The Eroticist

 (1972)

by Tuna

The Eroticist is a political satire from Lucio Fulci. Originally titled All'onorevole piaciono le donne, or The Senator Likes Women, it is the story of an Italian senator who is a presidential hopeful, supported by the church.

The would-be president he has been groomed for his role from birth by a cardinal, and part of his training was regular instruction on the evils of women. During the election, newsreel footage surfaces which shows him pinching the bottom of a female head of state. It comes as a great surprise, as he had been thought to be gay. A priest decides to take two actions. First, he will blackmail him, and second, he will take him to a Dominican shrink and get him cured. Unfortunately, the Dominican lives in a convent, and after the senator leaves, supposedly cured, 21 of the 22 nuns confess that he ravished them. Rather than being cured, he is worse than ever. No longer content with grabbing clothed bottoms, he wants to do much more with naked ones. This is, of course, a potential disaster for his campaign.

Things go from bad to worse when the one nun he missed, Laura Antonelli, arrives to convince him to whip the evil out of her, after which she will whip the evil out of him.

They actually come up with a much better idea.

The government, the military and the police all come under the gun in what might be Fulci's best film, but the film fires its most devastating broadsides at the church. One of the cardinals, for instance, canonizes his enemies by murdering them, then turning them into plaster saints. In another scene, the cardinal is laying prostrate and praying when he is told that the senator is causing a scandal. He shouts "Christ."

Because this film takes several swings at nearly every Italian institution, it has been subjected to heavy censorship through the years. The new Severin release runs 1:49:31, whereas IMDb lists it as 1:36:00, making this the most complete version to date. It is in Italian with English subtitles, and includes a short subject about censorship in Italy, especially in relation to this film. Fans of Fulci and European cinema will want to add this edition to their library, not only because it is a worthy film from an noteworthy director, but also because it is fun, has great nudity and now comes in an excellent, (presumably) uncensored transfer.

Our Grade:

If you are not familiar with our grading system, you need to read the explanation, because the grading is not linear. For example, by our definition, a C is solid and a C+ is a VERY good movie. There are very few Bs and As. Based on our descriptive system, this film is a:

C+

  • Highly recommended for those who appreciate this sort of material.

DVD INFO

* widescreen anamorphic

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE CRITICS AND ACADEMIES

No major reviews online

 

 

THE PEOPLE

   
5.8 IMDB summary (of 10)
   

THE BOX OFFICE

Unknown

 

 

 

NUDITY REPORT

  • Laura Antonelli shows breasts and buns.

  • Eva Czemerys does full frontal and rear in a dream sequence.

  • An unknown does full frontal as a statue,

  • Anita Strindberg, as the French ambassador's wife, wears pasties and a g-string made of money

  • All the nuns all show their butts in a dream sequence.

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