Review: Vinegar Syndrome truly surprised me this time. They're getting well
known for releasing. The comedy stars Sarah
Kennedy as Alice who looks and sounds like a blonde Betty Boop. Alice
has fallen in love with the worlds best obscene phone caller "John
Smith" (Played brilliantly by Norman Rose). John has dared Alice to try
and find him by giving her two clues; his name and that his number is in
the Manhattan telephone book. You should see how many John Smiths there
are in the
Manhattan telephone book! Not to be dissuaded, Alice agrees.
As she starts her search, she heads to a studio where she was told to go
by one of the Smiths in the phone book. She finds herself in the middle
of an audition with "Har-Poon", an out of work stag movie actor whose
real name just happens to be John Smith as well. He is having an orgy
audition so that he can star and direct his own comeback. As Alice gets
ready to settle in to the audition the real John Smith calls and tells
her that she is not at the right place. This is where rational thinking
would tell you to wonder how he knew she was there. Well, rational
thought doesn't really have a place in this movie, so just go with the
flow and enjoy the laughs. And speaking of laughs, there is so much
sexual innuendo going on throughout the film that you really have to pay
attention, or you'll miss some of the jokes.
Now, some of the
funniest parts of the movie come between Alice's
adventures. They are pseudo documentary style confessions of three or
four men who used to be obscene phone callers. They have since changed
their ways, and are now leading normal lives. The problem is that in
every case, their normal lives are more screwed up than they ever were
when they were simply making obscene phone calls. You'd think this would
play out as padding for the running time, but that isn't the case at
all, and I found myself wishing they had found a way to fit one or two
more guys in there to share their "normal" lives.
When Alice is
taking the subway home, she meets a pervert who decides he will give her
pay phone money to try and find John in exchange for her telling him
her most exciting sexual escapade. Hilarity ensues as she tells him a
story involving a minister, soap and water, and a week long erection.
Needless to say, she gets more money than even she was hoping to get.
After being robbed, and then seduced by a lesbian,
John's call comes to the rescue telling her to go home. Does she meet
her John Smith? How do they relate? What will they discuss? Will there
be amazing sex?
I will give you one hint. The last ten minutes of
this movie are absolutely amazing! This is a very under-appreciated art
house film that deserves a much wider audience.
Of course
Vinegar Syndrome has spared no expense in putting out the highest
quality package possible. Widescreen black and white presentation. Only a
couple drop outs in the first few minutes of the movie take away from
overall excellent sound. For the extras we have an audio commentary with
producer Merv Bloch, A Re-Issue trailer, the original trailer, a still
gallery and radio spots. There is no reason to wait. Buy this now, and
enjoy the laughs.
-William D. Wolford
Director: Nelson Lyon
Genre: Comedy
Blu-ray Release Year: 2013
Theatrical Release Year: 1971
Time Length: 87 mins.
Company: Vinegar Syndrome
Website:
www.vinegarsyndrome.com
Review: Vinegar Syndrome truly surprised me this time. They're getting well
known for releasing. The comedy stars Sarah
Kennedy as Alice who looks and sounds like a blonde Betty Boop. Alice
has fallen in love with the worlds best obscene phone caller "John
Smith" (Played brilliantly by Norman Rose). John has dared Alice to try
and find him by giving her two clues; his name and that his number is in
the Manhattan telephone book. You should see how many John Smiths there
are in the
Manhattan telephone book! Not to be dissuaded, Alice agrees.
