10 Girl-On-Girl Scenes in Movies That Should Be Sexy But Aren't

Two attractive women getting it on for a camera generally works out well. But sometimes, when the actresses aren't into it, or the director tries too hard to stylize the moment, or the scene's context is altogether uncomfortable, things can get a little awkward. Sadly, excited male viewers' hopes have been crushed too often by failed promises of sexy women getting intense and naughty with other ladies on screen with results that could best be described as "cinematic blue balls."

The latest example of unsexy girl-on-girl action comes in the new indie flick Jack and Diane, multiple times, at that. The film stars the cute twosome of Riley Keough (as Jack) and Juno Temple (as Diane), and there's a metaphorical werewolf thing going on with Diane. They meet randomly one summer day, quickly fall in love, and have to contend with disapproving family members, the threat of a long distance relationship, and Diane's aforementioned tendency to have her intense love materialize as a lycanthropic nightmare.

In real life, individually, Temple and Keough are both beautiful young women, but together, in the emotionally flaccid Jack and Diane, their physically motivated scenes have all the heat of an icebox. Superficially, one could blame Keough's unflattering boyish haircut, but the truth of the matter is that director Bradley Rust Gray shoots their romantic interactions with little to no energy, and the actresses, seemingly following his catatonic lead, mostly enact their characters' desires with the enthusiasm of sleepwalkers.

Still reeling from the letdown of Jack and Diane's barely lukewarm lesbian scenes, we've bravely relived some equally upsetting film memories to compile the following list of 10 Girl-on-Girl Scenes in Movies that Should be Sexy but Aren't. Prepare for unbridled disappointment.

RELATED: The 25 Grossest Nude Scenes In Movies
RELATED: The 10 Hottest Lesbian and Bisexual Women in Hollywood
RELATED: The 20 Most Gratuitous Girl-on-Girl Scenes in Movies

Written by Valeriya Safronova (@vsaffron)

Follow @ComplexPopCulture

Gina Gershon is hot. She was hotter in 1996, as was Jennifer Tilly. In Bound, one lady is tough and hard, the other is voluptuous and sensual. It seems like a promising formula for a sexy woman-on-woman scene. Too bad Gershon's masculine plumber reminds us more of a leering, '70s porno stereotype than a sexy, commanding Ms. Fixer Upper. She's so silent and cold that she puts out all the sizzle of Tilly's murmurs with one look. All she's missing is a handlebar mustache.

Again, we're faced with an unexpected dilemma. Two hot actresses whom we generally enjoy seeing in any sexual context come together for a kiss and...no reaction. We want this to work, we really do. But the May-December relationship between Seyfried and Moore, along with Moore's character's hesitation and jitters remind us too much of a lithe cougar taking down whimpering prey.

Part of the appeal of woman-on-girl sex scenes lies in the illicit naughtiness of the act. Moore's character sure acts like she's doing something wrong, but she's not excited by it. That makes it a lot harder for us to imagine joining in.

Have you ever had sex that you couldn't fully enjoy because your mind was elsewhere? That's how we feel watching the sensual liaisons between doomed lovers Felice Schragenheim (Maria Schrader) and Lilly Wust (Juliane Köhler) in Aimée & Jaguar. The movie takes place in Germany during WWII, and Schragenheim is a Jewish woman who's working for the underground and having an affair with the unsatisfied wife of a Nazi soldier. Feel that sense of dread creeping up yet? It's difficult to get lost in hot lesbian action when you're worrying about the Gestapo and concentration camps.

Let's be real. Most everything about Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis as hot ballerinas tearing each other's clothes off is awesome. They're sweaty, their bodies are in prime shape, and there's a whole lot of tongue involved. But then...whomp, whomp. It's not real.

Not only is it not real, but there are moments when Kunis' face morphs into Portman's. This would be hot if it was some freaky alien porno, but it's creepy as a representation of the main character's split personalities and paranoia. Toss in the her mom napping a few feet away in the morning, with the implication that she could've seen Portman's one-woman show the night before, and something just isn't right. Maybe it's that sex between two of Hollywood's hottest actresses didn't quite leave you with the warm and fuzzy feeling you were looking for.

