Desire First Sex Experience — Desire First Sex Experience (Blu Ray)
Released in the early 70’s, Desire First Sex Experience ( aka Yokujô Shotaiken) was the first of six roman porno films filmed in Sweden by Japanese studio Nikkatsu- making for a curious blend of Scandinavian and Asian takes on softcore erotica.
The film features a fairly thin plot, which revolves around an erotic novel regarding the sexual awakening of a University student, which is read by the rather naïve Alice, who starts to experiment with sex herself. The picture moves from a dream-like encounter, edged with mellow jazz fusion. Groovy dance sequences carried out to lounge versions of Led Zeplin, Black Sabbath, and Beatles songs. And a mix of consensual and non-consensual sex- the former is played out in a laidback/ groovy manner, while the latter is presented in a woozy/ at times troubling manner.
Here from Sweden’s Klubb Super 8’s is a Blu-ray release of the film- it’s the first time it’s been released outside of Japan. With a new commentary track featuring genre expert Jasper Sharp and a few extras. This release is available as either a standalone release or part of a six-film box set.
Desire First Sex Experience was made in the year 1971. It was directed by Motala, Östergötlands län, Sweden Christer Holmgren, and was written by Noboru Minakawa(their one/ only credit). This film was Holmgren's only feature as director, though he also helmed two shorts- Sally (1975), which focused on a middle-aged, devoiced, and lonely factory worker. And Teater Pseudo – Sex ( 2007), which looks like a racy comedy. He also had eighteen acting credits, which bring together TV & film work…and going by the titles, they are more mainstream/non-porn affairs.
The film runs for one hour and eleven minutes. It opens with slightly buck-toothed strawberry blond Annika( Annika Enström) being chased/ followed by two bikers through a town/city. When they get to the dockyard, the men start pulling at her clothes, as we get an overhead shot. Over the top of this, we get a Japanese female voice-over detailing the attack, and the men’s touch/ liquids!... Anyway, we then drop back to the person reading the book, Alice (Cia Löwgren), who is lounging on her bed. She lives with her mother in an apartment and is very innocent/ naive.
As the film unfolds, we get one sexual encounter after another- from Annika in flashback or Alice in the present. These take in solo on bed fondling’s, women on women encounters- including a memorable rolling in long grass/ pulling at tights/ suspenders session. A Threesome, and male-on-female encounters.
As I mentioned in my intro, the storyline is very, very thin-though there are memorable moments. Like the already mentioned long grass session. There’s a groovy 8mm porn projected onto panties/make-out session. We get the very cheesy dance off sessions- in all three of these, one to Led Zeppelin’s "Immigrant Song", one to Black Sabbathʼs "Paranoid" and one to The Beatles’ "Eleanor Rigby". And we get to meet Alice’s boozed-up/ creepy grey dyed uncle.
The region-free disc features a nice, clean and crisp scan. With easy-to-read subtitles in either English or Swedish. There is a good balance between the Japanese dialogue and soundtrack.
We get a decent selection of new extras on the disc. We have a commentary track with writer/ genre expert Jasper Sharp, academic Johan Nordström and Rickard Gramfors from Klubb Super 8. This is a nice chatty affair- full of facts and worthy observations. They start by discussing when they each first saw the film. Pointing out locations as they appear and discussing how some of the shots were captured. They talk about how this and the other films were each filmed in just a week. They comment on how the city street shots were caught in the early morning, as they had no shooting permits. They chat about the film's credits, pointing out more suspect names. They talk about Annika Enström. Later on, they quote from interviews with actors in the film. They comment on the great production of the film, which is better than many Swedish films of the time. They point out a actress who appeared in one of the later films in the series, and discuss the Super 8 projection scene, as well as other films that did similar. They discuss the film's soundtrack and the covers within it. A most interesting/ worth a play track.
Otherwise, we have: Blonde Animals: Swedish Sin Through the Lens of Nikkatsu Roman Poruno. Video essay by Johan Nordström ( 34.15). He starts by talking about how all of the films sit in a strange liminal space- moving on to discuss both Swedish porn &Nikkatsu. He details how the whole thing came about, moving from adverts in two Swedish newspapers, and how Swedish theatre director Chister Holmgen became the go-to man for the Japanese crew. He then goes on to discuss each of the six films in detail. We get a great selection of newspapers, rare on-set stills, etc. Really an excellent and most informative extra. There’s Queer Nikkatsu. Video essay by Dakota Noot and Christopher Velasco from Two in the Pinku podcast (22.48)
Otherwise, we have the following: Image and Poster Gallery · Swedish Sin – Poster Gallery · Original English Screenplay · Original Japanese Screenplay · Theatrical Trailer.
Desire First Sex Experience is a very curious mix of Scandinavian and Asian softcore. Sure, the plot is not much to write home about, but there are some memorable/ creative moments here. This release from Klubb Super 8 takes in a lovely, crisp and clean print, and a most interesting selection of extras.