10 best erotic films to watch on Netflix
(Credit: Netflix)

Films

10 best erotic films to watch on Netflix

It’s approaching Valentine’s Day, and in a year where physical connection might well be on the cards, we thought now was the right time to share our favourite erotic films on Netflix.

While many consider erotica a form of art, Netflix has not quite been able to comprehend the term ‘erotic’. Often presenting borderline pornography that indulges in various twisted fetishes, the streamer has yet to master the craft of creating a sublime and sensual immersive experience for the viewers. 

However, the streaming service has a burgeoning collection of erotic films in raunchy, explicit material that can help turn up the temperature. From intimate love-making scenes to intense S&M sequences, the streamer has a collection that will appeal to a varied range of fetishes and fantasies. 

Ahead of Valentine’s Day, tune in to watch these ten erotic films on Netflix to induce ‘sexy times’: 

Best erotic films to watch on Netflix:

Newness (Drake Doremus, 2017)

A nuanced portrait of the predicament of modern-day romance, where relationships and passion are sometimes on the decline, Doremus’ film is set in present-day Los Angeles. It portrays a relationship between millennials who spend their time on dating apps, trying to find a way to distract themselves in the endless cesspool. Eager to connect, they rush into a relationship before turning to other people for warmth – but to no avail.  

A commentary on sex, romance and passion, the film chronicles the delicacies of modern romance. The emotional distance despite the physical intimacy is shown via the intimate, psychoanalytical lens of the filmmaker. 

Amar (Esteban Crespo, 2017)

A portrait of intense and burning desire in a relationship, Laura and Carlos’ love story is filled with insecurities, emotions and simplicity. However, their obsessive love for one another might leave behind a haunting memory of their shared passion and zeal for one another. 

Woven beautifully by Crespo to paint the image of implied carnal desires with artistic nudity and sensuality, the film is provocative yet unsettling. It deconstructs the meaning of love and the subsequent consequences. 

365 Days (Tomasz Mandes, Barbara Białowąs, 2020)

While the coronavirus pandemic ravaged the world, Netflix viewers found warmth blooming in their chest while witnessing the surreal sexual exploits between the leads in this Polish flick. Starring Michele Morrone and Anna-Maria Sieklucka, the erotic drama became somewhat of a cult favourite. 

Kidnapped by the mafia, Laura has a year to fall in love with the leader, Massimo. While many have called the film twisted and harmful, others have basked in the abundance of explicit sex scenes between the leads in unusual locations, including the aeroplane, a yacht and the man’s playroom where they engage in an intense form of BDSM. 

Addicted (Billie Woodruff, 2014)

A successful businesswoman is seemingly happy in her life with a loving family. However, as diagnosed by her therapist, she finds herself being unfaithful due to her sex addiction and gets involved in torrid affairs with two different men. However, this threatens to disrupt her family life and brings back past trauma. 

The film delicately depicts how suppressed past trauma leads to intense sex addiction. While it is heartbreaking to witness the consequences of sexual violence, there are plenty of sexually stimulating scenes before the film delves into the disturbing secret. 

Indecent Proposal (Adrian Lyne, 1993) 

Starring Robert Redford, Demi Moore and Woody Harrelson, the film sees a happy couple’s relationship disrupted by the recession and subsequent financial problems. A billionaire makes the titular “indecent proposal” where he wants to spend a night with the woman. While they reluctantly agree, this might destroy their marriage once and for all. 

With plenty of sex scenes reflecting the wealthy man’s voracious sexual appetite, the film has a good balance of melodrama and emotions. Interestingly, Harrelson was reportedly extremely uncomfortable filming intimate scenes with Moore as he is great friends with her then-husband, Bruce Willis, and it brewed plenty of awkwardness between the duo. 

White Girl (Elizabeth Wood, 2016)

New York City college girl Leah is seeking pleasure in every form. Partying hard and trying out drugs while living a life of fun and excitement, Leah falls in love with her drug dealer. However, when he is arrested, she goes to extreme lengths to win him back. 

While directing the film, Wood derived inspiration from her own adolescent journal entries. A deep dive into the seedy high life complemented by drug daze and uncontrolled sexual endeavours, the film balances the erotic with a fair amount of traumatic hardships that paint the despairing picture of the downside of the wild, partying culture. 

Don Jon (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 2013)

Jon Martello has his set priorities that revolve around his family, car, his friends, women and porn. Addicted to porn films, he soon finds himself getting sexually and emotionally intimate with a middle-aged woman after he is dumped by a woman named Barbara. 

In his directorial debut, Gordon-Levitt stars as the titular Jon and is joined by Julianne Moore and Scarlett Johansson, all of whom received exalted praise for their individual performances. A brilliant take on how an obsession with erotica leads to one’s ruin, it has its fair share of raunchy, super sexy scenes.  

A Perfect Ending (Nicole Conn, 2012)

Rebecca’s unusual secret keeps plaguing her- she has never experienced an orgasm before. However, she ends up revealing the same to a female escort named Paris which eventually leads to a raw, realistic and erotic saga of finding oneself.   

Laced with humour and honesty, the passionate scenes of their sexual rendezvous will definitely make you sweat under the collar. With artistic depth and a beautiful intensity, the leads have brilliant chemistry as they try and overcome a problem that sadly plagues many women. 

Elisa & Marcela (Isabel Coixet, 2019) 

Set in the early 1900s, the film follows the tribulations of a Spanish couple in the historic and first-ever same-sex marriage in Spain. Marcela and Elisa attempt to get married, but once their romance is discovered, they are separated amidst social prejudices and stigma. Elisa disguises herself as Mario to marry Marcela in order to triumph in this forbidden love.

This haunting period piece is heartbreaking and poignant as its predecessors like Carol, a beautiful melodrama in monochrome. The intimately shot love-making scenes add to the subtle beauty of the film.  

Lovesong (So Yong Kim, 2017)

Korean-American filmmaker So Yong Kim directed a heartfelt indie film about the illicit liaisons between two best friends when Sarah takes an impromptu road trip with her best friend Mindy and her daughter after a few marital problems. However, the road trip changes their dynamic, leading to the duo getting intimate both physically and emotionally. 

With brilliant, emotionally charged performances, the film perfectly evokes romance within the realistic premise. Although various barriers constrain them, the powerful spiritual and erotic chemistry between the duo is explicitly shown by the filmmaker’s deft knowledge of the power of the audio-visual medium.