CAFE FLESH (1982)
Label: Mondo Macabro
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 75 Minutes 38 Seconds
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Stereo with English subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Fullscreen (1.33:1), 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)
Director: Stephen Sayadian
Cast: Andy Nichols, Paul McGibboney, Michelle Bauer, Marie Sharp, Tantala Ray
Cafe Flesh (1982) is a dystopian, post-apocalyptic porno-offering directed by Stephen Sayadian (Dr. Caligari) under the amazing pseudonym "Rinse Dream". Opening text crawl establishes that this takes place five years after a nuclear war where 99% of the survivors of the fallout not only cannot experience sexual pleasure, but physical contact makes them physically an violently ill, they are called “Sex Negatives”, those who have been affected by "The Touch". Oh, they want to make love, but cannot. The remaining 1% who can be turned on and get it on are known as “Sex Positives,” and are forced to sexually perform in a weirdo cabaret for the pleasure of the Sex Negatives, at the Cafe Flesh, emceed by provocateur Max Melodramatic (Andy Nichols, Nightdreams) who regularly taunts Cafe Flesh regulars Lana (Michelle Bauer, credited as Pia Snow, Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama), a secret sex positive and her sex-negative husband Nick (Paul McGibboney), who at the start of the film is unaware that his wife is not like him. When a famous sex positive performer named Johnny Rico (Kevin James, Taboo II, Droid) shows up at Cafe Flesh Lana;s hidden sex -drive presents itself, causing marital strife, as does her association with a recently discovered sex-positive performer Angel (Marie Sharp, Electric Blue 8).
A porno unlike any other Cafe Flesh is both scintillating and thought-provoking, it has a keen visual style, a synth score and a story that itself could be seen as a dissection and send-up of the pornophraghy industry itself. The erotic entanglements are presented as entertainment, like some horny Busby Berkeley performance, that are both unsettling and nitrifying, if not exactly masturbation material. Do not get me wrong, this is hardcore porn with all the penetration, cock, twat and cum-shots you would expect, but it's just so fucking weird. That said, I was turned on, I'm a weirdo, sure, but I also love it for the garish lighting and set design, and bizarre performances, including men dressed up as infants in highchairs in the background, a bizarre office hook-up wherein the boss has a giant pencil head (Eraserhead?), and a bored housewife hooking up with a guy in a rat costume! Cafe Flesh is just a wild, weirdo-erotic time, that it gives you procatove material that activates both your mind and libido, and is just visually cool to look outside of watching characters fuck. I would say this is a pretty essential slice of thought-provoking smut, if that's your thing, get at it!
Audio/Video: Cafe Flesh arrives on Blu-ray from Mondo Macabro in 1080p HD framed in both 1.33:1 open matte and 1.85:1 widescreen versions. This is sourced from 4K scans from a pair of 35mm film prints, and some brief "analog sources". Film grain is nicely resolved, texturing looks terrific, especially in the close-ups, colors are solid, and black levels are good and deep, yeah baby. As this is a composite source there are some minor transitional things you will notice, but overall the restoration is absolutely lovely. Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA 2.0 dual-mono with optional English subtitles. The audio was pulled from the 35mm optical tracks, and while it's flat and narrow in range, and has some light clicks and pops from time to time, like the video presentation it's pretty great all things considered.
Extras are plentiful, starting off with a terrific Audio commentary with director/ co-writer Stephen Sayadian who talks about the era in which the film was made, the many pseudonyms used in the credits, the hardscore sex scenes, and the themes explored in the film. Next up is a 58-min Interview with Stephen Sayadian, it regurgitates some of the commentary talking points, but also expands on a few things, he talks about working with scream queen Michelle Bauer, shooting the film illegally in Los Angeles, and expanding on the possibility of considering an R-rated non-porn cut of the film. Then into the 15-min Interview with co-writer Jerry Stahl who talks about his career, where he was at at the time, and how it wa sintended an an anti-pornporn flick. In the 16-min Interview with Jacob Smith, an academic from from Northwestern University tackles the film from a more academic approach, discussing it's themes and execution, which sets it apart from porno of the era. The 10-min Interview with Jessica Stoya, a former porn star turned author, notes how the film serves as a cpommentary on porno filmmaking. Disc extras are end with the 3-min Theatrical Trailer and three-minutes of On-set Footage. The single-disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with a single-sided sleeve of artwork which if I recall was the VHS original artwork.
Special Features:
- Brand new 4k transfer from 35mm materials, digitally restored.
- Full frame and 1.85:1 theatrical versions, selectable via Set-Up menu.
- Audio commentary with director/ co-writer Stephen Sayadian.
- Interview with Stephen Sayadian (57:48)
- Interview with co-writer Jerry Stahl (15:22)
- Interview with Jacob Smith (15:40)
- Interview with Jessica Stoya (9:40)
- Theatrical Trailer (2:59)
- On-set Footage (3:09)
Screenshots from the Mondo Macabro Blu-ray:
Extras:
Buy it!
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