List originally compiled (and critiqued) by INDIEwire.com - please refer to their site for the complete discourse on this topic
MOST widely distributed Arthouse Adult Films (now on DVD):
Bad Education (2004), Dir. by Pedro Almodovar
Almodovar's dark exploration of murder, sexual abuse, religion, transexuality and drugs, starring Mexican Gael García Bernal in one of his best Spanish-language performances, played at film fests and in New York, but was limited by its rating. [88% on Rotten Tomatoes.com]
See also Almodovar's NC-17-rated "Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!"(1990) and "Matador" (1986), which both star Antonio Banderas
Bad Lieutenant (1992), directed by Abel Ferrara
This film stars a deliciously out-of-control Harvey Keitel in the title role; later on Werner Herzog remade the film with Nic Cage (not as good and not NC-17 either). [77% on the Tomatometer]
See also Ferrara's "Fear City" (1984) with Melani Griffith and "Go Go Tales" (2007) with Willem Dafoe
Blue is the Warmest Color [waiting to be updated]
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (1990), dir. by Peter Greenaway
Brit auteur Peter Greenaway's most popular release, was well-marketed by Harvey Weinstein, who launched the initially X-rated film unrated so that theaters would book it--and only later adopted the NC-17. (UPDATE: Edward Copeland reminds
that Blockbluster at first carried the film, then refused to stock it when it became NC-17.) Helen Mirren stars as the luscious, restless wife of brutal crime boss Michael Gambon; between meals at her husband's restaurant, she conducts a secret affair with sweet bookseller Alan Howard. [90% on Rotten Tomatoes]
Crash (1996), dir. by David Cronenberg's
Cronenberg's Cannes special-prize-winner (for "audacity"), stars Holly Hunter as a car-crash victim who becomes part of a sub-culture of scarred, sexually voracious accident survivors who are turned on by automobile wrecks. [75% on the Tomatometer)
See also Cronenberg's recent R-rated psychological opus on Freud, Jung, and Speilman: A Dangerous Method (2011)
The Dreamers (2003), dir. by Bernardo Bertolucci
Set in 1968 Paris, stars Eva Green ("Womb"), Louis Garrel, & Michael Pitt ("Boardwalk Empire") as an American abroad who falls into a sexual triangle with brother and sister film enthusiasts. For its Italian release, the film was rated viewable by age 14 and up. 60% on the Tomatometer.
Also see Bertolucci's sex classic "Last Tango in Paris" (1972) starring Marlon Brando
Henry and June (1990), dir. by Philip Kaufman
The first film labeled “No one under 17.” Set in 1931 Paris, the Phil Kaufman drama follows writers Henry Miller (Fred Ward) and Anaïs Nin (Maria de Madeiros, of "Pulp Fiction" fame) at work and erotic play. Nin also gets sexy with Miller's wife, June (Uma Thurman). (73% on the Tomatometer)
Also see Kaufman's "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" (1988) starring Daniel Day-Lewis
Lust, Caution (2007), dir. by Ang Lee
Film marked Taiwanese director Ang Lee's return to Asia. The film is a gorgeous sexually explicit espionage tale set in 1938 Hong Kong and 1942 Shanghai, when the city was occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army. Chinese university students
from Lingnan University plot to assassinate a high-ranking special agent and recruiter of the puppet government (Tony Leung) by using an attractive young woman (Wei Tang) to lure him into a trap. In Asia the director had to trim the film by seven minutes. [72% on the Tomatometer]
Also see Ang Lee's R-rated gay romance "Brokeback Mountain" (2005) starring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal
Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (and Vol. II**)
[(2013)Denmark-Germany-France-Belgium-UK/2014-USA-release]
- Movie website -http://nymphomaniacthemovie.com/
- Major Festival review (Berlin+Tor'13) -http://variety.com/2014/film/news/nymphomaniac-review-1201059995/#
