Fifty Shades of Grey courts controversy with depiction of 'emotional abuse'

Fifty Shades of Grey doesnt officially open until later today, but the big screen adaptation of E.L. James's bestselling book is already a massive hit.

The erotic movie is selling out in theatres in advance presales, and it already has the most ticket sales for any R rated film.

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Its no surprise, then, that the films director, Sam Taylor-Johnson, has announced that two sequels are already in the works.

It is hard to fail when your source material is so successful.

More than 100 million mostly-female readers have read the British authors titillating novels about a virgin entering into an BDSM sexual relationship with a powerful billionaire.

But not everyone is looking forward to the films release. In fact, a number of groups around the world are actively trying to stop people from going.

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Megan Walker runs a centre for abused women in London, Ont. It was one of the first organizations to launch the #50dollarsnot50shades campaign.

The movement asks individuals to boycott the film and donate the money they would have spent on tickets, babysitters and/or popcorn to their local womens shelter.

Fifty Shades of danger

10 years ago

Duration 2:33

Megan Walker, the executive director of the London Abused Women's Centre, explains the dangers of portraying sexualized violence in film.

Can't see the video? Megan Walker describes the dangers of the film here

About 3,300 women accessed the services at Walkers centre last year. Its a fact,she says,that reveals the hard rift between fairy tale and reality.

"We believe that [the story] normalizes and glamorizes sexual violence against women,"Walker said in a recent interview with CBC.

"In every single interaction between the two main characters, there is at least emotional abuse, where Christian Grey is either stalking [Anastasia Steele], harassing her, not listening to her, putting her down, and these are the things women identify in our office on a daily basis."

Support in many corners

Walker is not alone in her worry. The movement has supporters in major cities across Canada and the U.S. British and American domestic abuse groups have plans to disrupt premieres of the film in their countries, and a Roman Catholic bishop has called Fifty Shades an assault on Christian marriage.

Fans of the books, however, have come to the trilogys defence, arguing that the stories are just sensually explicit depictions of a young womans sexual awakening.

Walker would argue that its not just Anastasias innocence that is being lost.

"I think sometimes people are looking at the BDSM feature of the book, or the film, and thinking, 'Oh it's consensual and it's BDSM, and this is what women want.'But in fact, from our perspective, oftentimes women are not consenting. Women are almost trained as young girls to grow up, to believe they're sex objects.'

James, who penned the erotic trilogy that launched the film, has heard the backlash and says the critics have it all wrong.

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"Who is interested, as a woman, in reading about abuse? Why have these books taken off if they are about abuse?" said James, who discussed the film with the Associated Pressover the weekend.

"Domestic violence, rape, are unacceptable. They are not entertaining in any way. Let me be absolutely clear. Everything that happens in this book is safe and consensual. .... What do I need to do to convince people?"

Fifty Shades of Grey opens in Canadian theatres today.

CBC's Deana Sumanchas the full story in the lead video above.