Usually, we're down with Julianne Moore sex scenes, whether she's nude, half nude, or even slightly nude. The main sex scene from The Kids Are All All Right features Julianne Moore in a flattering, provocative...long-sleeved pajama shirt. And that just about reflects the sum of our displeasure with this scene.

Lesbian sex is supposed to be fun! Kinky! Erotic! Exotic! This scene? It's so mature. And no, not mature as in rated for adult audiences, but mature as in married couple that gets off while hidden entirely underneath a thick blanket. As in hit the mute button on the gay porno because there are two teenage kids sleeping next door. As in Annette Bening looks like she's watching a so-so documentary on the History Channel, while the only sighting of Julianne Moore is her head bobbing up and down beneath the massive blanket. We thought lesbian sex was better than this.

In this satirical movie of the "not another" genre, Mia Kirshner and Beverly Polcyn, a woman about thrice the age of every other actor in the film, recreate the famous Sarah Michelle Gellar-Selma Blair kissing scene from Cruel Intentions. With Polcyn very obviously being more than a few decades older than Kirshner, the stage is set immediately for an incredibly gross kiss.

The aggressive, wet, and sticky (there's a glob of gum involved) tongue thrusting that follows brings the scene to a new level. It's undeniably disgusting, yet for us, maybe a bit too obvious to make it to the very top of our list. Next time, Polcyn.

There are many things wrong with the sex scene between the two prostitutes played by Cara Seymour and Krista Sutton in American Psycho. The most major one, of course, is that they're sleeping with a psychopath who physically abuses them both and later kills one of them. Granted, neither knows that yet, but we sense it, and that adds a thick layer of discomfort to the whole progression.

Then there is their overall lack of enthusiasm and general awkwardness. Call girl "Sabrina" does not seem happy about streetwalker "Christie"and vice versa. And while it is hilarious to watch Christian Bale watch himself as he flexes his muscles, it is also not what we want to see when there are two naked blondes beneath him. Finally, it's hard to forget the endless Phil Collins in the background. Not what you'll find on our go-to "Make Magic Happen" playlist.

Boys Don't Cry was an important, well-done, and pivotal film in many respects, but there's one area where we just can't give it a thumbs up: the hotness level of the sex scene between Lana and Brandon. Genuine, yes. Sweet, sure. Turn-on? Not in the least.

First off, there's the built-in teenage awkwardness, with its clumsy groping and stilted movements. We left all those years long behind and we're not looking to relive them. Then there's the whole conundrum with Lana thinking that Brandon has a man's equipment down below, when the truth is, there just the familiar old lady parts.

Brandon's need to maintain his secret while thoroughly impressing Lana creates quite a bit of additional fumbling, stumbling, and prolonged groping. And as the scene crawls forward, we're obsessed with one big question. Will he slip out up?

Charlize Theron is one of the most beautiful women on the planet, which is why it's so jarring to see her uglified to play real-life Florida prostitute turned serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster. Her makeup and performance are so good, so startling different from who she is, that there's an Oscar lying around somewhere in her mansion. Not to mention a Golden Globe and a glowing Roger Ebert endorsement.

The unfortunate downside of Charlize Theron gaining 30 pounds and wearing prosthetic teeth to go with bad skin and bags under her eyes is that it makes her lesbian scene with Christina Ricci extremely unappealing. There's nothing hot about a weathered hooker with an expression that says, "Been there and done that one time too many." And let's not forget the matching mullets, the cherry atop a barf sundae.

Requiem for a Dream is a great movie to rent if you want to convince yourself to never touch drugs again. Any of them. Not even Advil. If watching the mother and son pair (Ellen Burstyn and Jared Leto) slowly disintegrate from the effects of amphetamines and heroin isn't enough, viewers also witness the complete destruction of his gorgeous girlfriend Marion, played by Jennifer Connelly. Smiling and fresh faced in the early scenes, she's the image of fear in the final shot.

In a desperate bid for dope at the end of the movie, Marion goes, erm, back-to-back with an unnamed "party girl" (Heather Litteer) on a stage surrounded by grimy men in suits clutching wads of money. Sex for money scenes can be hot, but only if the women look like they're actually enjoying the transaction. Marion's face shows only fear and hopelessness. Combine that with the weaving montage of the other characters, whose situations are as bad if not worse that Marion's, and this scene officially embodies whatever is the exact opposite of sexiness.