- USA distrib webpage -http://www.magpictures.com/nymphomaniac/
- IMDb rating: 7.2/**6.9
- (*DVD available from July 8, 2014
Shame (2011), directed by Steve McQueen
Film demands to be seen more for Fassbender's no-holds-barred performance (which should have scored an Oscar nomination), than for its laborious long shots including miscast Carey Mulligan's renditon of "New York, New York." [80% on the Tomatometer]
Showgirls (1995), directed by Paul Verhoeven
Starring “Saved by the Bell” alumna Elizabeth Berkeley as a pole dancer, was notoriously slammed by critics and released wider than any NC-17, but the $40-million film cost too much to make a profit. It set an all-time RAZZIE Award record with 13 nominations, winning seven, tied with "Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000." Still one of the greatest satires on the entertainment industry for all time! (forget the stripping, THINK Hollywood) [12% on the Tomatometer]
Box Office Mojo's Top Ten Grossing NC-17 Films (as of 2011)
Rank OR# Title (click to view) Studio Lifetime Gross* Year^
1 Showgirls MGM $20,350,754 1995
2 Henry & June Uni. $11,567,449 1990
3 The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover Mira. $7,724,701 1990
4 Bad Education SPC $5,211,842 2004
5 Lust, Caution Focus $4,604,982 2007
6 Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! Mira. $4,087,361 1990
7. Shame FoxS $3,909,002 2011
8 The Dreamers FoxS $2,532,228 2004
9 Crash (1996) FL $2,038,450 1996
10 Bad Lieutenant Aries $2,000,022 1992
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
MOST widely distributed Arthouse Adult Films (now on DVD):
Bad Education (2004), Dir. by Pedro Almodovar
Almodovar's dark exploration of murder, sexual abuse, religion, transexuality and drugs, starring Mexican Gael García Bernal in one of his best Spanish-language performances, played at film fests and in New York, but was limited by its rating. [88% on Rotten Tomatoes.com]
See also Almodovar's NC-17-rated "Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!"(1990) and "Matador" (1986), which both star Antonio Banderas
Bad Lieutenant (1992), directed by Abel Ferrara
This film stars a deliciously out-of-control Harvey Keitel in the title role; later on Werner Herzog remade the film with Nic Cage (not as good and not NC-17 either). [77% on the Tomatometer]
See also Ferrara's "Fear City" (1984) with Melani Griffith and "Go Go Tales" (2007) with Willem Dafoe
Blue is the Warmest Color [waiting to be updated]
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (1990), dir. by Peter Greenaway
Brit auteur Peter Greenaway's most popular release, was well-marketed by Harvey Weinstein, who launched the initially X-rated film unrated so that theaters would book it--and only later adopted the NC-17. (UPDATE: Edward Copeland reminds
that Blockbluster at first carried the film, then refused to stock it when it became NC-17.) Helen Mirren stars as the luscious, restless wife of brutal crime boss Michael Gambon; between meals at her husband's restaurant, she conducts a secret affair with sweet bookseller Alan Howard. [90% on Rotten Tomatoes]
Crash (1996), dir. by David Cronenberg's
Cronenberg's Cannes special-prize-winner (for "audacity"), stars Holly Hunter as a car-crash victim who becomes part of a sub-culture of scarred, sexually voracious accident survivors who are turned on by automobile wrecks. [75% on the Tomatometer)
See also Cronenberg's recent R-rated psychological opus on Freud, Jung, and Speilman: A Dangerous Method (2011)
The Dreamers (2003), dir. by Bernardo Bertolucci
Set in 1968 Paris, stars Eva Green ("Womb"), Louis Garrel, & Michael Pitt ("Boardwalk Empire") as an American abroad who falls into a sexual triangle with brother and sister film enthusiasts. For its Italian release, the film was rated viewable by age 14 and up. 60% on the Tomatometer.
