bdsm moments in films
bdsm and fetishism is not a common subject in mainstream cinema, yet it turns up regularly in very different contexts. This list is meant to compile these moments - sometimes even whole films - in order to demonstrate how present this alternative eroticism is and the variety it offers. This gives us the possibility to study the way mainstream culture looks upon it and shows how the subject is being focused on and integrated in the script. (I've not seen all the films and have included recommendations I've not yet checked out)
List activity
180K views
• 9 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
209 titles
- DirectorMary HarronStarsGretchen MolLili TaylorChris BauerThe life of Bettie Page, a 1950s pin-up model and one of the first sex icons in America, who became the target of a Senate investigation because of her risqué bondage photos.the life of the famous bondage and fetish star of the 50s
- DirectorBarbet SchroederStarsGérard DepardieuBulle OgierAndré RouyerA common thief (Depardieu) breaks into the house of a professional dominatrix (Ogier), and begins to help her "train" her clients. Though this world is alien to his experience, he finds himself falling in love with her. Eventually he discovers that she does this in order to support her son, and he attempts to help her out of this life, which she is not sure she really wants to leave.Exceptionally open minded and completely bdsm based. A rarity!
- DirectorAdrian LyneStarsMickey RourkeKim BasingerMargaret WhittonA woman becomes involved with a man she barely knows. Complications develop during their sexual escapades.
- DirectorLuis BuñuelStarsCatherine DeneuveJean SorelMichel PiccoliA frigid young housewife decides to spend her midweek afternoons as a prostitute.A classic! Early must see.
- DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsJames SpaderHolly HunterElias KoteasAfter getting into a serious car accident, a TV director discovers an underground sub-culture of scarred, omnisexual car-crash victims who use car accidents and the raw sexual energy they produce to try to rejuvenate his sex life with his wife.a car accident as the initiation to a world of fetishism.
- DirectorSteven SoderberghStarsJames SpaderAndie MacDowellPeter GallagherA sexually repressed woman's husband is having an affair with her sister. The arrival of a visitor with a rather unusual fetish changes everything.Exhibitionism and voyeurism mix up a marriage
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsIsabella RosselliniKyle MacLachlanDennis HopperThe discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.
- DirectorPedro AlmodóvarStarsVictoria AbrilAntonio BanderasLoles LeónAn unbalanced but alluring former mental patient takes a porn star prisoner in the hopes of convincing her to marry him.Tame the one you love with ropes
- DirectorFernando TruebaStarsFernando Fernán GómezJorge SanzPenélope CruzA 1931 Spanish military deserter finds himself on a lonely farm until the farmer's four daughters pay a visit and he falls for all of them.crossdressing scene during ball
- DirectorMark MoriStarsBettie PageHugh HefnerOlivia de BerardinisThe world's greatest pinup model and cult icon, Bettie Page, recounts the true story of how her free expression overcame government witch-hunts to help launch America's sexual revolution.
- DirectorCraig BrewerStarsChristina RicciSamuel L. JacksonJustin TimberlakeA God-fearing bluesman takes to a wild young woman who, as a victim of childhood sexual abuse, looks everywhere for love, never quite finding it.Christina Ricci in chains learns how to behave
- DirectorMadonnaStarsEugene HutzHolly WestonVicky McClureA comedy centered on three flatmates living desperate lives in London.pro bdsm, fetishism
- DirectorLana WachowskiLilly WachowskiStarsJennifer TillyGina GershonJoe PantolianoTough ex-con Corky and her lover Violet concoct a scheme to steal millions of stashed mob money and pin the blame on Violet's crooked boyfriend Caesar.
- DirectorTinto BrassStarsMalcolm McDowellPeter O'TooleHelen MirrenA dramatization of the ascent to Caesar and subsequent reign of Caligula, one of the most notorious leaders of ancient Rome. We see his ambition, his scheming, his perversion and decadence, his brutality and his lunacy.
- DirectorPaul SchraderStarsNastassja KinskiMalcolm McDowellJohn HeardA woman who was orphaned from a young age finally reunites with her older brother. Matters start to go awry when she slowly discovers the true nature of her family.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsKathleen TurnerAnthony PerkinsBruce DavisonA mysterious woman, fashion designer by day and prostitute by night, is hounded by two men: a married father of two children and a sexually repressed preacher.
- DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsJeremy IronsGeneviève BujoldHeidi von PalleskeTwin gynecologists take full advantage of the fact that nobody can tell them apart, until their relationship begins to deteriorate over a woman.
- DirectorGarry MarshallStarsDana DelanyDan AykroydRosie O'DonnellElliot heads for the sexual fantasy island, Eden. He takes some photos of diamond smugglers. They and undercover cops want the photos and follow him to Eden.
- DirectorStanley KubrickStarsTom CruiseNicole KidmanTodd FieldA Manhattan doctor embarks on a bizarre, night-long odyssey after his wife's admission of unfulfilled longing.fetishism, orgies, secret societies
- DirectorTakashi IshiiStarsAya SugimotoRenji IshibashiKen'ichi EndôTôyama, a weak-willed businessman, is in debt to the Yakuza; they also have a video of him bribing a government minister. To clear his debts, he agrees to let them drug and kidnap his wife Shizuko, Japan's queen of the tango, and subject her to the proclivities of a 95-year-old voyeur, who's a Yakuza boss. After a masked ball, Shizuko is taken prisoner; she fights her captors, submitting only when the life of Kyôko, her female bodyguard, is threatened. Tôyama feels regret and seeks to buy back Shizuko, but by this time, she may be enjoying her situation. Is she, or is she pretending in order to protect herself and Kyôko? Would she want a way out if there is one?
- DirectorAndrew NiccolStarsEthan HawkeUma ThurmanJude LawA genetically inferior man assumes the identity of a superior one in order to pursue his lifelong dream of space travel.
- DirectorYorgos LanthimosStarsChristos StergioglouMichele ValleyAngeliki PapouliaA controlling, manipulative father locks his three adult offsprings in a state of perpetual childhood by keeping them prisoner within the sprawling family compound.
- DirectorSteven SoderberghStarsSasha GreyChris SantosPhilip EytanA drama set in the days leading up to the 2008 Presidential election, and centered on a high-end Manhattan call girl meeting the challenges of her boyfriend, her clients, and her work.
- DirectorMartin CampbellStarsPierce BrosnanSean BeanIzabella ScorupcoWhen a powerful secret defense system is stolen, James Bond is assigned to stop a Russian crime syndicate from using it.
- DirectorMarina de VanStarsMarina de VanLaurent LucasLéa DruckerA woman grows increasingly fascinated with her body after suffering a disfiguring accident.
- DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsMichael FassbenderKeira KnightleyViggo MortensenA look at how the intense relationship between Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud gives birth to psychoanalysis.beautiful spanking scene
- DirectorVolker SchlöndorffStarsNatasha RichardsonFaye DunawayAidan QuinnUnder a dystopian religious tyranny, most women cannot conceive children. Those young women who can live in a form of sexual slavery to provide children for influential families.
- DirectorTodd SolondzStarsJane AdamsJon LovitzPhilip Seymour HoffmanThe lives of several individuals intertwine as they go about their lives in their own unique ways, engaging in acts which society as a whole might find disturbing in a desperate search for human connection.
- DirectorDavid SladeStarsPatrick WilsonElliot PageSandra OhHayley's a smart, charming teenage girl. Jeff's a handsome, smooth fashion photographer. An Internet chat, a coffee shop meet-up, an impromptu fashion shoot back at Jeff's place. Jeff thinks it's his lucky night. He's in for a surprise.femdom, castration,
- DirectorDennis IliadisStarsKaterina TsavalouDanae SkiadiIoannis PapazisisLeaving behind a hard life with their families, two young girls end up in a brothel, fall in love and support one another against the adversities and violence of the night.
- DirectorJohn Cameron MitchellStarsJohn Cameron MitchellMiriam ShorStephen TraskA gender-queer punk-rock singer from East Berlin tours the U.S. with her band as she tells her life story and follows the former lover/band-mate who stole her songs.
- DirectorPhilip KaufmanStarsFred WardUma ThurmanMaria de MedeirosAnaïs Nin meets American writer Henry Miller in Paris in 1931. She keeps a diary of her sexual awakening, which includes Henry and his wife June.
