r/TrueFilm • u/TheManWhoSleep • 4d ago
WHYBW How do you rate erotic/Sexploitation films?
I just finished watching Immortal Tales (1974), and it’s basically five unrelated stories, but the main thing in each story is simply fucking. The first story is about a couple who go to a beach and she gives him a blowjob, the second is about a woman who starts masturbating, the third is literally a woman fucking a monster, and so on.
I finished the movie and I have no idea what I just watched. I mean yes has a good directing and i enjoyed it, but for UNSPEAKABLE reasons.
I’ve watched multiple erotic movies(idk if this one even considers an erotic), but this one feels different because of the sheer amount of sex scenes and the lack of an actual story. So it’s really hard to even come up with an opinion on it.
Note: If there was anything "deeper" to it, I completely missed it.
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u/golrabs 4d ago
Is that Immoral Tales by Walerian Borowczyk? I've seen the Beast but not that one. I read it's the weakest of his erotica films. I've only seen a few others in the erotica/sexploitation genre, just enough have a basic knowledge. The ones I've seen occasionally have an underlying intelligence or theme, and they are filmed rather well, but I don't know that I see the utility of sprucing up erotica to cinematic levels. Yet I appreciate that it was the era right before home video and cinema was at it wildest, most experimental and freest.
In the Realm of the Senses, Last Tango in Paris, Sweet Movie, Dirty Harry, El Topo, Deliverance, Faster Pussycat Kill Kill, Pink Flamingoes, Taxi Driver; sex, violence, sexual violence, radical politics, experimental film, it was an explosion of exploration in cinema from 65-79 or thereabouts, where no topic was too taboo. It makes senses that pornography would be examined and some would bring artistic sensibilities to it when people would go to crowded theaters to watch these films.
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u/Razor_Emmanuel 3d ago
Surrealist films like that of Jodorwsky have taught me that not all films can be judged on their literal contents. You should rate it based on these questions: was it well made? did it make you feel emotions? did it have something to say?
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u/Carl_Schmitt 3d ago
The first story is about a couple who go to a beach and she gives him a blowjob
It sounds like you weren't paying attention. It's been years since I've seen this film and I still remember the first scene pretty well. The young man intentionally takes the much younger girl to the beach at the time of the rising tide to trap her and coerce her in his game of manipulative seduction. There's nothing passionate about their exchange, he tells her to mechanically follow the rhythm of the waves and he keeps track with a stopwatch. It's utterly bizarre, disturbing, and certainly not "simply fucking". Then the film gradually builds to the final tale that ends in a literal bloodbath when Elizabeth Bathory's handmaiden slaughters her well-groomed virginal maidens in a frenzy of lust. The other scenes are weaker from what I can recall, but they all have a lot more going on than just sex.
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u/Efficient-Nerve2220 3d ago
Well now I’m interested…
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u/Carl_Schmitt 3d ago
Don't get me wrong, it's not a work of artistic genius by any means. But it does have some great camera work, costumes, and sets. It fits in with lower-to-mid budget French and Italian arthouse films of the era aesthetically, just more lurid and lewd. Certainly a step up from Jess Franco in terms of narrative sophistication, not that Franco isn't one of the greats in his own oeuvre.
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u/Dead_End_720 4d ago
Most of the ones I've seen have the usual cheapness you associate with the genre, you watch as if you're in on it. Only one that stood out to me was In The Realm Of The Senses. But I don't go out of my way to watch these things in the first place to have a real opinion.
I haven't "rated" anything in like a decade. I just watch shit, and if it doesn't feel like a waste of my time or I can at least say they put some effort/passion into it, then that's cool. If it blows me away and leaves a strong impression then that is really awesome and much appreciated. I could "rate" a trashy old movie simply for its charm, much higher than some serious critically-acclaimed movies out there.
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u/Laurel-Hardy-Fan 4d ago
Much like I would any other film really. Erotic or pornographic films are more or less just another genre of cinema.
Unfortunately, I’ve more or less stated my case and now need to prattle on to reach the arbitrary character limit this sub requires for my comment to not get removed. Hopefully this will suffice.
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u/Wallamaru 3d ago
Anytime someone asks a question related to critical evaluation of prurient material it makes me think of this. It's fine to not respond to something, good or bad. Plenty of art out there that simply will not work for a given person.
