Dir: Gerard Damiano
Cast: Linda Lovelace, Harry Reems, Dolly
Sharp, William Love
XXX, Approx: 61 Minutes
VCA DVD
go to untangle her tingle?"
sexploitation and launched us into a new
era of sex on film.
any other off beat genre of films it makes perfect sense to me to include a film that had such a huge impact on the
sexploitation film makers of the late 60s and early 70s. By all means, as a huge fan of David Friedman and Harry
Novak, I should really despise everything this film stands for. It just about single handedly made soft Xs such as The
Godson, Massage Parlor Wife, Trader Honee, and The Erotic Adventures of Zorro unprofitable. It brought
about the end of an era that, although I wasn't alive for, holds a special place in my heart. I should hate this movie,
but to tell you the truth, I find this film impossible to dislike! As far as hardcore pornography goes, this is far from the
most arousing film I've seen. Its main strength lies in the fact that it retains a good deal of the humor and
lightheartedness of earlier sexploitation movies.
Sure, she tingles, but there has got to be more to it than that. Her and her friend are determined to get to the bottom
of this. Their first step is to bring in a fleet of guys that are sure they can do the trick. Unfortunately for Linda, none
of them live up to their own hype. Her next step is to consult a doctor. She goes to Dr. Young (Harry Reems) to
discuss her past sexual experiences. Together they come to the conclusion that it must be a physical problem, not a
psychological issue. He has her strip down and gives her goodies the once over only to discover that she doesn't
have a clitoris near her vagina. Luckily he finds it on the back of her throat while looking in her mouth! Before you
know it, the well endowed doctor is helping Linda with her 'sword swallowing' trick. She finally hears the bells and is
in eternal gratitude to the doctor. Dr. Young also has a nurse though who requires regular servicing, so he can no
longer keep up with satisfying Linda. He does the next best thing and makes her a nurse and constantly sends her
on house calls to help sexually troubled clients. From here the movie bounces over quite a few sexual deviants until
finally Linda decides she needs to settle down. She is rather fond of young Wilbur, but she needs a man with 9
inches of talent. Wilbur is four inches off the mark, the lingering question is - can this make their romance work in
such a crazy world?
just as funny as it probably sounds though. Probably second only
to the French film Pussy Talk (1975) in comedic value, Deep
Throat delivers the goods. The comedy is intentional, but never
really obnoxious. The jokes are certainly simple and
straightforward, but they have a naive sort of charm to them.
Happiness is relegated to simply 'hearing bombs' during sex.
Ambitious young go getters want to 'teach the world to screw!'
Sexual deviants like to drink Coke out of the strangest places.
not for the sex...
this is hardcore, it is somewhat tame by todays standards. The cast isn't really that attractive, but this adds to the
charm really. Lovelace surprisingly never bares her breasts, but isn't shy about showing off everything else.
Lovelace does deserve a good deal of credit though for keeping the grounds more neatly groomed than was in style
at the time (unsightly large shrubberies were all too common in the 70s adult market, see The Fur Affair!). In fact
she kept it completely bare, which is quite a radical idea given the time period. Harry Reems shows off good comedic
timing, among other things. He is quite well endowed but not exactly the stud that contemporary audiences are used
to.
of the most notorious and controversial adult titles of all time. According to the IMDB it was still the highest grossing
movie to ever come out of Florida as of 1999 (sorry, Tartu). The IMDB also reports that it has grossed a total of
$600 million in 2002! Not bad for a picture that cost a total of $22,000. More important than its financial notoriety
though, is the fact that it ushered in a new wave of hard core cinema. The sexploitation films of the 60s had lost their
iron grip on the raincoat market. Exploitation would always find ways to survive, but after this those type of films often
turned more violent and gritty. Not that Deep Throat was the only contributing factor for the radical change in
cinema, but it certainly is an important landmark. Earlier that same year, Wes Craven unleashed his uncompromising
masterpiece, Last House on the Left. I'm not saying that Deep Throat has a whole lot to do with Last House, but
it's quite evident that times were changing. Even though this type of explicit fare will never be IN the mainstream, a
couple of films in 1972 brought it a lot closer to home!
of the industries biggest critics. In her book 'Ordeal' she claims to have been
forced to participate in many sex acts throughout her career, often times at gun
point. This story seems a bit far fetched to me, but I guess I'm in no position to be
second guessing her. It just seems rather peculiar that this happened after her
success as a box office draw dwindled. It also strikes me as odd that she was still
signing autographs on explicit material at conventions for money. At any rate, she
did do a movie in 1969 called Dogfucker (aka Dogarama!)! Regardless of her
attitude towards her previous work, she left behind quite a legacy. Linda sadly
died on April 22, 2002 after injuries sustained in a car accident. She had been in
a coma for 19 days. Co star Harry Reems left the industry in the late 80s after
marrying a deeply religious woman! Although he has put porn behind him, he
admirably claims to be unashamed of his colorful past. Writer/director Gerard
Damiano is also responsible for the amazing score heard throughout the film. He
never left the industry, and since has been responsible for such doosies as The
Devil in Miss Jones and Let My Puppets Come.
presentation looks as good as this film is probably every going to. There's not a whole lot to tell here. The quality
looks like a low budget porn! It wouldn't feel right if it looked any other way (although, this does have admittedly
higher production values than most of its peers).
movies that came before it. As a pioneering porno film, it holds a lot of value and importance with the course of
exploitation films. It helped film cross a pretty significant barrier in what could be shown in more respectable theaters.
It made a household name out of Linda Lovelace and proved to be the next step in explicit entertainment.
Unfortunately, it also brought to pass the lowest common denominator in adult entertainment. While there are plenty
of imaginative and entertaining adult films (many coming from France and starring Brigitte Lahaie!!) there is also
more uninspired dreck than could be imagined. While sex is obviously the focus of these films, many films would
completely forgo any sort of whimsical fun or even the most remote traces of effort. Ugly people grunting does not a
good porno film make!
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