In The Flesh?

Oops... I should have read that flyer a bit more carefully.

It turns out that the "Flash Gordon" Director's Cut playing at the Aquarius in Palo Alto this weekend was actually the "Flesh Gordon" Director's Cut. This begs the question of why there was so much hooplah about it being the "X-rated" director's cut, since the original cut was, too. I think the hype was all in my mind, because I was thinking of the wrong film. Honestly, I was never quite sure if "Flesh Gordon" was even a real film and not just a running gag that seeped into the pop culture consciousness.

I called Kathleen to inform her of my mistake and she just laughed. My friends are used to this kind of thing coming from me.

Never to be hampered by the shackles of good taste, my party decided to go anyway. After all, Flesh Gordon is a classic of pornographic cinema. How can you pass up such a golden opportunity?

Now that I've seen it, I think I see why Flesh Gordon is still playing the circuit. It's a riot! The film is totally a product of the 1970's and has a lot in common with the works of Robert Crumb and Cheech and Chong. It has that playful, anything-goes attitude about sex, politics and everything else. There are tons of clever sight gags and innuendo, and the production values are surprisingly good both for the time and for the genre. It doesn't really surpass the cheesy sci-fi flicks that it spoofs, but it doesn't look like a cheap rip-off either. For some it would be a painfully BAD movie to watch, but for me it was just bad enough to keep me watching in dumbstruck awe.

I guess I should skip the part where I gripe about how women were portrayed in this film, considering the fact that it's PORN! I just hope all involved had a good time and made it through the 70's okay.

Better get on that Aquarius mailing list so I can have digital confirmation on the film titles!