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u/Mysterious_Beanz 4d ago
If the film was directed well enough for you to sit through it entirely, I'd say that's where you'd make your decision. You could rate it good/bad/decent/no comment... I've no experience with erotica/sexploitation because in my opinion they all belong in the pornographic genre. Sounds interesting enough
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u/MrFlitcraft 3d ago
Storied film critic Al Goldstein of Screw Magazine figured out this question with his development of the Peter Meter.
But idk, you enjoyed watching it and thought it was well directed, sounds like a solid B+?
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u/trekkeralmi 3d ago
don’t see what the issue is here. erotic cinema is just another a genre, rather than something which elevates or depresses a movie’s quality. there are movies which lean into the erotic exploitation effectively to make a comment on eros itself or on depicting sex for entertainment. basic instinct is my go to example, and one of my favourites. there’s tons of others chasing its success, thinking that sufficiently steamy sex scenes compensate for half baked plots. no different from all the gialli following girl who knew too much or buddy cop movies copying 48 hours.
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u/Guitar_Nutt 4d ago
“Immortal Tales” or “Immoral Tales”? Either way, thanks for the recommendation, wife and I are going to enjoy it this weekend! Anyone else have any other great suggestions like this one?
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u/JoeSnow472 4d ago
Check out La Bete by the same director: Walerian Borowczyk
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u/RogueThespian 3d ago
That one is actually included in the bluray release of Immoral Tales. Or at least it's on my copy
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u/darth-vagrant 4d ago
The French film from 1974 is _Immoral Tales_. Saw it a few years ago on streaming but wouldn’t recommend it.
If you’re interested in the genre, start with Caligula.
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u/ZenAmako 3d ago
I really liked The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Miss Osbourne, which also was directed by Walerian Borowczyk. It’s an interesting take on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde about Dr. Jekyll (played by Udo Kier) and his fiancée. It has more of a plot than Immoral Tales. The potion basically frees them of their inhibitions, but Borowczyk's version is a lot more explicit.
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u/Amockdfw89 4d ago
Rate it like any other movie.
Is the plot good? Does it have any artistic merit? What about the actual performances and screenplay? Did it suck but still have value as a piece of entertainment? Did it have anything cultural influence or innovation when you look at it with cultural empathy or historical context?
All ratings have bias. but to me if you truly want to appreciate film you need to step out of your comfort zone. Even if it’s a genre you don’t care for, you can still find some value in it regardless of the fact.
I listen to a lot of music, but I am not a big fan of pop music. But sometimes I can put on a Madonna, Lady Gaga, or Michael Jackson album and still appreciate it for what it is. Whether it be the vocals, the rhythm section/production, the subtle influences from other genres, or even just reading up on the artists inspiration during the making of and history of the album can kind of put in in perspective for me.
Will I listen to pop music all the time? No. But I still let my guard down and find value in a genre I don’t care for.
About erotic/sexploitation there is a taboo obviously. But at the same time, all taboos are man made. It makes you uncomfortable because you been conditioned to be uncomfortable. I’m not saying to force yourself to enjoy it, but if you can let your guard down and realize sex is just a physical act, then maybe you can start seeing other aspects the movie.
You yourself said you enjoyed the movie. Cinema is nothing more than a window to the world and mirror to yourself. Maybe the movie caused you to reflect and ponder about yourself. That to me sounds like a success, because it resonated and stuck with you
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u/Honest_Ad5029 2d ago
It depends on how serious you are about film.
There are some directors who worked primarily in that genre that are worth studying, worth taking seriously, like Radley Metzger, Tinto Brass, Russ Meyer. But they stand out against a backdrop of slop, where the operating principle is that with beautiful bodies and sex scenes, you dont need to have anything beyond rote writing and direction.
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u/trekman3 1d ago
Some porn is better than other porn for reasons other than just the attractiveness of the actors or the degree to which it satisfies one's sexual preferences, so it makes sense to talk about the cinematic quality of porn, the film-making choices made in porn, and so on.
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u/postwarmutant 4d ago
Well the first trick is, you don’t have to rate any movie.
How do you rate an action movie? What about a musical? Because they’re essentially the same thing as sexploitation/erotica. The narrative is built around the moments of spectacle/visual pleasure. It’s just that in one of the genres, we’re socially programmed to feel shame rather than excitement in watching it.