Also see Bertolucci's sex classic "Last Tango in Paris" (1972) starring Marlon Brando
Henry and June (1990), dir. by Philip Kaufman
The first film labeled “No one under 17.” Set in 1931 Paris, the Phil Kaufman drama follows writers Henry Miller (Fred Ward) and Anaïs Nin (Maria de Madeiros, of "Pulp Fiction" fame) at work and erotic play. Nin also gets sexy with Miller's wife, June (Uma Thurman). (73% on the Tomatometer)
Also see Kaufman's "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" (1988) starring Daniel Day-Lewis
Lust, Caution (2007), dir. by Ang Lee
Film marked Taiwanese director Ang Lee's return to Asia. The film is a gorgeous sexually explicit espionage tale set in 1938 Hong Kong and 1942 Shanghai, when the city was occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army. Chinese university students
from Lingnan University plot to assassinate a high-ranking special agent and recruiter of the puppet government (Tony Leung) by using an attractive young woman (Wei Tang) to lure him into a trap. In Asia the director had to trim the film by seven minutes. [72% on the Tomatometer]
Also see Ang Lee's R-rated gay romance "Brokeback Mountain" (2005) starring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal
Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (and Vol. II**)
[(2013)Denmark-Germany-France-Belgium-UK/2014-USA-release]
- Movie website -http://nymphomaniacthemovie.com/
- Major Festival review (Berlin+Tor'13) -http://variety.com/2014/film/news/nymphomaniac-review-1201059995/#
- USA distrib webpage -http://www.magpictures.com/nymphomaniac/
- IMDb rating: 7.2/**6.9
- (*DVD available from July 8, 2014
Shame (2011), directed by Steve McQueen
Film demands to be seen more for Fassbender's no-holds-barred performance (which should have scored an Oscar nomination), than for its laborious long shots including miscast Carey Mulligan's renditon of "New York, New York." [80% on the Tomatometer]
Showgirls (1995), directed by Paul Verhoeven
Starring “Saved by the Bell” alumna Elizabeth Berkeley as a pole dancer, was notoriously slammed by critics and released wider than any NC-17, but the $40-million film cost too much to make a profit. It set an all-time RAZZIE Award record with 13 nominations, winning seven, tied with "Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000." Still one of the greatest satires on the entertainment industry for all time! (forget the stripping, THINK Hollywood) [12% on the Tomatometer]
Box Office Mojo's Top Ten Grossing NC-17 Films (as of 2011)
Rank OR# Title (click to view) Studio Lifetime Gross* Year^
1 Showgirls MGM $20,350,754 1995
2 Henry & June Uni. $11,567,449 1990
3 The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover Mira. $7,724,701 1990
4 Bad Education SPC $5,211,842 2004
5 Lust, Caution Focus $4,604,982 2007
6 Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! Mira. $4,087,361 1990
7. Shame FoxS $3,909,002 2011
8 The Dreamers FoxS $2,532,228 2004
9 Crash (1996) FL $2,038,450 1996
10 Bad Lieutenant Aries $2,000,022 1992
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
9 SONGS
Possible the first pornographic 'date movie' that lacks the hardcore edge guys expect but does take mainstream ADULT movies to the next level - REAL sex!
3 stars [(2004)UK/2005 USA release/Not rated - ADULTS ONLY] - (69 min.)
USA distrib: Tartan USA
Written & directed by Michael Winterbottom
Characters/Cast
Matt - Kieran O'Brian
Lisa - Margo Stilley
Review:
How does a modern man recall his last 'love' relationship? In this case, by the songs they shared together. The man in question is a glaciologist who's airborne research over Antarctica spurs a chronological series of memories broken up by nine LIVE concert segments. To sum up the simplistic plotline of the flashbacks, the two young lovers meet at a rock concert and then each major sex scene at their Islington flat is punctuated with brief concert segments (shot guerrilla-style with the couple in attendance).
Director Michael Winterbottom ("24 Hour Party People") has actually done Hollywood (and Planned Parenthood) a service by taking out the 'fake' lovemaking scenes audiences have grown accustomed to and replaced them with REAL sex, actual condoms IN USE, and a female (or male) orgasm that hasn't been staged for dramatic effect.
Seriously, the porn industry should take note if this film has any commercial success in the USA, because for my money I'd rather have my human sexuality nicely photographed, lit well, and true-to-life than filled with emotionally forced bad acting, flat lighting, and fake orgasms (with even faker breasts). Name one porn movie with fantastic helicopter shots of Antarctica's icy surface with a science lesson tossed in too. Nada.
Best of all are the honest, first-rate acting performances from both Brit acting veteran Kieran O'Brian ("24 Hour Party People") as 'Matt', the very lucky older guy (age 31), and 'Lisa' (Margo Stilley), the young American waif, who gets picked up at a rock concert one night at London's Brixton Academy.
In England, where this film has already been released there was quite a brouhaha as first-time movie actress Margo Stilley (age 21) supposedly tried to have her name removed from the credits. Luckily, the scathing reviews by the British press have worn off and the film is being released in the USA with Margo credited and NO NC-17 rating.
Although a first-time principle actress, Margo's performance is noteworthy in that her improvised dialogue not only rings true but it speaks to the neuroses of many young 'wild' females way beyond the Paris Hilton experience. She even creates a little comic relief when confronting her 'boyness' in the bathroom mirror.
In retrospect, I don't think this film has the artistic merit of last year's ode to eroticism (Bertolucci's "The Dreamers"), but director Michael Winterbottom does make a compelling argument for taking sex scenes to their natural conclusion.
