The Golden Age of Suggestion: Dancing Around Desire: Sex

The Big Combo (1955)

During Hollywood's Hays Code era, filmmakers creatively conveyed sexual desire in subtle ways. It was a wonderful "Golden Age of Suggestion," where creators skillfully hinted at intimacy and passion. They used a rich language of suggestive imagery, body language, and dialogue to share desire, cleverly working around strict censorship with impressive ingenuity.

Common symbolic elements included:

Nature's Metaphors: Crashing waves, burning fireplaces, and blooming flowers subtly conveyed passion.

Symbolic Objects & Actions: Trains entering tunnels, strategic fade-outs to black after kissing scenes, playful use of shadows and silhouettes, and symbolic objects like keys, doors, and guns all added layers of innuendo. Even the act of lighting a cigarette could serve as a metaphor for sexuality.

Camera Techniques: Suggestive shadow play, close-ups of faces reflecting desire, and careful framing were masterfully used to imply more than was shown.

Narrative devices, including double-entendre dialogue, metaphorical weather changes, musical cues, and strategic scene transitions, further enhanced the storytelling, allowing for nuanced expression.

Let's dive into a few notable examples!

Romantic War Dramas

Gone with the Wind (1939): The Morning After 

After a drunk Rhett carries Scarlett upstairs, we see her the morning after in bed, stretching happily with a smile. While adult viewers understand what happened the night before, nothing explicit is shown. The scene relies solely on Vivien Leigh's acting and the audience's ability to interpret the subtext.

 

Casablanca (1942): Code for a Past Love 

 

 

 

 

This timeless classic skillfully uses suggestion to evoke feelings of past closeness and longing. The well-known fade-to-black after Rick and Ilsa's passionate hug strongly hints at sexual relations without explicitly showing it. "Paris" as Code: The name "Paris" becomes a powerful code for their deep past connection, filled with unspoken wishes and memories, allowing the film to reference their romance without direct dialogue.

To Have and Have Not (1944): The Whistle

 

This film is rich in sexual tension, especially in the iconic "You know how to whistle" scene featuring Lauren Bacall. Initially, the words seem innocent, but Bacall's tone of voice, her body language, and the repeated use of smoking as a sexual metaphor transform it into one of the most sensual moments in film history. The prolonged glances and deliberate pauses in their dialogue deepen the subtext, all while adhering to the Code's restrictions.

From Here to Eternity (1953): The Iconic Beach Kiss

 

The famous beach scene shows how filmmakers can make even a simple kiss deeply provocative. The iconic image of Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr embracing as waves crash around them became a timeless symbol of raw passion. This scene demonstrated that suggestion can be more powerful and lasting than any explicit act.

Another Hitchcock example.

Vertigo (1958): Spiraling Desire and Obsession

 

Alfred Hitchcock visually encapsulates desire and obsession through its groundbreaking camera work. The iconic spiraling camera movements (often called the "vertigo effect" or dolly zoom) aren't just disorienting; they are used to symbolize Scottie's descent into obsession and his convoluted, all-consuming desire for Madeleine/Judy. This visual language conveys psychological states related to desire without any explicit content.

Film-Noirs

The Big Sleep (1946): Metaphorical Horse Racing

In "The Big Sleep," the bar scene between Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall is famous for its clever banter and the strong connection between the characters, filled with playful double entendres. Their conversation about horse racing acts as a fun metaphor for sex, cleverly avoiding direct language. They compare each other's "thoroughbred" qualities and sexual compatibility.

• Vivian: Speaking of horses, I like to play them myself. But I like to see them workout a little first, see if they're front runners or come from behind, find out what their hole card is, what makes them run.
• Marlowe: Find out mine?
• Vivian: I think so.
• Marlowe: Go ahead.
• Vivian: I'd say you don't like to be rated. You like to get out in front, open up a little lead, take a little breather in the backstretch, and then come home free.
• Marlowe: You don't like to be rated yourself.
• Vivian: I haven't met anyone yet that can do it. Any suggestions?
• Marlowe: Well, I can't tell till I've seen you over a distance of ground. You've got a touch of class, but I don't know how, how far you can go.
• Vivian: A lot depends on who's in the saddle. 

The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946): Passionate Abandon

The Hays Code banned nudity, suggestive dances, and explicit scenes of seduction or rape, with strict rules on portraying sexual relationships and adultery. The film toned down the novel's portrayal of Cora and Frank's rough affair, but their relationship's intensity still challenged boundaries through clever implications. 

