapper loader
Jon Wilson	....	assistant camera

Casting Department
Shaheen Baig	....	casting assistant
Russell Gow	....	casting: Newcastle

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Alan Blue	....	costume supervisor
Georgia Boyle	....	assistant costume designer
Catherine Buyse Dian	....	wardrobe assistant: Italy
Kamel Marmouche	....	wardrobe assistant: Tunisia

Editorial Department
Vaughn Mullady	....	negative cutter
Lars Vinther	....	assistant editor
Tom Mayclim	....	negative cutting assistant (uncredited)

Music Department
Tony Coe	....	musician: clarinet
Mike Figgis	....	musician: trumpet
Louise Hammar	....	music coordinator
James Mallison	....	music producer
Dana Sano	....	music supervisor
Mark Tucker	....	music co-producer
Geoff Foster	....	score recording & mixing (uncredited)

Other crew
Beatrice Arweiler	....	location manager
John Caro	....	runner
Cristina De Rossi	....	production coordinator: Italy
Caroline Deeds	....	production assistant
Rita Dhaoui	....	production coordinator: Tunisia
Rosalind Edmunds	....	production assistant
Shirlaine Forrest	....	production assistant
Nigel Horn	....	laboratory coordinator
Ira Hurvitz	....	script supervisor
Sarah Hutchison	....	assistant production accountant
Alan John	....	production accountant
Christine Llewellyn Reeve	....	location manager: Newcastle (as Christine Llewellyn-Reeve)
David Medlycott	....	assistant location manager: Newcastle
Massimo Perla	....	dog trainer
Susannah Ramsey	....	runner
Joan Thompson	....	production coordinator
Natasha Tilley	....	production runner
Brahim Toumi	....	location manager: Tunisia
Viola Vergani	....	production assistant
Armando Zappi	....	crowd marshall: Italy

Production Companies

• Newmarket Capital Group
• Red Mullet Productions
• Summit Entertainment

Distributors

• Asociace Ceských Filmových Klubu (ACFK) (Czech Republic)
• Diaphana Films (France)
• EDKO Film (Hong Kong)
• K2 Entertainment
• LK-TEL (2000) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Odeon (Greece)
• Sony Pictures Classics (USA)
• Tobis Filmkunst (Germany)
• Vitória Filmes (Portugal)

Other Companies

• AFM Lighting  lighting equipment
• Aaton  camera equipment
• Angels & Bermans  costumes
• Ciné Image  titles and opticals
• Ice Films  camera equipment
• Pinewood Stills  still processing
• Sapex Scripts  post-production script services
• Shepperton Sound  sound re-recorded at
• Soho Images  post-production services
• Tru-Cut  negative cutting

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexual images, pervasive nudity, violence and language

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Argentina:18 | Australia:R | France:U | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:III | Peru:18 | Portugal:M/16 | UK:18 | USA:R | Philippines:R-18 | Canada:18A (Ontario) | Iceland:14 | South Korea:18

Filming Locations:

Northumberland, England, UK

Company:

Newmarket Capital Group

Trivia:

The film was made on an extremely low budget and scenes supposedly set amidst the "red soil" of Nigeria were actually filmed in the Northumbrian countryside, near Morpeth (UK)

Soundtrack:

Piano Sonata in C

The slow dissection of a life's innocence lost.

At what point do we lose our innocence? Is it the one moment of actually having sex, or is it a build up of smaller things through life that slowly take it away? This film has the effect of juxtaposing two views on the question: with Adam & Eve, we have complete innocence up to the moment of having sex ..then they are thrust out into the modern adult world and expected to somehow automatically know how to survive in it. The discovery of Sex does not give you the automatic knowledge of how to deal with all its possible consequences. Interweaved with that, Figgis puts scenes from a man's developing life. Events shown that each eat away a little bit of innocence we may not have even realized we still have. The slow disintegration of Innocence through time. The effect of both instances is numbing. The most amazing scene for me involves two twins, unaware of each other's existence (both played by Saffron Burrows), who one day cross paths with each other in an airport. The set up is stunning. This scene begs the question: if you met up with another version of yourself, a version with a different background & different formative events --would you even be recognizable to yourself? Would you be able to relate to that other you as a person? How much have the events in our lives formed us, and how much really is biological? The only quarrel with this film I have is a series of scenes in which Mr. Figgis employed a slow fade-in/fade-out method. This was very eye-painful to watch, the fade is at such a rate you feel as though you are just slow-blinking before falling asleep. Thankfully, this is only done briefly in the film. Over all, excellent filmmaking!