The Lickerish Quartet
The Lickerish Quartet (original UK title: Erotic Quartet) is a 1970 Italian erotic drama film produced and directed by Radley Metzger. It was filmed in Italian and later dubbed into English. The film was written by Metzger and Michael DeForrest.[1]
The Lickerish Quartet | |
---|---|
Original film poster | |
Directed by | Radley Metzger |
Produced by | Radley Metzger |
Written by | Radley Metzger Michael DeForrest |
Starring | Silvana Venturelli Frank Wolff Erika Remberg Paolo Turco |
Music by | Stelvio Cipriani |
Cinematography | Hans Jura |
Edited by | Amedeo Salfa |
Production company | Carstein Cinemar Peter Carsten Produktion |
Distributed by | Audubon Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 90 minutes |
Country | Italy |
Language | Italian |
Plot
In their castle, a wealthy couple (Frank Wolff and Erika Remberg) watch an erotic movie with their adult son, played by Paolo Turco. Later that evening, at a local carnival, they spot a woman (Silvana Venturelli) who appears to be one of the performers in the film, and decide to take her home with them. Although a subsequent viewing of the film calls the woman's identity into question, their house guest quickly succeeds in seducing the various members of the family, resulting in the revelation of certain facts, fears and desires.
Cast
- Silvana Venturelli as The visitor
- Frank Wolff as Castle owner
- Erika Remberg as His wife
- Paolo Turco as Her son
Reception
The Lickerish Quartet received critical praise upon its release by many critics, especially Andy Warhol and Vincent Canby, as being one of the first films with graphic sex to have Hollywood-like production values.[2] Vincent Canby of The New York Times noted: “I must say I find most of Mr. Metzger’s movies entertaining to watch. They are so, well, ripe with incredible color and décor and movement.”[3] Andy Warhol, who helped begin the Golden Age of Porn with his 1969 film Blue Movie, was a fan of Metzger's film work[4] and commented that The Lickerish Quartet, was “an outrageously kinky masterpiece”.[3][5][6] However, Roger Ebert found the film to be pretentious and the plot convoluted.[7]
Notes
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".[4] Another reviewer noted that his films were "highly artistic — and often cerebral ... and often featured gorgeous cinematography".[8] Film and audio works by Metzger have been added to the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City.[9][10][11][12]
See also
References
- https://player.bfi.org.uk/subscription/film/watch-the-lickerish-quartet-1970-online
- The Lickerish Quartet trailer.
- Sandmir, Richard (April 4, 2017). "Radley Metzger, Whose Artful Erotica Turned Explicit, Dies at 88". New York Times. Retrieved April 5, 2017.
- Gallagher, Steve (August 7, 2014). ""This is Softcore": The History of Radley Metzger". Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved May 23, 2015.
- Metzger, Juliette; Feldman, Caryl; West, Ashley (April 2, 2017). "Press Release: Radley Metzger, pioneering filmmaker, dies at 88". The Rialto Report. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
- Staff (August 8, 2014). "The Lickerish Quartet". Film Society of Lincoln Center. Retrieved May 24, 2015.
- Ebert, Roger (April 29, 1971). "The Lickerish Quartet". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
- 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. The Pornography Controversy: Changing Moral Standards in American Life. p. 124. ISBN 9781412838467. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
- Lehman, Peter (2006). Book - Pornography: Film and Culture. Pornography: Film and Culture. 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
- Cook, David A. (2002). History of the American cinema. 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.
External links
- The Lickerish Quartet at MUBI (related to The Criterion Collection)
- The Lickerish Quartet at IMDb
- The Lickerish Quartet – Behind The Scenes
- The Lickerish Quartet – director Radley Metzger & Andy Warhol (1;2)