- DirectorSteven R. MonroeStarsSarah ButlerJeff BransonAndrew HowardA writer who is brutalized during her cabin retreat seeks revenge on her attackers, who left her for dead.femdom in vengeance
- DirectorRyûichi HirokiStarsRen ÔsugiYôko HoshiJun Murakami(Japanese with English subtitles) Failed author Kurosaki tries to write cheap sadomasochistic porn for money in this sex farce directed by indie visionary Ryuichi Hiroki. Inexperienced in the world of S&M, Kurosaki hires young models to come to his home and act out various sexual scenarios. When his wife gets wind of this, she's none too pleased - and embarks on some new adventures of her own.
- DirectorJulian JarroldStarsChiwetel EjioforJoel EdgertonSarah-Jane PottsA drag queen comes to the rescue of a man who, after inheriting his father's shoe factory, needs to diversify his product if he wants to keep the business afloat.cross dressing, gblt
- DirectorMichael WinterbottomStarsCasey AffleckKate HudsonJessica AlbaA West Texas Deputy Sheriff is slowly unmasked as a psychotic killer.
- DirectorLynne StopkewichStarsMolly ParkerPeter OuterbridgeJay BrazeauOver the years, a child's romantic ideals about death blossom into necrophilia, the study of embalming and the most profound relationship of her life.
- DirectorBernardo BertolucciStarsMarlon BrandoMaria SchneiderMaria MichiA young Parisian woman meets a middle-aged American businessman who demands their clandestine relationship be based only on sex.
- DirectorLaurence DunmoreStarsJohnny DeppSamantha MortonJohn MalkovichThe story of John Wilmot, a.k.a. the Earl of Rochester, a 17th century poet who famously drank and debauched his way to an early grave, only to earn posthumous critical acclaim for his life's work.
- DirectorStanley KubrickStarsJames MasonShelley WintersSue LyonA middle-aged college professor becomes infatuated with a 14-year-old girl.no description required
- DirectorAdrian LyneStarsJeremy IronsDominique SwainMelanie GriffithAn English professor falls for a minor, and has to face the consequences of his actions.
- DirectorDenys ArcandStarsThomas GibsonRuth MarshallCameron BancroftSet in a dreary urban landscape of Edmonton, LOVE AND HUMAN REMAINS is a dark comedy about a group of twentysomethings looking for love and meaning in the '90s. The film focuses on roommates David, a gay waiter who has has given up on his acting career, and Candy, a book reviewer who is also David's ex-lover. David and Candy's lives are entangled with those of David's friends (a busboy, a psychic dominatrix, and a misogynistic civil-servant) and Candy's dates (a male bartender and a lesbian schoolteacher). Meanwhile, a serial killer menaces the concrete and asphalt neighbourhood in which David and Candy live.
- DirectorGwyneth GibbyStarsNick MancusoJanet GunnJohn Rhys-DaviesAn innocent woman's search for her missing sister leads her into the infamous world of Marquis de Sade. In a test of wills and wits, she must follow him to his chateau of sin to discover her sister's fate...and to determine her own.
- DirectorLana WachowskiLilly WachowskiStarsKeanu ReevesLaurence FishburneCarrie-Anne MossWhen a beautiful stranger leads computer hacker Neo to a forbidding underworld, he discovers the shocking truth--the life he knows is the elaborate deception of an evil cyber-intelligence.leather and latex
- DirectorLana WachowskiLilly WachowskiStarsKeanu ReevesLaurence FishburneCarrie-Anne MossFreedom fighters Neo, Trinity and Morpheus continue to lead the revolt against the Machine Army, unleashing their arsenal of extraordinary skills and weaponry against the systematic forces of repression and exploitation.
- DirectorLana WachowskiLilly WachowskiStarsKeanu ReevesLaurence FishburneCarrie-Anne MossThe human city of Zion defends itself against the massive invasion of the machines as Neo fights to end the war at another front while also opposing the rogue Agent Smith.
