The first footage from eagerly awaited kinky tale Fifty Shades of Grey movie has been unveiled - with the emphasis on romance rather than erotica.

A number of those present for the screening were surprised that the scenes from the adaptation of the bestselling book - dubbed "mummy porn" - lingered on their courtship and meaningful glances.

Film company Universal premiered a teaser trailer for the big screen adaptation of EL James' hit erotic novel at CinemaCon in Las Vegas. Movie website The Wrap reported the footage was "surprisingly tame", and was more concerned with the romance than the S&M side of their relationship.

The film, directed by Nowhere Boy's Sam Taylor-Johnson, stars Northern Irish actor Jamie Dornan as sexy billionaire Christian Grey, and Melanie Griffith's daughter Dakota Johnson as Anastasia Steele, the young college student he seduces.

The teaser trailer included a brief glimpse of a whip, a shot of Fanning wearing a blindfold, and Grey confessing to Anatasia: "My tastes are very singular."

But the majority of the footage showed the two leads gazing deeply into each other's eyes, viewers have said.

The Los Angeles Times said the nature of the event could have been the reason for the tame material. "It's of course possible some of that footage was of the toned-down sort thanks to the CinemaCon crowd, which can be a more buttoned-up group," it said.

Universal Pictures chairman Donna Langley, who introduced the clips, admitted the task of bringing the book to life on screen was "daunting".

Asked how you make a film of Fifty Shades of Grey, she joked: "Very carefully."

She heaped praise on her stars, calling them "brave, bold actors", and promised their chemistry will give audiences "the next iconic screen romance".