Lebanese can be vexed by the slightest occurrences: severed heads of all 21 Egyptian Copts, pilot Kasassbah's live burning show and the execution of four Lebanese soldiers. However, none of these atrocious act had offered offered the magnetic pull of the juicy takes of Mia Khalifa's scandalous footage or the infamous sado-masochistic Fifty Shades of Grey.

The ticking anger over the heinous and brutal crimes of terrorist groups barely saw the light. Bashful wisps of comments and tweets spanned briefly over social platforms for Man's imagination cannot tolerate such man-made monstrosities.

Sexual films, on the other hand, can easily fix that as daring scenes has successfully blanketed the imagination of our country's audience. A country of controversy par excellence where a simple kiss, even if it's in favor of the narrative, is still omitted from all our series .

Not many have heard of Fifty Shades of Grey before February 14; yet, after that date almost everyone wanted to hit the theaters. The box offices scored high turnout as those seeking to enjoy a new taste of unorthodox sex trickled in. The film is swamped with sado-masochistic scenes although it features no more than a déjà vu sexual relationship that can surely be found in every bedroom and damp corner of people's imagination.

I dare say some even ape these moves with prostitutes when their partners fail to submit to their needs.

The film is an adaptation of a three-volume novel written by British writer Erica Mitchell and tells the "love story" of Anastasia Steel and Christian Grey.

The bestseller sold 70 million copies but the only part that received the Lebanese acclaim was the line "Fifty shades of Grey" harnessing mayhem between supporters and critics. Lebanese women raved over their new prince charming, adding stockpiles of gifts and the new Audi on their checklist.

But is that type of sex bad? Why sado-masochism is considered sinful if the two sides consent?  Does love justify such means of expression? Why did Mr. Grey choose Anastasia in particular, knowing that she's not perfect or flawlessly beautiful? Does Christian Grey even exist?

In fact, the Lebanese concerns revolve around these specific questions. Everyone is talking about this obscene movie and has long forgotten about the Nusra and Islamic State group that have infiltrated into our territories while threatening us with real "films" of another kind.

Lebanese have overlooked the films directed by local politicians; ones with indefinite seasons and episodes. Unfortunately, the Lebanese got used to their reality to the extent of tolerating all their societal, economic problems. After all, one 125-minute film made them forget their entire country.
 

Adapted from an article originally written in Arabic by Jessica Habchy