- DirectorRobert AltmanStarsWarren BeattyJulie ChristieRene AuberjonoisA gambler and a prostitute become business partners in a remote Old West mining town, and their enterprise thrives until a large corporation arrives on the scene.
- DirectorDoug LimanStarsBrad PittAngelina JolieAdam BrodyA bored married couple is surprised to learn that they are both assassins hired by competing agencies to kill each other.
- DirectorLiliana CavaniStarsDirk BogardeCharlotte RamplingPhilippe LeroyA concentration camp survivor rekindles her sadomasochistic relationship with her lover, a former SS officer - now working as a night porter at a Vienna hotel - but his former Nazi associates begin stalking them.
- DirectorJames McTeigueStarsRainRick YuneNaomie HarrisA young ninja turns his back on the orphanage that raised him, leading to a confrontation with a fellow ninja from the clan.
- DirectorFranck KhalfounStarsRachel NicholsWes BentleySimon ReynoldsA businesswoman is pursued by a psychopath after being locked in a parking garage on Christmas Eve.
- DirectorJerry CiccorittiStarsLeslie HopePeter OuterbridgeVictor ErtmanisLucy (Leslie Hope), her husband Michael (Victor Ertmanis), and their business partner William (Dan Left) are the owners of a small publishing company in Toronto. The stability of their lives are thrown into an emotional maelstrom with the arrival of Sloan (Peter Outerbrige), a former boxer-turned-writer whose first book (based on a serial killer) is about to be published by their company. Sloan gets in over his head when he embarks on a steamy affair with the sexually ravenous and frustrated Lucy, who longs to re-create her S&M-filled days in Paris gone by. But Sloan soon embarks on another affair of his own with the openly gay William which leads to sexual confusion for the writer. All in the while, Lucy's befuddled husband, Michael, slowly goes crazy over learning of his wife and business partner's dalliance with his client until he decides to join in on their bed-jumping as well.
- DirectorPaul SchraderStarsNatasha RichardsonWilliam ForsytheVing RhamesIn the 1970s, Patricia Hearst is abducted by American revolutionaries, but eventually joins their cause instead.
- DirectorBrian HelgelandStarsMel GibsonGregg HenryMaria BelloAfter a successful heist, Porter is left for dead. Once he recovers, he seeks vengeance and wants his share of the money.
- DirectorJames FoleyStarsHalle BerryBruce WillisGiovanni RibisiA journalist goes undercover to ferret out businessman Harrison Hill as her childhood friend's killer. Posing as one of his temps, she enters into a game of online cat-and-mouse.
- DirectorStuart UrbanStarsGuinevere TurnerChristien AnholtTom BellWhile working for a conservative MP, an IT professional infiltrates a BDSM club and falls for the head dominatrix.A must see comedy based on a pro domme and a bdsm club
- DirectorStephan ElliottStarsHugo WeavingGuy PearceTerence StampTwo drag performers and a transgender woman travel across the desert to perform their unique style of cabaret.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsJohn TravoltaUma ThurmanSamuel L. JacksonThe lives of two mob hitmen, a boxer, a gangster and his wife, and a pair of diner bandits intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.this is where the "gimp" comes from
- DirectorPhilip KaufmanStarsGeoffrey RushKate WinsletJoaquin PhoenixIn a Napoleonic era insane asylum, an inmate, the irrepressible Marquis De Sade, fights a battle of wills against a tyrannically prudish doctor.Marquis de Sade
- DirectorYimou ZhangStarsGong LiJingwu MaSaifei HeChina in the 1920s. After her father's death, Songlian is forced to marry the wealthy Master Chen. With three wives already, each living in a separate house, there is fierce competition for his attention and the privileges that are gained.
- DirectorSebastian GutierrezStarsLucy LiuMichael ChiklisCarla GuginoA reporter wakes up in a morgue and finds herself a member of the undead, before vowing revenge against the sect which put her there.
- DirectorPhilip KaufmanStarsSean ConneryWesley SnipesHarvey KeitelWhen an escort girl is found dead in the offices of a Japanese company in Los Angeles, detectives Web Smith and John Connor act as liaison between the company's executives and the investigating cop Tom Graham.
