Joy Of Fooling Around Review
Cal Vista Classics
Studio: Cal Vista Classics
Directed by: Jack Matthews, Pierre DuBois
Starring: Monique Du Prez, Erica Swanson, Valerie Ashley, Jessica Dublin, Carla Messina, Marga Ever, Theresa Gollum, Samantha Romana, Magda Makri, Leo Zamidis, Aleka Kalafati, Kevin Raymond, Sal Pontini
Released on: 4/7/2009
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Reviewed by classix comment on 7/7/2009
Initial Thoughts
VCX has now taken over Cal Vista and has begun re-issuing a number of their long out of print titles, including this 1977 Greek import which was originally (and obviously) shot soft, though through the magic of, sometimes very well matched, XXX inserts, was issued in 1978 under the terribly inaccurate title THE JOY OF FOOLING AROUND.
The Film
We open on a picturesque Grecian beach as a man, with a head injury, washes ashore and is saved by a young and lonely woman, who keeps him in a fishing hut. Meanwhile a sinister fellow who appears to manage a group of prostitutes says mean things. The mystery man finally awakens and realizes he does not know who he is. He decides to journey to the nearby town to see if he can try and remember anything, but soon realizes he may be a wanted their and murderer.
As interesting as the above synopsis might see, this film is anything but compelling. Everything about it is rather bland, especially the atrocious dubbing and stale cinematography. While the story does have a few good twists and turns, it's nothing more than average, even at its high points.
Jack Genero's well matched hardcore inserts provide for the most interesting points of editing the film has to offer. The (presumably library) music choices also break up the visual monotony with an occasional pleasant guitar theme. The sex scenes last far too long and are anything but interesting.
I'd be curious to see the film in its original softcore incarnation as there are enough plot holes that I wouldn't be surprised if large portions of the original narrative made their way to the cutting room floor for the sake of the XXX footage that was spliced into this version. Nevertheless, the last twenty minutes of this snooze-fest are virtually sex free and are easily the most gripping parts of the film (complete with two badly orchestrated car chases and a bit of violence).
While there's a lot worse out there, THE JOY OF FOOLING AROUND is anything but a pleasure to view. Besides some nostalgic curiosity, anyone wanting to see a quality European X rated film is better advised to stick to the works of artists like Claude Mulot.
A/V Quality
VCX has decided to use Cal Vista's old 3/4 inch master for this release and at times it looks OK. But it's awfully noisy at other times and the transfer itself is far too dark and muddy. The print used also has a number of splices which eliminate a bit of footage here and there. The VCX bug shows up 3 times that I noticed and that's three times too many. A whole star off for that alone.
br> Extras
Trailers for other films are included (including a great trailer for Alan Colberg's 1976 film NAKED AFTERNOON). However, nothing related to the film is present.
Cuts Warning
This DVD's running times compares just fine to my complete 35mm print so it's as uncut as it ever was stateside. That said, considering there might have been additional narrative footage cut out of this version, I can't guarantee that this is truly complete.
Who should Watch It
This movie is pretty bad so I can't recommend it to anyone besides as a curiosity piece.
Who Should Skip It
There's really no one who should seek this out so skipping it is the natural way to go.
Final Thoughts
A dull film gets a bad release. Nothing lost, nothing gained.
VCX has now taken over Cal Vista and has begun re-issuing a number of their long out of print titles, including this 1977 Greek import which was originally (and obviously) shot soft, though through the magic of, sometimes very well matched, XXX inserts, was issued in 1978 under the terribly inaccurate title THE JOY OF FOOLING AROUND.
The Film
We open on a picturesque Grecian beach as a man, with a head injury, washes ashore and is saved by a young and lonely woman, who keeps him in a fishing hut. Meanwhile a sinister fellow who appears to manage a group of prostitutes says mean things. The mystery man finally awakens and realizes he does not know who he is. He decides to journey to the nearby town to see if he can try and remember anything, but soon realizes he may be a wanted their and murderer.
As interesting as the above synopsis might see, this film is anything but compelling. Everything about it is rather bland, especially the atrocious dubbing and stale cinematography. While the story does have a few good twists and turns, it's nothing more than average, even at its high points.
Jack Genero's well matched hardcore inserts provide for the most interesting points of editing the film has to offer. The (presumably library) music choices also break up the visual monotony with an occasional pleasant guitar theme. The sex scenes last far too long and are anything but interesting.
I'd be curious to see the film in its original softcore incarnation as there are enough plot holes that I wouldn't be surprised if large portions of the original narrative made their way to the cutting room floor for the sake of the XXX footage that was spliced into this version. Nevertheless, the last twenty minutes of this snooze-fest are virtually sex free and are easily the most gripping parts of the film (complete with two badly orchestrated car chases and a bit of violence).
While there's a lot worse out there, THE JOY OF FOOLING AROUND is anything but a pleasure to view. Besides some nostalgic curiosity, anyone wanting to see a quality European X rated film is better advised to stick to the works of artists like Claude Mulot.
A/V Quality
VCX has decided to use Cal Vista's old 3/4 inch master for this release and at times it looks OK. But it's awfully noisy at other times and the transfer itself is far too dark and muddy. The print used also has a number of splices which eliminate a bit of footage here and there. The VCX bug shows up 3 times that I noticed and that's three times too many. A whole star off for that alone.
br> Extras
Trailers for other films are included (including a great trailer for Alan Colberg's 1976 film NAKED AFTERNOON). However, nothing related to the film is present.
Cuts Warning
This DVD's running times compares just fine to my complete 35mm print so it's as uncut as it ever was stateside. That said, considering there might have been additional narrative footage cut out of this version, I can't guarantee that this is truly complete.
Who should Watch It
This movie is pretty bad so I can't recommend it to anyone besides as a curiosity piece.
Who Should Skip It
There's really no one who should seek this out so skipping it is the natural way to go.
Final Thoughts
A dull film gets a bad release. Nothing lost, nothing gained.
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