| Directed by Joe D�Amato ( Italy �1979) Although he�s most notoriously well known for Laura Gemser sexploitation vehicles and his tasteless brand of no holds barred horror, this soft-core roughie is an unsung D�Amato gem. Rico and Bo are a couple of small time hoods from the mean streets of Brooklyn. Rico is very professional in his approach to the crime game, where as the balding John Morghen-esque Bo is a loose cannon with a sexually sadistic streak. They decide to rob a drugstore in Manhattan after an associate tells them that it�s a soft target. As the pair storm the business right on closing, the proprietor Mr. Cohen warns them that he�s under the protection of Archie Moran. Moran is basically the Don Corleone of the neighbourhood. Rico and Bo�s timing couldn�t possibly have been worse. As they seize the days takings, Rico spots several of Moran�s goons across the street. They�ve come to collect this weeks protection money from the owner of the store. Rico has the good sense to realise that they�re in some major trouble, and they flee out a back door and into an alley after giving Cohen some prerequisite pistol whipping. These boys may be amateurs, but they�ve seen a lot of gangster movies. For a couple of organised criminals, Moran�s employees are pretty nice guys. They console the distraught Cohen. They seem highly skilled in the art of customer relations. When the proprietor tells them why he can�t pay them this week, they�re much more understanding than your average protection racketeers. �Don�t worry Mr. Cohen. You�ve always been very punctual� one of them tells him. �We�ll pretend those dirty bastards took the money from us personally�. The collection men aren�t about to let a couple nobodies move in on their territory. They�re going to find Rico and Bo if they have to tear the entire sleazy neighbourhood apart in the process. Rico and Bo haven�t quite planned their heist to perfection. They don�t even have a getaway car, so they decide to lay low in an adult store (which I�m guessing is on seventh avenue). Despite being a convicted sex attacker, it takes Bo a few seconds to realise where they are. �You know what? I think we�re in a sex shop� he gasps excitedly, feeling compelled to enlighten his friend. A girl named Laura is working behind the counter. Rather coincidentally, she happens to be Archie Moran�s main squeeze. Rico sees Moran�s hired goons walk past outside. �We gotta get outta here before those guys call in re-enforcements� he nervously tells his partner in crime. As soon as the coast is clear, Rico sneaks out of the pleasure shop in search of a getaway car. He leaves Bo to make sure Laura doesn�t try any funny business. A convicted sex offender watching over an attractive sales clerk while surrounded by copious amounts of hardcore pornography? For the slightly unhinged Bo, it�s a form of temptation that leaves any old apple for dead. �You know; a lot of this stuff in here really turns me on� he tells his hostage with the enthusiasm of a pubescent schoolboy. �Take some home� she tells him sarcastically. �Don�t get smart� he warns the disrespectful sales clerk. �I did a two year stretch for rape� the warped individual boasts. Laura realises that her feminine charms may be her best means of escape. She spills her drink on Bo�s trousers, and offers to wipe it off. �Why don�t you let me leave?� she asks seductively as she wipes the stain off the crotch of his trousers with a cloth. D�Amato certainly loves his Freudian symbolism. Bo starts breathing heavily as she asks him if he�s afraid of Rico. When it seems that sweet talk alone isn�t quite going to do it, the resourceful Laura decides to bite the bullet (or something else). She resorts to some good old fashioned oral intercourse. But despite his sexually depraved leanings, it�s going to take something more sophisticated than a blow job to fool the ex-con. �You�d like me to let you go, wouldn�t you?� he growls; pushing Laura away as she begins the deed. �But I�m not going to fall for it you dirty whore�. Rico returns having been unable to find a car. The pair ask Laura if she has a car, and fortunately for them she does. Why didn�t they ask her in the first place? I suppose rampant stupidity would explain that, along with the decision to steal a measly five grand from a mob protected drugstore. Before leaving, Bo fills one of those discreet adult store brown paper bags with some smut for the journey. He seems to be more thrilled by his pornography haul than the drugstore takings. As they drive through the streets of New York City, Bo makes himself comfortable in the backseat, gleefully perusing one of his magazines. �You oughtta take a look at this broad� he tells Rico. �Whadda they mean by oral intercourse?�. Bo must be the most sexually na�ve convicted rapist of all time. Rico doesn�t seem to know either. He suggests that Laura may know the answer. �It�s something for perverts� she tells Bo. �Sounds right up your alley� Rico tells his friend. �Thanks for the information lady� thanks a lot� Bo tells her with all the reverence of a housewife watching Dr. Ruth. After picking up an associate by the name of Sammy, the motley crew of thieves flee to a safe house in Connecticut with their hostage in tow. The plan is to sneak across the Canadian border to evade the fury of Archie Moran. Along the way, Laura writes a message to her mobster boyfriend along with his phone number on a twenty dollar bill and leaves it in a ladies restroom. It�s a fairly original plot point. I�m surprised that seven hundred and eighty three Hollywood movies haven�t ripped it off by now. When they arrive at the safe house, they�re surprised to find some travelling college kids squatting on the isolated property. Rico has an interesting view on tertiary education. �Diplomas� to hell with �em. Just give me a gun� he tells Sammy. The addition of several Attractive college girls and their cowardly boyfriend allows D�Amato to treat us to some of his trademark soft-core sex scenes. From here the film pans out like a less mean spirited version of House By the Edge of the Park. But unlike the Deodato film, the thieves actually end up becoming close to their hostages. Of course most of it is purely carnal, but that�s beside the point. This is quite an unusual softcore roughie, because D�Amato tried to tackle the whole mobster genre a little differently to most. There aren�t any despicable characters (with the possible exception of Bo), nor are there any entirely sympathetic characters. Even the virginal Faye ends up seducing Sammy, and double-crossing her captors after building a close relationship with them. Whether consciously or subconsciously, the main point that D�Amato�s film is trying to make (apart from titillating us of course) is that criminals aren�t just one dimensional cartoon characters. They might pistol whip a victim to death one day, then help an old lady across the street the next. This a satisfying antidote to your average formula crime thriller.ng e ENTERTAINMENT : 3.5 out of 4 WATCHABILITY : 2 out of 4 OVERALL : 2.75 out of 4 Reviewed by Blake |
| The Pleasure Shop on 7th Avenue |