Adult audiences are gravitating more and more to NC-17 rated movies (re: "The Brown Bunny," etc.) and it may be time for local cinemas (and Hollywood) to grow up. Hey, if Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt really are 'real-life' lovers then why couldn't they have 'condom sex' on screen for a change, and how much more of an impact would that have on college-age adults practicing 'unsafe' sex than thousands of hours of PSA's and "sex-ed" classes!
Even if sex on the big screen isn't your thing, this film is so pure in its intentions it's practically a 'date movie' (except "blind dates"). Even the ladies will enjoy the sensitive approach to the material as the sexual exploits build from cunnilingus to some mild S&M, eventually progressing to the de rigeur 'cum shot'.
As I said, it's an ADULTS ONLY experience, but one that might rekindle the sexual romance in your own relationships and give you a forum to converse with your partner about a sensitive subject (in America anyway).
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
(Cannes&Toronto'06)-György Pálfi's TAXIDERMIA is On DVD in the USA now!
Press release
TAXIDERMIA
Directed by György Pálfi
[2009 USA theatrical release / NOT RATED - ADULTS ONLY]
[(2006)Hungary-Austria-France] - (1 hr 31 min)
In Hungarian/Russian with English subtitles
SYNOPSIS: TAXIDERMIA contains three generational stories, about a grandfather, a father, and a son, linked together by recurring motifs. The dim grandfather, an orderly during World War Two, lives in his bizarre fantasies; he desires love.
The huge father seeks success as a top athlete — a speed eater — in the post-war pro-Soviet era. The grandson, a meek, small-boned taxidermist, yearns for something greater: immortality. He wants to create the most perfect work of art of all time by stuffing his own torso.
Historical facts and surrealism become intertwined as magical realism, like in the works of Gabriel García Marquez or the Hungarian writer Lajos Parti Nagy; the script is based on two of the latter’s stories. Palfi added the third story, that of the grandson the taxidermist.
VIEW TRAILER >>
OFFICIAL U.S. WEB SITE >>
CAST & CREW
Csaba Czene | Gergő Trócsányi | Marc Bischoff | Adél Stanczel
István Gyuricza | Piroska Molnár | Gábor Máté
Géza Hegedžs D. | István Hunyadkürti | Zoltán Koppány
Filmed in 35mm color, aspect ratio 2.35 scope, (5 reels), sound: DTS, Digital exhibition formats: HD-Cam and Digital Betacam, aspect ratio 16x9 anamorphic (2.35), sound: stereo, not rated by the MPAA
Hungarian website-http://www.taxidermia.hu/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
TAXIDERMIA
Directed by György Pálfi
[2009 USA theatrical release / NOT RATED - ADULTS ONLY]
[(2006)Hungary-Austria-France] - (1 hr 31 min)
In Hungarian/Russian with English subtitles
SYNOPSIS: TAXIDERMIA contains three generational stories, about a grandfather, a father, and a son, linked together by recurring motifs. The dim grandfather, an orderly during World War Two, lives in his bizarre fantasies; he desires love.
The huge father seeks success as a top athlete — a speed eater — in the post-war pro-Soviet era. The grandson, a meek, small-boned taxidermist, yearns for something greater: immortality. He wants to create the most perfect work of art of all time by stuffing his own torso.
Historical facts and surrealism become intertwined as magical realism, like in the works of Gabriel García Marquez or the Hungarian writer Lajos Parti Nagy; the script is based on two of the latter’s stories. Palfi added the third story, that of the grandson the taxidermist.
VIEW TRAILER >>
OFFICIAL U.S. WEB SITE >>
CAST & CREW
Csaba Czene | Gergő Trócsányi | Marc Bischoff | Adél Stanczel
István Gyuricza | Piroska Molnár | Gábor Máté
Géza Hegedžs D. | István Hunyadkürti | Zoltán Koppány
Filmed in 35mm color, aspect ratio 2.35 scope, (5 reels), sound: DTS, Digital exhibition formats: HD-Cam and Digital Betacam, aspect ratio 16x9 anamorphic (2.35), sound: stereo, not rated by the MPAA
Hungarian website-http://www.taxidermia.hu/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lars von Trier's ANTICHRIST is Now Playing in select USA theaters (ADULTS ONLY)!!!
Publicity release
Willem Dafoe & Charlotte Gainsbourg in
Lars von Trier's
ANTICHRIST
Opens Fri, Oct 23, 2009 in NYC
CHAOS REIGNS!
The most scandalous work at this year's Cannes stars Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg as a bereaved couple who retreat to their remote cabin -- ominously named Eden - to repair their broken marriage and confront their deepest fears.
But in the hands of von Trier, the visionary behind Dogville, Dancer in the Dark and Breaking the Waves, the tale of a relationship in crisis takes a turn toward the twisted, dark and primeval, and it's clear this couple won't be out of the woods anytime soon.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
NOW PLAYING in select USA theaters!!!
January 15, 2010
Moxie Cinema (Springfield,MO)
Pickford Cinema (Bellingham,WA)
HELD OVER
IFC Center (New York,NY)
Real Art Ways Theatre (Hartford,CT)
Magic Lantern Theatre (Spokane,WA)
(2010 DVD release)10-Part Series Sex: How To Do Everythingon a 3-DVD Set!!!
Alive Mind Releases 10-Part Series
Sex: How To Do Everything
on a 3-DVD Set!
New York, NY - January 18, 2010 - Alive Mind, a division of the recently formed Kino Lorber Inc, is proud to release Fremantle Media's Sex: How To Do Everything on DVD.
It will be available for the general public on February 9, 2010.
Originally produced for British television, Sex: How To Do Everything is the new Joy of Sex for today's generation. This three-disc DVD set, hosted by nationally renowned relationship experts Em & Lo, brings the best of taboo-free sex advice and combines street interviews, expert commentary, and most importantly, how-to demonstrations by professional models illustrating a variety of well-known (and some, scandalously obscure) sex techniques.
Em & Lo, live in New York City and are active contributors to numerous national publications, such as New York Magazine, Glamour, and Men's Health. They publish a regular advice column for Salon.com, Nerve.com and other online publications, as well as on their web site, www.EmandLo.com. They have authored best-selling books, such as Rec Sex: An A-Z Guide to Hooking Up, Sex Toy: An A-Z Guide to Bedside Accessories, The Big Bang: Nerve's Guide to the New Sexual Universe and Sex Etiquette for Ladies and Gentlemen.
Episodes include:
Episode 1 - Oral
Episode 2 - Manual
Episode 3 - Orgasm
Episode 4 - Sex Toys
Episode 5 - Intercourse
Episode 6 - Kinky
Episode 7 - Fantasy
Episode 8 - Anal
Episode 9 - Seduction
Episode 10 - Best of
Watch An Exclusive Video Clip on You Tube
Sex: How To Do Everything
443 Minutes / 16:9 / 3 Discs / English / Not Rated / 2008
Presenters and Script Consultants: Emma Taylor and Lorelei Sharkey
Roving Reporters: Georgie Davey & Dougie O'Keefe
Experts Em & Lo
Each episode is full of important information, interviews and live demonstrations aimed at helping all viewers take their sex life to its full potential. With sections aimed at men, women, singles and couples, Em & Lo will stop at nothing to unveil all there is to know about orgasms, seduction, roleplay and sex toys. Always fun-loving Sex: How To Do Everything is your best ticket to a pleasurable and always safe sex life.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
ARCHIVE REVIEW [Screened @ the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival]
"I AM A SEX ADDICT"
San Francisco's answer to Woody Allen takes his neuroses a bit more seriously, so much so that this re-creation of his early life as a sex addict blurs the line between fact and fiction!
2-1/2 stars [(2005)USA/2006 release/IFC First Take] - (1 hr. 30 min.)
Writer, director, & star: Caveh Zahedi
Review:
Caveh Zahedi is a San Francisco actor and filmmaker who's sort of a West coast 'Woody Allen'(-lite).
However, his latest (semi?)-autobiographical effort is a bit un-Woody-like with its dearth of funny lines as well as a compelling storyline, but if you can hang with it till the end there is a very worthwhile concluding sequence.
Needless to say, Caveh is bit of an acquired taste, but once you like him you'll find yourself rooting for him in the end. In this one, the basic storyline starts with the 'real' Caveh about to marry his 'third' wife, but not without exposing his demons as he recounts (and re-creates) the events that led to the demise of his first two marriages.
In his earnest need to re-create the flashbacks accurately, Zahedi tried to cast his 'real' first wife but she declined. In her place he's hired Rebecca Lord (a French porn star) to be his French 'Caroline', though he keeps the sex scenes non-hardcore in order to be true to his new bride he's left standing at the altar to tell the story of his past sexual experiences.
Technically, this is not inappropriate, since at one point in his first marriage Caveh passed a street prostitute that 'looked like Caroline' and immediately became obsessed with getting oral sex from prostitutes.
