Olivia Wilde has never been better than she is as the oversexed boss Erika in Gregg Araki’s outrageous and uproarious I Want Your Sex. Cooper Hoffman brings a comical vulnerability to Elliot, the object of her affection. The cast is fantastic all around. Charli xcx, as the girlfriend who appears to despise Elliot, and Daveed Diggs, as Erika’s right-hand man Vikktor, both cracked me up every time they appeared on the screen. Angelique Clark’s colorful and whimsical production design perfectly complements the material.
At the NewFest Q&A, Araki described the film as a preposterous film noir, and mentioned that Gen Z’s lack of interest in sex was what inclined him to make it and get the message out that it’s OK to have sex. He said that he used an intimacy coordinator for the first time, and added that he has been filming sex scenes for so long, it was just another day at the office for him. He cited Sunset Boulevard, Se7en (interrogation scene), and Almodóvar’s ‘80s films, particularly Matador and Law of Desire, as inspirations for the film.
Magnolia Pictures will release I Want Your Sex in theaters on July 31.