The film uses vivid visual metaphors to convey passionate abandon, particularly in the electric scene where Frank (John Garfield) and Cora (Lana Turner) first meet. Her lipstick falls and rolls toward Frank. He picks it up, she applies it, and then suggestively closes the door. This instantly establishes her captivating allure, with the lipstick itself becoming a potent symbol of her unbridled desire and the suppressed lust that ebbs and flows between them. In the background, a hamburger sizzles on the grill. Frank is visibly captivated by Cora, even as the meat burns—a subtle visual cue to his consuming distraction and burgeoning attraction. When Frank suddenly kisses her, her visible irritation with the kiss, along with her action of "wiping her [lips] and then reapplying the lipstick," is seen as a clear indication of "hidden desire." This shows how the film employs a seemingly straightforward action to uncover intricate, conflicting feelings and the strong, though restrained, attraction between them.

 

Gun Crazy (1950): Subversive Suggestion

Laurie: Almost killed a man once. Shot a little too low.

Bart: So did I.

As we follow the outlaw couple Bart and Laurie (John Dall, Peggy Cummins), their shared passion for each other and guns beautifully illustrates the complexity of their relationship, balancing affection with obsession over guns. One of the film's standout moments is their intense first encounter, where Peggy Cummins almost seduces the camera, radiating desire and capturing her co-star John Dall’s attention with her expressive gaze. The sexual tension is palpable; like animals in heat, they’re completely focused on the idea of sex, conveying their raw sexuality through their eyes and body language without even making contact. The film relies on suggestion rather than explicit sexuality and violence.

It's no surprise that director Joseph H. Lewis explicitly shared how he guided John Dall and Peggy Cummins: "I told John, 'Your cock's never been so hard,' and I told Peggy, 'You're a female dog in heat, and you want him. But don't let him have it in a hurry. Keep him waiting.' That's how I directed them, and they delivered without needing more guidance."

 

 

 

 

 

The Big Combo (1955): Implied Arousal

"What do you want, Susan? Tell me."

 

"The Big Combo" features a particularly daring scene that subtly hints at oral sex through off-screen sexual activity. This moment underscores the toxic relationship between Richard Conte's crime boss, Mr. Brown, and Jean Wallace's Susan Lowell. Susan, despite her desire to escape, can't resist him. 

In this provocative sequence, as Brown kisses her neck and then travels down her body, moving out of the camera's view, the camera carefully stays focused on Susan's face. This steady shot captures her reactions, which suggest a growing intensity and arousal, beautifully conveying her experience of pleasure. It was a notably provocative scene for its time.

 

Comedies

The Lady Eve (1941): Seduction on the Floor

"The Lady Eve" delicately avoids the restrictions of the Code. You might remember the rule that bans unmarried couples from sharing a bed unless one has "a foot on the floor." Director Preston Sturges cleverly bypassed this by having one character on the floor. 

In a nearly four-minute uncut scene, Barbara Stanwyck's Jean seduces Henry Fonda's Pike, using vocal delivery to express sexual tension and climax. Despite some provocative words, they stay just shy of risqué—some cities even edited parts of the scene. Pike remains captivated for three minutes as Jean strokes his hair and chats about trivial matters, knowing he’s not really listening. An earlier script hinted they ended up in Jean’s cabin, but the Hays Office rejected that. Stanwyck expertly turns innocent lines like, “See anything you like?” into playful innuendos. The suggestive imagery in the animated credit sequence also hints at the film’s wit. Sturges deeply understood how wordplay and innuendo generate exciting tension.  

Some Like It Hot (1959): Breaking the Code 

"I always get the fuzzy end of the lollipop." 

 
Director Billy Wilder effectively examines themes of gender and sexuality, challenging norms through witty dialogue, visual humor, and daring content. The film includes elements that were considered taboo only a few years earlier: cross-dressing, numerous sexual innuendos (such as Sugar sipping from her flask, a cheeky reference to Prohibition), and close-ups of Marilyn Monroe's famous figure, paired with her unmistakably alluring costumes.

 

When Marilyn Monroe's character, Sugar Kane, expresses her love for saxophone players by saying, "I always get the fuzzy end of the lollipop," the innuendo is blatant. Yet, the censors couldn't take issue with the innocent, literal reading of her words, showcasing a clever sidestep around the Code.

Importantly, Some Like It Hot was released without approval from the Hays Code. Although the film generated significant controversy over its content—particularly its cross-dressing and implied LGBTQ+ themes—the influence of the Hays Code was rapidly waning at that time. The Supreme Court's 1952 decision had upheld the rights to free speech in films, making enforcement of the Code increasingly difficult. Consequently, the film premiered without the PCA's approval, directly challenging its authority and signifying a major turning point in Hollywood's censorship practices.