Aphrodesia's Diary is an American-French pornographic film shot in 1979 — primarily in New York but also in Paris — and released in 1983. It was directed by French pornographer Gérard Kikoïne and co-produced by Radley Metzger, who may have served as an advisor but is not credited.[1][2][3]
| Aphrodesia's Diary | |
|---|---|
 Original movie poster | |
| Directed by | Gérard Kikoïne |
| Written by | Finley Walker |
| Produced by | Serge Lincoln Radley Metzger (uncredited) Audubon Films (New York) Gold Productions (Paris) |
| Starring | Dominique Saint Claire Kevin James Lisa Cintrice Joanna Storm Vanessa del Rio Morgane Désirée Cousteau |
| Cinematography | Gérard Loubeau |
| Edited by | Jason Hyatt |
| Music by | Jane Glenn |
| Distributed by | Audubon Films; Caballero Control Corporation (CCC) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Countries | United States France |
| Language | English |
The film is related to Metzger's The Tale of Tiffany Lust, also shot in New York in 1979 with the same imported French stars, Dominique Saint Claire and Morgane. The two films also have French cinematographer Gérard Loubeau and, less remarkably, American actors and technicians in common. It is probable that they were made consecutively in Winter-Spring 1979, with the international cast and crew assembled for Kikoïne's big-budget co-production Aphrodesia reused for Metzger's Tiffany, itself quite lavish by pornographic standards.
The film was released during the Golden Age of Porn (inaugurated by the 1969 release of Andy Warhol's Blue Movie) in the United States, at a time of "porno chic",[4][5] in which adult erotic films were just beginning to be widely released, publicly discussed by celebrities (like Johnny Carson and Bob Hope)[6] and taken seriously by film critics (like Roger Ebert).[7][8]
Premise edit
Adrianne is reading her diary in her hotel room, and begins to recall some of the adventures that she wrote in it, including her experiences with a young horse trainer, a man who offered her a lot of money to appear in an erotic film, the gambler who persuaded her to be a liberated woman, and more.[1]
Cast edit
- Dominique Saint Claire as Adrianne (as Arlene Manhatten)
- Kevin James as Jeff
- Lisa Cintrice as Susie
- Joanna Storm as Mrs. Triad
- Vanessa del Rio as Therapist
- Morgane as Alice (as Marianne Flowers)
- Désirée Cousteau as Cassandra - The Erotic Spirit
Notes edit
According to one film reviewer, Radley Metzger's films, including those made during the Golden Age of Porn (1969–1984), are noted for their "lavish design, witty screenplays, and a penchant for the unusual camera angle".[9] Another reviewer noted that his films were "highly artistic — and often cerebral ... and often featured gorgeous cinematography".[10] Film and audio works by Metzger have been added to the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City.[11][12][13][14]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ a b Staff (2019). "Aphrodesia's Diary (1983)". IMDB. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
- ^ Bentley, Toni (June 2014). "The Legend of Henry Paris". Playboy. Archived from the original on February 4, 2016. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
- ^ Bentley, Toni (June 2014). "The Legend of Henry Paris" (PDF). ToniBentley.com. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
- ^ Blumenthal, Ralph (January 21, 1973). "Porno chic; 'Hard-core' grows fashionable-and very profitable". The New York Times Magazine. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ Porno Chic (Jahsonic.com)
- ^ Corliss, Richard (March 29, 2005). "That Old Feeling: When Porno Was Chic". Time. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (June 13, 1973). "The Devil In Miss Jones - Film Review". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (November 24, 1976). "Alice in Wonderland:An X-Rated Musical Fantasy". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
- ^ Gallagher, Steve (August 7, 2014). ""This is Softcore": The History of Radley Metzger". Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved May 23, 2015.
- ^ Simpson, Claire (October 2, 2013). "Adults Only: 5 Films By Radley Metzger". WhatCulture.com. Archived from the original on May 24, 2015. Retrieved May 23, 2015.
- ^ Rist, Ray C. (January 4, 1974). Book - The Pornography Controversy: Changing Moral Standards in American Life. Transaction Publishers. p. 124. ISBN 9781412838467. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
- ^ Lehman, Peter (2006). Book - Pornography: Film and Culture. Rutgers University Press. p. 9. ISBN 9780813538716. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
- ^ Staff (2016). "Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) - DadaBase Search Results - Radley Metzger". Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Retrieved February 29, 2016.
- ^ Staff (March 4, 2017). "Obituary Of The Righteous - The Porn Of The Fabulous 60s And 70s Loses One Of Its Pioneers And Masters: Radley Metzger - Photographer Of War, The MOMA Presents A Retrospective: His Erotic Films Made History - Video: 'Score', On The Relationships Of Couples Of The 70s, In An Uncensored Version". DagoSpia.com. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
Further reading edit
- Cook, David A. (2002). History of the American cinema. Vol. 9. University of California Press. pp. 274–275. ISBN 0-520-23265-8.
- Heffernan, Kevin, "A social poetics of pornography", Quarterly Review of Film and Video, Volume 15, Issue 3, December 1994, pp. 77–83. doi:10.1080/10509209409361441.
- Lehman, Peter, Pornography: film and culture, Rutgers depth of field series, Rutgers University Press, 2006, ISBN 0-8135-3871-8.
- Williams, Linda, Hard core: power, pleasure, and the "frenzy of the visible", University of California Press, 1999, ISBN 0-520-21943-0.
