‘The Dirty Lowdown: Café Flesh’ (VIDEO)
“Does Café Flesh live up to its reputation as a weirdo porn classic, or is it just a wannabe art film with added hardcore sex?”
The latest edition of The Dirty Lowdown, Adult Empire’s hilarious porn review series, ponders this question in full, giving you a concise, humorous look at one of the most unusual cult porn classics of the 1980s. Are you a “sex positive,” one of the few who can still engage in the pleasures of the flesh? Or are you a “sex negative,” doomed to be sidelined from sexual fun? It’s all part of the bizarre-o future presented in Café Flesh! Watch The Dirty Lowdown Episode III here:
More fast facts on Café Flesh
Original production year: 1982
Critical reaction: “Café Flesh is definitely not for everybody. If you’re not an adventurous adult viewer, forget it; it’s not for you. But if you’re looking for something outrageous, even disturbing, don’t miss this new videocassette. It shows that life after the Big One is simply a ‘cabaret, old chum – only a cabaret.'” (I.L. Slifkin, March 1983 edition of AVN)
“Highly innovative . . . superb acting . . . fall out and see Café Flesh.” (Hustler Magazine)
“Overall, the film plays like a mix between Behind the Green Door and an early Talking Heads video. Those looking for the roots of “new wave” porn will probably find something to enjoy in Café Flesh. However, recent directors like Gregory Dark, Michael Ninn, and Antonio Passolini have improved upon this genre of adult filmmaking to the point where this early classic looks trite. In fact, modern fans will find much more to enjoy in Passolini’s sequel than they will in the original.” (Dr. Mabuse, Adult Empire)
Trivia: According to IMDB, a less explicit cut of the movie played in mainstream theaters in 1982 and 1983.
In 1988, the movie was seized by the Salt Lake City vice squad when it played at Utah’s Blue Mouse art theater. “The vice squad did not receive any complaints from the public; they initiated this on their own,” grumbled the theater’s ownership. The incident sparked a discussion in the nation’s newspapers about whether the movie was an outright porno film or simply art-house cult film with a sexual theme.
The film was written by Jerry Stahl (under the pseudonym Herbert Day), who would later go on to pen scripts for Michael Bay’s Bad Boys II, TV’s ALF, and more.
Quotable: “It’s funny, I didn’t realize how graphic that film would be when I shot it. And then I saw it and thought ‘Holy shit!’ Strange film. That, I remember. It was kind of a mini cult film.” (mainstream actor/comedian Richard Belzer on his non-sex role in Cafe Flesh, as quoted by The AV Club)
Check out prior editions of The Dirty Lowdown here.
