jvanderkammer Reviews

The Pleasures of a Woman (1972)

A Great Example of Post-Hippie Erotica

[7/10 · 5 January 2007]

Producer/Director Nick Phillips (in this case, crediting himself as Nick Millard) made a number of "fetish" erotic films from the mid 1960s until the mid 70s, each one getting a little "harder" as the years went by. His films were also typically shot without live sound, so the audio track is voice-over with a jazzy sax music accompaniment. "Pleaures of a Woman" is a series of erotic encounters between a young woman and her recently-widowed aunt, played by the Queen of 70s Erotica (at least in my books!) Uschi Digart. The love scenes are lengthy and fairly risqué for the time, with plenty of full nudity - Phillips takes full advantage of Uschi's buxom talents, and she doesn't disappoint! I have this movie on DVD from Alternative Cinema, which also contains a modern-day remake starring Misty Mundae. Personally, I like the 1972 version better - but I'm a huge fan of Uschi Digart. Image quality is great, as it is on the other Nick Phillips films that I have on DVD.

Auto-stoppeuses en chaleur (1979)

Only a brief bit of Lahaie

[12 November 2003]

Not a bad film, worth a look, but Brigitte Lahaie (who gets top billing in some ads for this movie on websites) is only in one scene, and it's disappointing. However, the other actresses look good and the sex scenes will generally satisfy fans of 70s Euro erotica.

Six Swedish Girls in a Boarding School (1979)

Hey, Lahaie's in it, so it MUST be worth a look!

[4 February 2002]

The various titles that this film has been given crack me up! Six Swedes On Campus? Well, no Swedes here, but they're on campus. Erwin Dietrich scores again with this sexy and fantasy-filled take on Girls School antics. Brigitte Lahaie shines, as usual, and the other cast members play their parts with gusto: any excuse to get naked, and they get naked! The libidinous female teacher gives some memorable "health" classes (on exploring their own bodies, etc.), pillow-fights in the dorm, voyeurism, even nude butterfly-catching! The copy I saw was a rental; there were a few harsh edits in the transfer, but I doubt that this film went beyond softcore. Definitely worth seeing, especially for those fans of wall-to-wall nudity and cheesy voice-overs.

Les petites écolières (1980)

Unforgettable Lahaie!

[8/10 · 12 November 2001]

This film has all the right stuff happening: Brigitte Lahaie, 4 other absolutely gorgeous young women, great cinematography, Brigitte Lahaie, well-paced sex scenes, a bit of humor, and Brigitte Lahaie!... who plays the Madame of a brothel who is busted by a sincere cop. He makes some sly remark about getting out of the brothel business and setting up a school, so guess what? She sets up a school to teach young women the fine art of pleasing their man! A bunch of predictable scenes follow, but they're done very well and the women look great! Definitely worth a look, if not owning!

Bilitis (1977)

Something started to happen, but didn't go far enough!

[7/10 · 3 April 2001]

Those of you familiar with David Hamilton as a photographer will (at least) make sense of his visual treatment in Bilitis. Very lush and sensual, with a voyeuristic appeal: we are drawn in to great visuals of the young Ms. D'Arbanville getting undressed, washing, getting cozy with another female friend in bed, and becoming a voyeur herself! But Hamilton should have gone a bit further with the love scenes and erotic visuals; we are only treated to a nibble of his talent. If you are turned-on by girl-girl and lolita themes, then you will probably enjoy Bilitis. Otherwise, just watch it for the few visual delights... the story is a snoozer.

Tickled Pink (1975)

So-so effort

[5/10 · 8 March 2001]

It appears as if this film has made the rounds: several different releases under several different titles. The one I saw is called "Victorian Fantasies" released by the now-defunct Private Screenings Video. A silly little endeavor, but consistent with the mid-seventies European vogue for nudie stuff. Storyline: a prim-and-proper English stuffed shirt tries everything to seduce and dis-robe a prim-and-proper Victorian lady. With each attempt, everyone else around him gets naked, until he finally succeeds... and she doesn't resist at all! Actually, she looks great! (I'm assuming she's Sue Longhurst) Lots of brief (but full) nudity, and un-sexy simulated sex scenes. In my books, it doesn't quite make it to "soft-core" status. If you can find it at your local video rental, then give it a look. Just don't go out of your way.

