The Smut Peddler

The trailer for this movie generated a great deal of interest in this film when it was included in a compilation by Johnny Legend distributed in the UK on VHS as "Psychomania" if memory serves. According to legend only one copy of the complete film survives but as is often the case that's not quite true. Another copy exists and has been shown here in Groovy London Town. In the grand tradition of movie showmanship the trailer promises more than the film delivers which is not to say the film doesn't have its moments. This is not hardcore but if you can settle for nudity and suggestion it's pretty good at delivering the goods cloaked in a moral message, "this is what happens to bad girls", sort of way. I enjoyed it but it's not so different from any number of the films being made in New York in that era, titles like "The Taming" come to mind. The late great Joe Sarno was putting out a higher calibre of smut at the time and his films have withstood the change of moral climate better I feel. As neither of the copies that are known to exist are likely to turn up on disc it will remain difficult to see, but unless you are a completist don't sweat it.