Hold Me While I’m Naked - 1966 - USA

Hold Me While I’m Naked - 1966 - 5/10

 
“The only things in life worth living for.”
The fantasies and restrictions of the indie director.
From encounters behind stained glass to shaking antennas to banal mealtime.
Experimental film manages to be sexy, funny and depressing.

Der Bomberpilot - 1970 - Germany

Der Bomberpilot - 1970 - 5/10 

 
Near the end of the Third Reich, the cabaret trio keep performing.
After the war, they struggle together and independently to find work.
Pastry shop, stenographer, one seeks a position at a retirement home for dogs. 
Eventually, they reform as a cabaret trio, reviving their old act for Yanks.
Audio is out of sync (deliberately), numerous wardrobe malfunctions.
Tone ranges from comic to ironic to jeering.
English subtitles = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3373033

Blue Rita - 1977 - Switzerland

Blue Rita - 1977 - 5/10 
AKA - Das Frauenhaus

 
Blue Rita is the name of the club and the proprietress.
Serving a clientele of the sophisticated and jaded.
It is also a place where Blue Rita and her lesbian operatives capture and torture spies.
Extorting information and bank accounts.
Absurd Jess Franco flick is awash in nudity and Pop Art.
Interesting camera work and angles, although I suspect a targeted porn audience would grow bored.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3372671

Successive Slidings Of Pleasure - 1974 - France

Successive Slidings Of Pleasure - 1974 - 6/10 
AKA - Glissements Progressifs du Plaisir

 
Alice may have murdered her roommate, Nora.
She confessed she did.  Or was she imagining it?  Or fabricating?
Awaiting the reenactment, she is held in the convent prison with nuns as wardens.

 
Slow pace (typical of this director), steeped in French Catholicism.
Nudity aplenty, along with body paint and sharp instruments.
Extraordinary cast for this contorted arthouse from Robbe-Grillet
Anicée Alvina eerily evokes depraved innocence. 

Holy Smoke! - 1999 - Australia

Holy Smoke! - 1999 - 5/10 

 
On holiday in India, Ruth casts aside her Western upbringing and becomes a devotee.
Her family, horrified, hire an American deprogrammer to excise the inner guru.
The route to removing the perceived “indoctrination” is a whole mess of talking.
Sorry, there are yards of nudity and sex in between.
Jane Campion drama, exploring charged sexual dynamics from the female side.
Comedy elements flag early, proceeding into an uncomfortable drama.

Last Summer - 1969 - USA

Last Summer - 1969 - 6/10 

 
Mean spirited story based on equally sour tasting book (bestseller by Evan Hunter).
Vacationing at the beach, two males and a female bond over a rescued seagull.
They mess around with alcohol, reefer, and flirt.  Sexual tension mounts.
A second girl arrives, tries to ingratiate herself with the increasingly jaded, callous trio.
Coming of age film, and rather a cruel one.
Unpleasant, yet achingly resonant.  Avoid PG cut.

Evils Of The Night - 1985 - USA

Evils Of The Night - 1985 - 4/10 

 
As with Corman’s Not Of This Earth, there was a breakdown in intelligence.
Aliens land near a small college town and taken over an empty (??) hospital.
They seek human blood platelets to rejuvenate their dying species.
Kidnapped donors must be between 16-24 years old.
Whereupon the extraterrestrials gasp, “So few students!  What is this summer vacation thing?”
Not to worry, a nearby lake is packed with swimsuit twenty-somethings, drinking and doing pokey-pokey.
Stupid drive-in flick, piss poor dialogue, comatose plot, directed by a zombie.
Nonetheless, where else will you find Julie Newmar, John Carradine, Tina Louise, Neville Brand in one film?

Depression: The Woman Who Lives At Night - 1980 - Turkey

Depression: The Woman Who Lives At Night - 1980 - 5/10 
AKA - Gece Yasayan Kadin

 
Artist and his model.
After painting, panting.  Almost forty minutes of hardcore.
Then, domesticity.  Hey!  Our model is an invalid, in a wheelchair.
Her family fusses over her.  At night, however, sure enough, back to the studio.
The man grows possessive, and the female - whoa, what a temper.
Mystery angle is so-so, while the porn dominates.
Owing to economic woes, Turkey permitted adult films from the late 1970’s until a coup in 1980.
Most erotica was banned or destroyed, this is a rare survivor.
https://grokipedia.com/page/depression_the_woman_who_lives_at_night

Robotrix - 1991 - Hong Kong

Robotrix - 1991 - 6/10
AKA - Nu Ji Xie Ren // 女機械人

 
Scientist Sakamoto, deranged, shifts his consciousness into an android.
From there, he goes on to kidnap, then a spree of rapes and murders.
Who’s gonna stop him?  Female police officers, transferred into female cyborgs.
Fembots, anyone?
Think Robocop with loads of nudity, sex, slathered with sleaze.
Trashy Category III flick, an inspiration for teenage males; robotics builders who will recreate Amy Yip and Chikako Aoyama girlfriends.

Pretty Baby - 1978 - USA

Pretty Baby - 1978 - 6/10

 
Jollies in a New Orleans sporting house, 1917, prostitution still legal.
A photographer arrives, wanting to take photos of the ladies – and he will pay.
Rambling goings-on include the auctioning of a 12-year-old virgin (very good Brooke Shields).
More costume drama than one might expect, with stray quiet moralizing that many audiences miss.
Antonio Fargas memorable as a Scott Joplinish character.
I recall the marketing campaign splashed titillation rather than historical drama.
Unpleasant aftertaste.

Scent Of A Spell - 1985 - Japan

Scent Of A Spell - 1985 - 7/10
AKA - Masho no Kaori // 魔性の香り

 
Leaving the waterside poolhall, a journalist sees a women jump into the waves.
He rescues her, forgetting the old rule that when you save someone, you are responsible for them.
Indeed, Akiko moves in with Esaka, and they have a torrid affair.
Even though Akiko is married, and her husband will not grant a divorce.
Akiko’s husband has moved his mistress in with them, yet will not divorce.
Leaving Akiko unstable, unpredictable, and dangerous.
Erotic thriller / arthouse / Noir drenched in rain, waves, body sweat.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3370955

Don’t Fraʞ In The Woods - 2016 - USA

Don’t Fraʞ In The Woods - 2016 - 4/10

 
With a title like this, one is warned, OK?
A group of twenty year olds head to the woodlands for … I dunno … Nature.
First couple were killed by, what looks like a scout from Gorn.
Well, they were making all manner of noises.  Gasps, moans, cries, loud rutting.
Later arrivals don’t worry about ticks, mosquitos, chiggers, wheel bugs.
Mostly they drink, talk, swim, talk, play truth-or-dare, talk, smoke, talk.
Get the idea?  But once inside their tents, clothes fly off, and it’s Kama Sutra time!
Attracting our Moral Majority Monster who has a problem with couples coupling.
I won’t knock this softcore Horror too much.  Small production crew, outtakes indicate fun.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3370775

Category III: The Untold Story Of Hong Kong Exploitation Cinema - 2018 - UK

Category III: The Untold Story Of Hong Kong Exploitation Cinema - 2018 - 7/10

 
Broad overview of Cat 3, from pre-beginnings in the Shaw era, to the glorious 1990’s heyday, to post-takeover censorship and demise.
Anthony Wong, Godfrey Ho, and Josie Ho represent the veterans.
Caucasian academics and fanboys round out the talking heads.
An easy entry for those curious about the apex of Hong Kong cinema craziness.
Films referenced include Sex And Zen, Untold Story, Dream Home, Ebola Syndrome, Naked Killer, Viva Erotica, dozens - more.
Asian film buffs, essential.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3370778

Snake Monsters - 1994 - Hong Kong

Snake Monsters - 1994 - 5/10
AKA - She yao shin ling // 蛇 妖

 
Jungle snakes aspire to incarnate to human level.
Easiest way – temporarily disguise themselves as human and have lots of sex with the real thing.
Expect mountains of nudity and frantic bouncing and panting.
Meanwhile, a restaurant owner grows rich selling snake soup to turistas.
Since snake soup boosts your virility off the scales (sorry).
After the Cat 3 sextro, story meanders in a half dozen directions.
Producers tried to remake Green Snake and made limp noodle.

