Boxing Helena

1993
18
1h 47m

IMDb RATING

4.7/10

14K

YOUR RATING

Sherilyn Fenn and Julian Sands in Boxing Helena (1993)

Play trailer1:41

1 Video

89 Photos

Erotic Thriller Drama Mystery Romance Thriller

A surgeon becomes obsessed with the seductive woman he once was in an affair with. Refusing to accept that she has moved on, he amputates her limbs and holds her captive in his mansion.A surgeon becomes obsessed with the seductive woman he once was in an affair with. Refusing to accept that she has moved on, he amputates her limbs and holds her captive in his mansion.A surgeon becomes obsessed with the seductive woman he once was in an affair with. Refusing to accept that she has moved on, he amputates her limbs and holds her captive in his mansion.

Director
- Jennifer Lynch
Writers
- Philippe Caland
- Jennifer Lynch
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

4.7/10

14K

YOUR RATING

Director
- Jennifer Lynch
Writers
- Philippe Caland
- Jennifer Lynch
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 win & 2 nominations total

Videos1

Trailer 1:41

Boxing Helena

Photos89

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Kim Basinger pulled out of the title role and was successfully sued for $9 million for violation of a verbal contract. Because of this, she was forced to declare bankruptcy. The award was overturned on appeal, and the case was settled out of court.

Goofs
Helena's black dress changes specifically when she is walking through the fountain in her undergarments, as it is impossible for the black dress she wears in all other scenes of Nick's party to conceal the particular underclothing.

Quotes
Helena: A woman is something soft; something warm when you feel her. When she's naked. When she's touched. Discovered. You see that things happen inside of her. She opens up. Sometimes a woman is sad. Sometimes she's angry. Helpless. Beautiful. Sometimes she's strong. She's still only that one woman. Talk to her - in deep whispers. Tell her what you're doing, what you see. Move slowly. Tell her you're inside of her. Tell her how it feels. Touch her. Use your tongue. Your breath. When she's about to come, she'll grab for you. But don't let her come. Make her wait. Tease her. Play with her. Make her feel. She may touch herself. She's so sensitive now. You can't be afraid. Take her. Take her.

Alternate versions
This film originally was rated "NC-17" by the MPAA. The DVD contains 1 minute of sexually explicit footage that had to be cut for the "R" rating. The cut footage in the UNRATED DVD version is as follows:
When Nick fantasizes about Helena and Ray having sex, there is a view of most of Helena's butt in her thong underwear; Helena removing Ray's pants where and part of his bare butt is seen; Ray kissing up Helena's body where and one of her breasts is seen; and finally one last shot that shows Helena's breasts very briefly.
During Nick's sex scene with the fantasy woman while Helena watches, extra footage includes a scene with Nick behind the woman, then a shot of him thrusting into her, followed by several views of the woman's bare breasts.

Connections
Featured in Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: Blue Chips/Midnight Cowboy/Reality Bites/The Critic/The Scent of Green Papaya (1994)

Soundtracks
You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You
Performed by Cab Calloway
Written by Russ Morgan (as R. Morgan), Larry Stock (as L. Stock), James Cavanaugh (as J. Cavanaugh)
Courtesy of LaserLight Digital
By Arrangement with Sounds of Film

User reviews137

Featured review

6/10

Not the Bomb it Seems to Be

A surgeon (Julian Sands) becomes obsessed with the seductive woman (Sherilyn Fenn) he once was in an affair with. Refusing to accept that she has moved on, he amputates her limbs and holds her captive in his mansion.

After receiving an NC-17 rating by the MPAA, the film was given an R-rating on appeal and released in the United States in September 1993, but received critical backlash and was a financial failure. Gene Siskel was one of the film's few defenders, writing, "I went to the theater to see it expecting the worst," and he called it, "a brave little movie that explored the provocative issue of how some frustrated men channel their inability to love a woman into cruelty." Genre fans might like it, because of the familiar faces -- Sands, Fenn and Bill Paxton. It does suffer from having no one really likable in the plot, and a few twists that may not sit well with some people.