We’ve shared a couple of colorful posters by Italian artist Mario de Berardinis for the sexploitation movie Lesbo, but only last night did we get around to watching it. Written and directed by Edoardo Mulargia, it’s the story of famous writer’s wife, played by a twenty year-old Carla Romanelli, who on the island of Lesbos finds herself attracted to a fashion journalist played by Gisela Dali. Carla’s husband is impotent (and cries about it), but Romanelli isn’t looking to stray. She resists her urges but her husband begins to think she and Valli ending up in bed is inevitable, so he pays a gigolo to seduce his wife. The logic behind this is simply that— Well… actually we’re not sure. No wait—we get it. The gigolo will make Carla remember how much she loves dick, and keep her from caving in to Dali’s advances. Makes perfect sense.
Where would sexploitation cinema be without the Greek Isles? It’s a sobering thought, because the film world would be unbearably grey without those rocky archipelagos and islands stripping away the inhibitions of fevered European actresses. Not that you can see Lesbos well in the copy we watched. But having been to the Isles, we were able to use our memories to fill in the visual data. Lesbo’s heavy dramatics play out not only against travelogue scenery, but a sinuous soundtrack by Francesco de Masi. However, since the film was made during the censorship regime of Greece’s rightwing dictatorship it doesn’t generate much heat, and lesbianism is roundly condemned—while slapping around one’s wife is not. Do you want to put yourself through that? We didn’t think so. Lesbo premiered today in 1969.
