The Duke is an extravagantly artificial creation, all about fetish, kink, and the susurration of an insect’s wings. The Duke of Burgundy, which came out in 2014, is about a lesbian couple named Cynthia and Evelyn, who is a Dom/sub pair.
The relationship between Evelyn, a timid housekeeper, and her severe, unforgiving mistress, Cynthia, is itself about BDSM, fetish, and different kinds of kink. Cynthia, who is the mistress, wants things to calm down a bit, but Evelyn, who is the housekeeper and acts like a maid, wants harsher punishment. Altogether, the film showcases their conflicts and battles as they seek to slake one another’s desires.
What Makes The Duke of Burgundy a Different BDSM Movie?
At the beginning of the movie, Cynthia (Sidse Babett Knudsen), a wealthy lady and expert on lepidopterology (or butterflies), seems to be acting as if she is a strict mistress to Evelyn (Chiara D’Anna), a student/servant/submissive sexual partner. She drinks her wine while making Evelyn clean her underwear and polish her boots like a responsible housekeeper. Cynthia, however, is scared to be in this situation when observed in private. She loves and respects her partner Evelyn very much, and it seems to bother her when Evelyn insists on being in charge. Although Evelyn is submissive, she is acting in the way that she has all scenes under her control, as she is creating, writing them, and giving Cynthia whole scripts to act on. Along with that, she’s also verbally abusing her as a regular part of their sexual play.
The Duke of Burgundy as an Excellent Blend of Love, Affection and Kink
The kinky erotic movie features a female Dom in a lesbian relationship, telling the story of a love connection that is built on sadomasochistic role-play. It also includes the choreography of a sub and Dom and the classic conundrum of who is actually in command.
Not only does the movie provide a wealth of explicit sexual content, but it’s also very stunning from beginning to end. When the movie starts, we see Evelyn working hard to make her Mistress happy. When Evelyn makes a mistake or falls short of Cynthia’s expectations, she will be appropriately penalized. It would appear to be a straightforward scenario in which Cynthia is the mistress and Evelyn is the servant; nevertheless, as the movie progresses, we find that not everything is as it appears on the surface. Cynthia doesn’t like being in charge, and the only reason she stays in charge is to do what Evelyn wants, no matter how crazy it is.
The Duke of Burgundy Portrays “Violence” and “Dominance/submission” as Symbols of Love and Devotion
As we can see, the movie focuses more on a communication breakdown rather than an inherent problem with kink itself. Both Evelyn and Cynthia have traits that are common in all relationships, like being neglectful and avoiding each other, for example.
In essence, the movie interprets the physical acts of “violence” and domination/submission as a metaphor for love and devotion. This is what the protagonists do because they want to share intimacy with one another. This differs from more serious forms of emotional abuse, like Evelyn’s increasing push for her fetishes, her willful disregard for Cynthia’s growing misery, and Cynthia’s subsequent breaking of Evelyn’s safeword. Cynthia suffers from the emotional agony caused by a spouse who ignores all of her demands. Throughout the story, Cynthia takes on a “typical” female duty to support things she doesn’t like out of love, even if it means sacrificing herself.
In this movie, it’s even exaggerated how much the sub actually is in charge of everything, and the Dom is only playing (a role) to please the sub. And Cynthia’s disappointment about being not in charge, even as the Dom, is very feelable and only changes after she gets some leverage on Evelyn due to the misbehaving with the carpenter. However, in the latter capacity, it can be seen that they are taking their role-play very seriously; Evelyn is playing the sub role, and Cynthia is playing misstres.
Their situations are full of constraints, rules, and general harshness. Yet, it’s evident from the get-go that their duties as lovers are not representative of their positions in the relationship. That is, Evelyn has strict requirements for how she should be controlled, but Cynthia is timid, needs guidance, and is constantly worried about making a fool of herself. You get the impression that she’d be much more content with a standard lesbian relationship if only she could convince herself to pursue one.
The Duke of Burgundy Gave a Thorough Look Into Power Dynamics
This movie isn’t only about a BDSM relationship; rather, it uses the power dynamics of that culture as a stand-in for how relationships operate more generally, whether sexual or romantic.
There are no men in the movie, and the high-level Mistresses/slave relationship between Cynthia and Evelyn seems to be so common that there is a waiting list for the highly specialized hand-carved beds with punishment chambers under the mattress, and the completely unflappable carpenter seems to live off that market alone. The film’s focus on interpersonal dynamics rather than leering at eroticized weirdos is a huge factor in removing any sexiness from the fundamental relationship, and for that, Strickland deserves all the credit.
The Duke of Burgundy Explicate Complexities of Communication
There is a scene where one of the characters, Evelyn, celebrates her birthday. The scene is a significant moment in the film as it showcases the power dynamics and communication issues in the relationship between the two main characters, Cynthia and Evelyn.
In the scene, Evelyn is seen sitting alone in a room, decorated with birthday decorations, waiting for Cynthia to come home and celebrate with her. Cynthia, who is running late, arrives home and begins to apologize for being late, but Evelyn is visibly upset and expresses her disappointment that Cynthia did not make more of an effort to celebrate her birthday. This scene highlights the power dynamic in their relationship, with Evelyn feeling neglected and unimportant, and Cynthia struggling to understand and meet Evelyn’s needs.
As the scene unfolds, Cynthia tries to make amends by giving Evelyn a present and apologizing, but Evelyn remains distant and upset. The scene ends with Evelyn getting up and leaving the room, leaving Cynthia alone and confused.
This scene is a powerful illustration of the complexities of communication and power dynamics in relationships, and it serves as a metaphor for the struggles of the characters throughout the movie.
The Movie Reflect How Communication is Not Always Easy Even in the Closet Relationship
Throughout the movie, the communication between Cynthia and Evelyn is portrayed as being complex and nuanced, with a mix of both verbal and nonverbal cues. Although the movie is set in a BDSM dynamic relationship and explores the power dynamics of the characters and how they communicate their desires and boundaries with each other, the characters have a hard time expressing their true feelings throughout the movie. It was also visible to the audience how their communication is affected by the power dynamics in their relationship, with Evelyn struggling to express her true feelings and Cynthia struggling to understand them. The film ends with the two characters in a state of uncertainty, as they are shown in a bedroom, with Evelyn looking out of the window and Cynthia sitting on the bed, and it is not clear if they have resolved their issues or not.
Therefore, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that the film doesn’t have a clear resolution to their communication issues. However, despite that, it shows the characters’ attempts to understand and accept each other’s desires, and it’s a reflection of how communication is not always easy, even in the closest relationships.
Bottomline
The Duke of Burgundy is not going to be the kind of movie that appeals to you if you aren’t into artful lesbian sex. For non-lesbian movies check the reviews of The Piano Teacher or the famous movie Secretary. But if you love BDSM and lesbians and enjoy power dynamics, this is surely a masterpiece to watch, as it involves both dominant and submissive play. It is an extremely creative approach to take if you would like to get a glimpse into a way of life about which you may know very little.
The Duke of Burgundy is a dreamlike and touching depiction of human connections that is artistically and acoustically vivid and entirely different from anything else you are likely to see anywhere else. It’s basically a 24/7 BDSM relationship in which the power dynamic and BDSM practices are integrated into the daily life of a lesbian couple rather than just being limited to specific periods of time or specific activities.
So, if you are into art-house films with a focus on relationship dynamics and the exploration of power, desire, and fantasy, the movie will be definitely worth watching.
You will find it for the instant watch here on Amazon Prime or as a blue-ray to-order: