Customer Reviews

Taboo - The Beginning Of Erotic Cinema

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you want to see some quality antique eye candy, you'll enjoy this DVD. If you want a historical documentary on early erotica, this DVD is lacking. There is some interesting information, but for the most part, the makers of this piece rely too much on letting the stock footage do the talking. While the footage is fun, the narrative should play a larger part in the production.

The narrative is tongue in cheek, and what history they do provide is really vague. An example is when they bring up the movie code, they merely mention its arrival, but never even refer to "The Hays Code" by name.

There is some interesting information on the contrast between the French and American erotic filmmakers. The French were bold and liberal, the Americans gearing more towards cheesecake & striptease.

Also lacking are comments by historians and enthusiasts on the subject of erotica. There is so much potential here!

While I have no doubt that the subject of early erotic cinema is not the easiest subject to dig up historical info on, I can't help think that there is a much better documentary on the subject just waiting to be made.

This documentary is a decent introduction to erotic and burlesque cinema, presenting major figures, periods, as well as rare footage. However, there is too strong a focus on American erotic cinema, particularly the relatively staid 1950s period. Moreover, there are claims made regarding American cinema that really aren't backed up with footage. The major comparison with American cinema, upon which many of these claims are based, is French cinema. However, there isn't much information on French erotic cinema past a cursory introduction (primarily French erotic film through the '20s). I think that a broader international basis would benefit this DVD. Also, in terms of its documentary style, the information is limited in scope.

My criticisms aside, however, several films, covering a variety of forms and times, are included as special features with this DVD. The snippets included are contextualized with an introduction (however well founded) and do provide a history and contrast to the modern adult cinema. In short, if you are interested in the history of film, erotic film, or American popular culture, this DVD may provide a good introduction into obscure material.

The film is inaccurate (ignorant of how early porno films began), shows boring parts of boring films (explicitly cuts hard-core scenes), a know-it-all narrator won't shut up with his useless unimaginative commentary, absurd newsreel intercuts that the director thinks gives the film "weight". Gets two stars instead of one for a contribution to history of cinema. The real history of porno is a 1970s film called "History of the Blue Movie" which apparently was allowed to copy some early stuff from the Kinsey archives; this film was definitely available on VHS at one time, and is well-worth tracking down.

I have seen some of the vintage erotic films out there on DVD and they are pretty good, good footage. But this show, to me, is far superior. Taboo goes into more detail and shows you films from the 1920s, 30s, 40s, and 50's, and it's more intricate. The films seem clearer and there's even some insight into Mr. X, the mysterious filmmaker from the 1930s. The bonus footage is also great. Several short stag films in their entirety and some early, early French erotica. A great show!

This is an interesting collection of French and American erotic films. Unfortunately, the narration provides quite an inaccurate history of the subject. Turning the sound off enhances the quality of this collection, alas.

Martin Shackelford

Saginaw, Michigan

This history of the origins of adult cinema, while short, is generally adequate as a history of sexual short films. However, for a film about erotica, it is remarkably chaste. It alludes to various filmed sexual themes and acts without really showing much at all. This is particularly strange in that the narrator often takes an amused tone to the puritanism of American adult cinema--this in a history that shows little actual sexual activity, cutting away whenever anything is about to happen. [...]

Good cross-section of material. Heavily edited they appear choppy and they did not have a plot to begin with. Narrator babbles giving no insight or real knowledge. Cult Epics' Anno series has the complete version of many of these films and is a much better product.

This documentary could have had the potential to have been so much more in-depth given the subject matter, but unfortunately ends up relying almost solely upon clips from erotic/pornographic films from the dawn of cinema to the modern era, coupled with a narrator who almost never shuts up. Why weren't there any wraparound segments featuring, for example, film historians, sexologists, or veterans of this genre of film? It's also disappointing how almost none of these films we're shown clips from are even identified or dated, other than a general sense of the progression of eras as the documentary winds on. Even the bonus shorts (shown in their entirety and identified apart from the few anonymous French shorts) aren't given any dates, leaving the viewer to have to guess at just when they were made. For example, how would anyone be able to guess that 'Uncle Si and the Sirens' is really from 1938? It's a silent film, and almost no one would think to date anything silent that far into the Thirties!

There really isn't any in-depth coverage of the history behind erotic cinema. It's more like a cursory review of its history, which does a serious disservice to people genuinely interested in this subject matter. For example, the narrator never even names the Hays Code, though he does describe the new production code that came in in the early Thirties. There also isn't terribly too much corroborating background information to go along with such subjects as Americans' Puritanical views towards nudity and sex, why the French were so much more open and liberal about showing these things, the outside forces influencing these respective societies to have these views, and the slow but sure evolution towards less censorship and more openness. And for being a documentary about erotic films, and the narrator's comments about how hypocritical and Puritanical many people were about the subject, the camera always cuts away from anything too erotic. And being from Passport Studios, a bug periodically appears in the lower right-hand corner of the screen, which can be very annoying and distracting. One expects to see a logo appear onscreen when watching something taped off of the television, not when watching a supposedly professional DVD! Still, it is worth watching for all of these rare vintage clips, and it does help to shatter the myth that there was no real erotic cinema until about 1970.

A film fan I am. I have always wondered when and how all movies got their start and looked like. Seeing "porn" from the 1910's etc. was educational. In this DVD the subject is handled with class and aimed to inform not excite the viewer. The narration is tasteful and the clips they use are not too bold for older young adults of around 16 or up. By todays movies most of the clips would be R rated at worst. I was pleased to learn that what we call "porn" was around long before film and the movie industry can't take credit for the trend. They can take credit for exploring it with gusto!