Sex and Young Directors

In his article “Steam Cleaning” (May 14), Patrick Goldstein accepts without question the statement of Michael De Luca that today’s young filmmakers are not interested in sexual subject matter, and the first two he names were the directors of “Boogie Nights” and “Spanking the Monkey.” What planet does De Luca live on? He pointedly does not mention directors like Todd Solondz and Neil LaBute, who have created controversy over the sexual nature of their films.

It is plain to me that today’s young filmmakers are very much concerned with sexual matters. What they are not concerned with is the belief in Adultery as Apocalypse, which is the concern of some of our 60-ish directors, who grew up in a time far more repressive than even John Ashcroft could imagine.

The major reason more sexually provocative films do not get made is the terminally hypocritical MPAA film board, who seem to believe that exposure to violence is far less harmful to children than learning about sex (unless it is found in a sniggering, adolescent comedy). Until the MPAA gets rid of its puritan review board, we will continue to see a lot more violent thrillers than adult depictions of sexuality.

JOSEPH COOPER

Santa Barbara