Love Boccaccio Style (1971)

I doubt it's from 1977

[6/10 · 5 March 2001]

Fans of naughty B-features who have seen this film will probably agree with me: I doubt that this film is from 1977... it looks more like 1972 or '73. However, it's not a bad little romp, and worth a look. The premise is Boccaccio's Decameron, so they've tried to make it look like a medieval thing. A series of sexual escapades is portrayed in soft-core fashion with a touch of farce, and viewed in this context it's actually not bad. Porn legend John Holmes gets his willy pulled in one scene, but that's about as risque as it gets. Otherwise, there's lots of nudity and simulated sex scenes. Keep an eye out for Marsha Jordan and Candy Samples... as if you could miss them!

Caged Women (1980)

What can I say?

[8/10 · 1 March 2001]

Put them all together: Erwin Dietrich behind the camera, Brigitte Lahaie and a whole bunch of gorgeous, very naked women in front of the camera, keep the nudity and hot scenes going from beginning to end, and you've got a winner. Storyline?... who cares! Okay, okay... a bunch of beautiful girls are kidnapped from a bordello by a paramilitary force (yikes!) and taken to a deserted island to be held as sex slaves. That's the bad news. The good news is they don't suffer much at all, and they are nude most of the time. Basically the same cast from "Come Play With Me" (another wonderful Erwin Dietrich romp) with a bunch of welcomed additions. Fans of '70s Euro sleaze will definitely enjoy this one.

Divine Emanuelle (1981)

Only a so-so effort

[4/10 · 18 February 2001]

Those of you familiar with the the various "Emanuelle" films featuring Laura Gemser will be somewhat disappointed with "Divine Emanuelle". Its comic-book approach is somewhat unique: Ms. Gemser floats in as the figurehead of a "love cult", and she comes complete with a pumped-up bodyguard (borrowed from an old Hercules B-movie!) and not enough young, vivacious followers. The storyline is dull and predictable, but who cares... in these films, it's the nudity that counts! Unfortunately, this one comes up short (as compared to, say, Emanuelle in America). Sure, Gemser looks great, and there is one requisite lesbo scene that's not bad; otherwise, it's a bit of a snoozer. I would say that if you can find a rental copy without too much trouble, then sure, it's worth a look.

Immoral Tales (1973)

This HAS to be some kind of record!

[8/10 · 23 January 2001]

Okay, okay... 1974. The Europeans have figured out that a world-wide audience exists for films that portray full-frontal nudity, regardless of storyline or context. Borowczyk has chosen four stories from four eras to flaunt some skin... the 1970s right back to the 1400s. He takes the cake, however, with the third segment, featuring Pablo's daughter Paloma Picasso: she plays a countess in the 1700s bent on preserving her youth and vitality by bathing in the blood of virgins. To get this far, we are treated to the most incredible series of visuals ever filmed! At least thirty young, beautiful, and (gasp!) very naked women are brought forward to shower, cavort, pray, play with each other, and perform some sort of ritual that leads to their demise. You will watch the whole film, but you will come away remembering only this third segment. All the nudity aside, credit Borowczyk and crew for doing a fine job technically and photographically on this film. Definitely worth seeing.

Secrets of Sweet Sixteen (1973)

A worthwhile effort

[7/10 · 20 January 2001]

Fans of this genre (i.e. 70s European soft-core/nudie stuff) will be happy with this film. Although it begins with an uncharacteristically disturbing (attempted) rape scene, it recovers nicely as two of the heroines dis-robe to keep the bad guy occupied until the police arrive. After that, it's fun & games. A lot of nudity as you would hope and expect, the film is a series of erotic encounters with young and beautiful women (who are DEFINITELY and safely over the age of eighteen, so ignore the title). The particular copy I saw was from a video store and had some obvious edits during a few of the predictable scenes, probably to keep it within an "R" rating for U.S. audiences. Anyways, if you enjoyed those 70s naughty B-features at the drive-in and you happen to come across a copy of this film, it's worth a look.

Naughty Nymphs (1972)

A disappointment to fans of this genre.

[18 January 2001]

Maybe 1972 is a bit early, but fans of the 70s-era European softcore stuff will be disappointed by this film. Typically, almost wall-to-wall nudity characterizes these films, and "Naughty Nymphs" comes up short. It's always a treat to see Sybil Danning in the Buff, but her scenes are brief and few. I suppose in its native German this film might be funny in context, but in dubbed English it's just plain silly and leaves us waiting for skin scenes that are much too short. Erwin Dietrich, save us!