- DirectorTodd PhillipsStarsBreckin MeyerSeann William ScottAmy SmartFour college buddies embark on a road trip to retrieve an illicit tape mistakenly mailed to a female friend.
- DirectorJim SharmanStarsTim CurrySusan SarandonBarry BostwickA newly-engaged couple have a breakdown in an isolated area and must seek shelter at the bizarre residence of Dr. Frank-n-Furter.mythical musical: cross dressing, fetishism
- DirectorSteven ShainbergStarsJames SpaderMaggie GyllenhaalJeremy DaviesA young woman, recently released from a mental hospital, gets a job as a secretary to a demanding lawyer, where their employer-employee relationship turns into a sexual, sadomasochistic one.Must see with the whole story based on a bdsm relationship
- DirectorSteve McQueenStarsMichael FassbenderCarey MulliganJames Badge DaleA sex addict's carefully cultivated private life falls apart after his sister arrives for an indefinite stay.
- DirectorJohn Cameron MitchellStarsSook-Yin LeePeter SticklesPJ DeBoyA group of New Yorkers caught up in their romantic-sexual milieu converge at an underground salon infamous for its blend of art, music, politics, and carnality.
- DirectorKirby DickStarsBob FlanaganSheree RoseKathe BurkhartDiagnosed with cystic fibrosis from a young age, performance artist Bob Flanagan shared his life and pain in his art, usually through sadomasochistic practices.
- DirectorJonathan DemmeStarsJodie FosterAnthony HopkinsScott GlennA young F.B.I. cadet must receive the help of an incarcerated and manipulative cannibal killer to help catch another serial killer, a madman who skins his victims.
- DirectorJohn DuiganStarsHugh GrantTara FitzgeraldSam NeillWhen a painting is termed blasphemous, a young minister and his wife visit the artist... and the three sexually playful models living with him.
- DirectorShûji KataokaStarsShirô ShimomotoHiromi SaotomeYutaka IkejimaWhen the all-girl gang, The Bombers, kidnap a man to use as their personal sex slave, S&M Hunter accepts the mission to infiltrate The Bombers' hideout and show them the ropes.
- DirectorErik LamensStarsGene BervoetsVeerle DobbelaereAxel DaeseleireIn 1997, the Belgian public was in shock when judge Koen A. was convicted for the S&M relationship with his wife. Although their life was destroyed by the verdict, Koen and his wife Magda remain together today. The film is a story about dark sexuality and true love, told from the lover's unique point of view.
- DirectorDavid O. RussellStarsJeremy DaviesAlberta WatsonBenjamin HendricksonA med student is forced by his traveling salesman dad to cancel a top summer internship and look after his hot mom, who's bedridden with a broken leg. Applying lotion to her legs arouses him.
- DirectorJohn PieplowStarsKevin GageElizabeth PeñaDee SniderA detective pursues a sadist specializing in body modification rituals who lures teenagers through the internet.
- DirectorRandal KleiserStarsPeter GallagherDaryl HannahValérie QuennessenA young American couple and a French woman engage in a threesome in the Greek Islands.
- DirectorGuy RitchieStarsMadonnaAdriano GianniniBruce GreenwoodA snooty socialite is stranded on a Mediterranean island with a communist sailor.
- DirectorTarsem SinghStarsJennifer LopezVince VaughnVincent D'OnofrioAn F.B.I. Agent persuades a social worker, who is adept with a new experimental technology, to enter the mind of a comatose serial killer in order to learn where he has hidden his latest kidnap victim.
- DirectorEric LaneuvilleStarsJennifer Love HewittTeddy SearsSonja BennettA young woman takes a job at a massage parlor to support her family when her husband is unable to work, and soon finds her life spiraling out of control.
- DirectorBrian YuznaStarsCorbin BernsenLinda HoffmanMichael StadvecAn extremely successful dentist goes off the deep end after he catches his wife cheating on him.
- DirectorRob ZombieStarsSid HaigSheri Moon ZombieBill MoseleyThe murderous, backwoods Firefly family take to the road to escape the vengeful Sheriff Wydell, who is not afraid of being as ruthless as his target.