This lifelong 'sex addiction' ended this first marriage and forced him into a sex addicts anonymous group. When he fiinally meets up with a free-spirited woman who accepts his addiction he soon learns that her addiction to alcohol makes his needs pale in comparison.
Much of the interactions with prostitutes are re-created with porn stars who are not shy when Caveh asks them for sex, even though they are supposed to be 'acting'. This film does have some graphic nudity but Caveh always orgasms loudly (and quickly) which reduces the duration of the sex scenes (and keeps him from becoming aroused on camera out of respect for his current fiance).
The first time Caveh orgasms it's a little funny, but 20 repeat performances later and the redundancy of the plotline becomes wearisome at best though some may appreciate this 'running gag' of sorts.
An especially frank autobiography for some, while just 'too much information (TMI)' for others - your mileage may vary providing you take to Caveh the way San Fran audiences have for many years, he's not for all tastes, but once acquired he's hard to spit out!
[NOTE: ADULTS ONLY (get a babysitter if you go)]
Music by Hilary Soldati
Animation by Bob Sabiston
Lead character/Cast
Caveh Zahedi - Himself
Supporting characters/Cast
Caroline (first wife) - Rebecca Lord
Christa - Emily Morse
Devin - Amanda Henderson
Additional credits:
Produced by Thomas Logoreci, Greg Watkins, & Caveh Zahedi
Executive producer: Richard Clark
Camera: Greg Watkins
Editors: Thomas Logoreci & Caveh Zahedi
[On DVD now!]
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
ARCHIVE REVIEW [Screened @ the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival]
"I AM A SEX ADDICT"
San Francisco's answer to Woody Allen takes his neuroses a bit more seriously, so much so that this re-creation of his early life as a sex addict blurs the line between fact and fiction!
2-1/2 stars [(2005)USA/2006 release/IFC First Take] - (1 hr. 30 min.)
Writer, director, & star: Caveh Zahedi
Review:
Caveh Zahedi is a San Francisco actor and filmmaker who's sort of a West coast 'Woody Allen'(-lite).
However, his latest (semi?)-autobiographical effort is a bit un-Woody-like with its dearth of funny lines as well as a compelling storyline, but if you can hang with it till the end there is a very worthwhile concluding sequence.
Needless to say, Caveh is bit of an acquired taste, but once you like him you'll find yourself rooting for him in the end. In this one, the basic storyline starts with the 'real' Caveh about to marry his 'third' wife, but not without exposing his demons as he recounts (and re-creates) the events that led to the demise of his first two marriages.
In his earnest need to re-create the flashbacks accurately, Zahedi tried to cast his 'real' first wife but she declined. In her place he's hired Rebecca Lord (a French porn star) to be his French 'Caroline', though he keeps the sex scenes non-hardcore in order to be true to his new bride he's left standing at the altar to tell the story of his past sexual experiences.
Technically, this is not inappropriate, since at one point in his first marriage Caveh passed a street prostitute that 'looked like Caroline' and immediately became obsessed with getting oral sex from prostitutes.
This lifelong 'sex addiction' ended this first marriage and forced him into a sex addicts anonymous group. When he fiinally meets up with a free-spirited woman who accepts his addiction he soon learns that her addiction to alcohol makes his needs pale in comparison.
Much of the interactions with prostitutes are re-created with porn stars who are not shy when Caveh asks them for sex, even though they are supposed to be 'acting'. This film does have some graphic nudity but Caveh always orgasms loudly (and quickly) which reduces the duration of the sex scenes (and keeps him from becoming aroused on camera out of respect for his current fiance).
The first time Caveh orgasms it's a little funny, but 20 repeat performances later and the redundancy of the plotline becomes wearisome at best though some may appreciate this 'running gag' of sorts.
An especially frank autobiography for some, while just 'too much information (TMI)' for others - your mileage may vary providing you take to Caveh the way San Fran audiences have for many years, he's not for all tastes, but once acquired he's hard to spit out!
[NOTE: ADULTS ONLY (get a babysitter if you go)]
Music by Hilary Soldati
Animation by Bob Sabiston
Lead character/Cast
Caveh Zahedi - Himself
Supporting characters/Cast
Caroline (first wife) - Rebecca Lord
Christa - Emily Morse
Devin - Amanda Henderson
Additional credits:
Produced by Thomas Logoreci, Greg Watkins, & Caveh Zahedi
Executive producer: Richard Clark
Camera: Greg Watkins
Editors: Thomas Logoreci & Caveh Zahedi
[On DVD now!]
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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