3D Sex and Zen is a 2011 Hong Kong erotic drama by Christopher Sun Lap Key. See IMDb
An already short version was passed 18 after 2:48s of BBFC cuts for:
IMDb notes that there is an 129 minute version and that the Hong Kong cinema release was noted as 118 minutes after local censor cuts
The BBFC further explained (ignoring a rather redundant explanation that the film goes beyond a 15 rating):
3D SEX AND ZEN EXTREME ECSTASY is a Chinese erotic period drama about a recently married young man who embarks on a sexual odyssey when his wife is unable to satisfy his sexual desires. The film was classified 18 for strong sex, violence, nudity and sexual violence.
There are frequent sequences of strong sex and nudity which include sight of a man sucking a woman’s nipples, pubic nudity in a sexual context, sight of a man’s erect penis, buttock thrusting implying penetration, and implied but masked fellatio and cunnilingus.
Before the film was classified 18, the BBFC required cuts in two scenes.
- In the first scene, a man rapes a woman, with the woman then going on to enjoy the sex. The scene is shot in the same eroticised style as the rest of the film and creates the impression that rape can be an enjoyable and exciting erotic experience. The scene was cut to remove the non consensual set up, leaving a purely consensual sex scene.
- In the second scene, a man engages in violent sex with a woman. Although the sex is consensual, the man beats and whips the woman during sex, before finally suffocating her to death as he thrusts into her. The scene, which is filmed in the same eroticised style as other scenes, creates a strong link between violence and sexual arousal. Although the BBFC suggested that the scene could be reduced to an acceptable level by multiple cuts, the distributor chose to remove the scene in its entirety.
Both scenes breach the terms of the Guidelines at 18 which state the BBFC may cut any portrayals of sexual or sexualised violence which might, for example, eroticise or endorse sexual assault.