- DirectorJ BlakesonStarsGemma ArtertonEddie MarsanMartin CompstonA rich man's daughter is held captive in an abandoned apartment by two former convicts who abducted her and hold her ransom in exchange for her father's money.
- DirectorTod BrowningStarsJack BrammallElmo LincolnTully MarshallAn ex-convict reunites with his father.
- DirectorNiels Arden OplevStarsMichael NyqvistNoomi RapaceEwa FrölingA journalist is aided by a young female hacker in his search for the killer of a woman who has been dead for forty years.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsDaniel CraigRooney MaraChristopher PlummerJournalist Mikael Blomkvist is aided in his search for a woman who has been missing for 40 years by young computer hacker Lisbeth Salander.
- DirectorMike NicholsStarsDustin HoffmanAnne BancroftKatharine RossA disillusioned college graduate finds himself torn between his older lover and her daughter.
- DirectorMark WatersStarsParker PoseyJosh HamiltonTori SpellingA mentally unbalanced young woman - who is convinced she is Jackie Kennedy - flies into a murderous rage when her brother returns home to reveal he is engaged.
- DirectorJoe DanteStarsDee WallacePatrick MacneeDennis DuganAfter a bizarre and near deadly encounter with a serial killer, a television newswoman is sent to a remote mountain resort whose residents may not be what they seem.
- DirectorCatherine BreillatStarsAsia ArgentoFu'ad Aït AattouRoxane MesquidaSecrets, rumors and betrayals surround the upcoming marriage between a young dissolute man and virtuous woman of the French aristocracy.
- DirectorMatthew ChapmanStarsCharlie HunnamTerrence HowardPatrick WilsonA police officer looks to talk down a young man lured by his lover's husband to the ledge of a high rise, where he has one hour to contemplate a fateful decision.
- DirectorPeter GreenawayStarsRichard BohringerMichael GambonHelen MirrenAt Le Hollandais gourmet restaurant, every night is filled with opulence, decadence and gluttony. But when the cook, a thief, his wife and her lover all come together, they unleash a shocking torrent of sex, food, murder and revenge.
- DirectorJean-Jacques AnnaudStarsJane MarchTony Ka Fai LeungJeanne MoreauIn 1929 French Indochina, a French teenage girl embarks on a reckless and forbidden romance with a wealthy, older Chinese man, each knowing that knowledge of their affair will bring drastic consequences to each other.
- DirectorJon AmielStarsBill MurrayJoanne WhalleyPeter GallagherWallace Ritchie is mistaken for a spy and must stop a plot to assassinate international leaders at a banquet.
- DirectorD. StevensStarsPierre DulatAndrea EdmondsonSummer NguyenA young woman in dire financial straights accepts an offer to be a wealthy aristocrat's human "pet" for six months. Then ruthless modern "pet-nappers" kidnap the woman to sell her on the GSM (Global Slave Market).
- DirectorMichael HanekeStarsIsabelle HuppertAnnie GirardotBenoît MagimelA young man romantically pursues his masochistic piano teacher.a failed relationship of D/s and masoquism
- DirectorBob RafelsonStarsJack NicholsonJessica LangeJohn ColicosThe sensuous wife of a roadside diner proprietor and a rootless drifter begin a sordid, steamy affair and conspire to murder her Greek husband.
- DirectorTom TykwerStarsBen WhishawDustin HoffmanAlan RickmanJean-Baptiste Grenouille, born with a superior olfactory sense, creates the world's finest perfume. His work, however, takes a dark turn as he searches for the ultimate scent.
- DirectorJust JaeckinStarsCorinne CléryUdo KierAnthony SteelPhotographer O's lover takes her to a Château, where she is, like other women there, naked, humiliated by whipping, sexual abuse by men etc. When O leaves, her lover gives her to his much older step-brother.
- DirectorGeorge LucasStarsRobert DuvallDonald PleasenceDon Pedro ColleyIn the 25th century, a time when people have designations instead of names, a man, THX 1138, and a woman, LUH 3417, rebel against their rigidly controlled society.
- DirectorRichard TuggleClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodGeneviève BujoldDan HedayaNew Orleans single dad and cop Wes Block goes after a serial rapist-killer, but when he gets too close the hunter suddenly becomes the hunted.