Naked, Middle-Aged Stone Uses Sex as Power

March 24, 2006 — -- Most American women are pretty removed from Hollywood, but sometimes what happens on the screen has an impact well beyond the movies.

At 48 years old, Sharon Stone exudes a confident sexuality that few women half her age can match. Perhaps that's why she's appearing entirely naked in the sequel to the 1992 voyeuristic thriller "Basic Instinct."

When Stone uncrossed her legs and bared it all for just a brief moment 14 years ago, it was something of a touchstone in the history of popular culture's portrayal of sex. She was a woman using her sexuality as power, although some people thought it was just crude. She is reviving her role as Catherine Trammel, the bisexual novelist who wields an ice pick, in "Basic Instinct 2." The movie opens in the United States next week.

"I thought it would be intriguing to do the nudity in a way that is just quite brazen. People are going to have this moment where they think, 'Oh, she's not 20 and naked. She's 40-something and naked and what do I think about that?' Because we're not used to seeing that in movies," Stone told reporters.

The first "Basic Instinct" was racy, but Stone pushed producers to make this one even more revealing. "I wanted a lot of sex in the sequel, and I wanted more nudity," the actress said. "I was coming from a really kinky place."

To get in shape for the film, Stone did a lot of Pilates. She did not use a body double -- her spokeswoman said she didn't need to. No matter what you think of the movie and the values it depicts, there is something to be said for that.

In Hollywood, many young stars are still reluctant to show their bodies on the big screen. Keira Knightley, 20, admits using a body double for the racier scenes in "Domino." Knightley told reporters, "I don't mind about the boobs, not the butt. … I'm a woman. There's no reason to it." Knightly also admits she did not have time to train for the role in which her character has steamy dance scenes in a strip club. At 23, Julia Roberts requested a stand-in for her more revealing scenes in "Pretty Woman."

Apart from Stone's good looks and figure, why would a woman who has undoubtedly acquired figure flaws during her 48 years be more willing to show her stuff than a woman half her age?