Thursday, June 12, 2014

Cinema Cycle - The Immoral Mr. Teas / Mondo Topless



CINEMA CYCLE
(Cardio Workout And Reviewing Movies At The Same Time)


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DATE: 06/12/2014




FORMAT: Laserdisc


TIME RIDDEN / FILM LENGTH: 123 minutes (double feature)


DISTANCE RIDDEN WHILE VIEWING: 31 miles


TOTAL CINEMA MILES LOGGED: 249 miles


SYNOPSIS: (The Immoral Mr. Teas) A simple dental appliance delivery man fantasizes about all of the women that he meets on his daily rounds.


CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: Men think about sex all the time and mentally undress all of the attractive women that they come in contact with.


PROS AND CONS:  First off, I am a big fan of Russ Meyer.  I consider him the American Fellini and his film work is one of the treasures of late 20th Century cinema.  This is Meyer’s earliest work. It is a simple film that is meant to be a titillating farce on a very low budget.  This entire film was created by just 2 men.  Meyer did the cinematography, editing and the directing.   did the narration and the music.  What makes the film so interesting is that Meyer was a craftsman. Working on a shoestring budget, Meyer uses effective edits, camera angles and pacing to create a cute enjoyable film.


This film was considered very risque in it day.  The average cover of a current Cosmopolitan Magazine is more revealing that the scenes in this film.  But back in the early 50s it was enough to get this film banned in many cities.  Meyer always pushed the envelope of American sexuality much like Hugh Hefner did in the magazine industry.  But Meyer always knew that it was better to imply sexuality with innuendo and a fleeting glimpse than with full frontal nudity.  This film is almost more entertaining for the sight gags and narration than the fleeting glimpses of alluring busty women.


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SYNOPSIS: (Mondo Topless) A promotional film / documentary showcasing the top burlesque-topless dancers of the mid-1960s


CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: Women dancing naked (that is to say topless) while giving voice over interviews about their work and their lives.  Young buxom women just can’t sit still for very long.


PROS AND CONS:  I found this film interesting for all the wrong reasons.  While the woman are young, attractive, curvy and usually half naked, there really isn't a plot to this film.  It is tongue in cheek promotion for most of the women whose livelihood is erotic dancing (which was much different in the 60s than it is in the present day)


The two odd themes that kept popping up were the inclusion of an audio recording device or a transistor radio in ‘every’ shot.  It makes the film sort of a homage to the beginning of the electronic age with dozens of different reel-to-reel tape recorders and AM-FM radios in every scene.  Talk about nostalgia.  The other thing that was entertaining was the soundtrack, which is mostly forgettable early rock and roll with a driving beat, indicative of the free wheeling and radical 60s.


Much like ‘The Immoral Mr. Teas’, this is a dated film that is more interesting from a cultural point of view which shows just how much society has changed in its morals and view of the female body.  Russ Meyer’s camerawork and editing are probably the only thing that saves this work from being a rather average boring film with lots of breasts.


To read an overview of this project, check out the initial post for this series.


This film is a part of my LaserDisc Collection.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) entry for this film. 

This film was viewed while exercising on my recumbent cycle.  A summary of my time spent working out on my journey through movie-land can be found on Strava.com.

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