Featured Image Credit: Mubi
Topics: Sex and Relationships, TV and Film, Education, Mental Health
Ben Thompson
Topics: Sex and Relationships, TV and Film, Education, Mental Health
A new film has achieved a near perfect Rotten Tomatoes score - but that isn't the most significant thing about the film.
How to Have Sex is being hailed for its unflinching portrayal of sex and consent.
The cast have expressed their hopes that the film will 're-educate' male viewers.
The teen drama revolved around Tara, played by Mia McKenna-Bruce.
The 16-year-old is on a holiday abroad with friends, hoping to lose her virginity.
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However, when she encounters Paddy, played by Samuel Bottomley, things take a turn for the worse.
Tara is pressured into giving consent for him to sleep with her, which takes a toll on her.
Her experience is made all the more difficult when she receives pointed remarks from her friend, Skye, and Paddy's mate Badger makes excuses for his mate's actions.
The actors discussed how the film portrays consent.
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Shaun Thomas, who plays Badger said: "I think you can take away a new sense of awareness, a new sense of what to change.
"And I think the film could really re-educate a lot of people especially the younger generation."
Bottomley agreed with this assessment, and said: "A new sense of awareness is a brilliant way to put that, I definitely agree with that.
"I personally think if the characters had watched this things could have been prevented. I think in that way, it would be very powerful."
Enva Lewis, who plays one of Tara's friends, said: "It's amazing, it's happening now, but I think it's been relevant from the start of women, hasn't it, really?
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"I think to do it in this day and age just kind of shows the power of this next generation coming through.
"I hope men don't come away from it seeing sex as just something to do.
"I hope [it] becomes more of a connection and more of a conversation, I think that's really shown in this film, the lack of actual speech that happens and that lack of actual conversation in that interaction.
"Also there's no note of the way that Tara is physically, and I think for a lot of women that's the case where... [there's] enthusiastic consent where you go with it.
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"That happens so frequently, but your body is reacting completely differently. I think that needs to be taken into account."
Lara Peake, who plays Skye, believes the film has particular relevance in the age of social media.
She said: "As young people start to have an online presence even more, films like this can hopefully get into those spaces and counter the more questionable stuff and create those conversations that we've been wanting to have."
The film currently has a 96% score on Rotten Tomatoes.