We're so close to the Fifty Shades of Grey release you can almost smell the disinfectant used in the Red Room of Pain. For some, this film is a long time coming — OK, for most — but for those that haven't read the books, the hype might not seem totally warranted... yet. With the first film's release just around the corner, I decided to dive into the first book and reacquaint myself with the story, which ended up leaving me with one big question... Is the ending of the Fifty Shades of Grey book the same as what we'll see in the movie? My hope is yes — major cliffhanger, right? — but before I get ahead of myself, let's give up some spoilers as to what happens at the end of the Fifty Shades of Grey book, for those who haven't read it.
So a quick debriefer — and again major spoilers are about to be dropped on this sitch — about what happens in the book Fifty Shades of Grey. So, young, naive Anastasia Steele (played by Dakota Johnson) meets dark, brooding Christian Grey (played by Jamie Dornan). The two enter — well, sort of — into a Dominant/ Submissive sexual relationship, with Mr. Grey with the palm-twitching hand holding the whip. But, because there's no such thing as a perfect relationship, the two have a difficult time really falling into the ideal, contractual, roles of a Dom and Sub because they start to really care about each other... WHICH IS AGAINST THE RULES.
By the end of the book, a lot of things have happened — you might need a shower — and the two decide to redefine the contract that was originally drawn out by Christian. Basically, Ana is still called the "submissive" but she doesn't have to follow all of Christian's wack-a-doo rules that he set in place.
Note: I said "she doesn't have to follow all" of the rules.
One rule that remains is the eye-rolling rule. It's a huge no-no in Christian's mind, he doesn't love defiance in the first book. When Ana rolls her eyes at him (literally the last 15 pages of the book), the two start a game of cat and mouse (Christian the cat, Ana the mouse) until Christian can "punish" Ana for defying him.
It's obvious, at this point, that he cares a lot for her. She loves him. BUT, and this is a big but, he still "needs" to punish her, for reasons he won't explain (that's in Fifty Shades Darker for the literary rebels who want to read ahead). Because of her love for Christian, Ana offers to let him punish her — she wants to see how much it can hurt, since he insists it isn't beyond anything she can take. Well, if you're thinking, "Hey, this isn't going to turn out well," you are SPOT ON. It doesn't.
Within the final pages of the book, Christian starts spanking her with a belt, forcing her to count the slaps, and while she takes them all... it upsets her to her core, causing her to freak out. It's a "monumental wake-up call" for her, realizing he wants to see her in pain, which is, frankly, Fifty Shades of Effed Up to her. Their compatibility hits a wall, she realizes she can't give him what he wants, even though he says she does, and he realizes he can't give her what she wants — even though he clearly does.
Ana confesses her love to Christian, who does not receive it well (he's tortured, OK?!), and the two part ways. It's heart-breaking for both of them — and me, oops — as Ana returns to her apartment, alone and in love with Christian.
And that's it. That's how Fifty Shades of Grey ends. Even though the plot is simple, the lingering that the first book leaves is just what the movie series will need ... if it wants a sequel.
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