Naked Killer - 1992 - Hong Kong

Naked Killer - 1992 - 6/10
AKA - Chik Loh Goh Yeung // 赤裸羔羊

 
Kitty is a punisher, exacting revenge on men who brutalize women.
Where it hurts, between the man's legs.
With a cop investigating her, she enmeshes him in her vigilante world.
There is a mentor and partner, later a lesbian duo of assassins.
Easily enough for three films, tossed together like a salad.
Fast-paced Cat III film is prime Hong Kong, more fun should one be addled.

Fear Has 1000 Eyes - 1970 - Sweden

Fear Has 1000 Eyes - 1970 - 6/10
AKA - Skräcken har 1000 ögon // Sensuous Sorceress

 
Expecting her first child, Anna is broody, suffers nightmares, sees “things”.
A companion, Hedvig, is hired, who is uncannily attuned to Anna.
The two bond, yet while Anna slips into lethargy, Hedvig goes to work.
Hedvig is a witch, motivations unknown, who practices effigy magic and sexual predation.
Like most men, the husband is clueless, even as Hedvig rides him at night.
Excellent cinematography, deft sense of place, unhindered nudity.
Be prepared for a strolling pace, however.

Tipping The Velvet - 2002 - UK

Tipping The Velvet - 2002 - 6/10

 
Young Nan takes up with an older female, a male impersonator, and heads to London.
Friendship glides into more taboo territory as they work closer as a team.
Adventures move across prostitution, cross-dressing, coming-of-age.
Overtly lesbian, and a feast for fashionistas.
If you watch enough BBC shows, you will recognize the superb casting in this.

Mermaid Legend - 1984 - Japan

Mermaid Legend - 1984 - 6/10
AKA - Ningyo Densetsu // 人魚伝説

 
Like most in the fishing village, the couple does not want to sell out to the amusement park.
None know that is just a front for a proposed nuclear reactor.
Migiwa is a deepwater albacore diver, husband Keisuke her topside lifeline.
So, when he is murdered, she almost murdered then framed, she wants answers.
Behind it all is corporate greed.
Idyllic first act shifts to murder mystery, then bloodbath.
A tasty gem; surprised this is not better known.
English subtitles = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3369651

The Housemaid - 2025 - USA

The Housemaid - 2025 - 6/10

 
Millie, on parole, desperately needs the job.
Hence, she endures all manner of mistreatment from Nina.
Who issues commands, changes her mind, goes into volcanic meltdowns.
Rich housewife Nina is unstable and dangerous.  And understands privilege.
Husband Andrew, however, is sympathetic and a stud.
Throwback to the 90’s erotic thrillers is a fiendishly plotted gem.
Gears shift throughout and I would suggest those curious to go in cold.

Good Morning … And Goodbye! - 1967 - USA

Good Morning … And Goodbye! - 1967 - 5/10

 
Barnyard Gothic finds Boland, rich and influential, with no more wick in his stick.
While wife Angel is a lust driven nymph of the ancient school, fleshly and indifferent.
A FFFF type, she drains a hunky construction worker, seduces her daughter’s boyfriend.
Boland, remember Boland, encounters a pagan elemental (Haji) who restores his mojo.
Despite overripe narration and juicy female lines, this Russ Meyer twaddle is mildly titillating, often boring.
Alaina Capri, one of Meyer’s powerful man-eaters, devours the camera.