Three Between The Sheets — Three Between The Sheets(Blu Ray Set)

Three Between The Sheets is a Blu-Ray boxset that brings together three slices of 1980s softcore-  all of which were produced by the infamous cult film producer Harry Alan Towers( 60’s Fu Manchu Cycle, more than a few Jess Franco films, etc.). The three Blu-Ray set is from the folks Severin, and is a bare-bone affair- with just the films & trailers on the discs.

On the first disc, we have 1984’s Ecstasy (aka Love Scenes), and this a lightly erotic drama regarding a director & his actress wife. The film was directed by American Bud Townsend, and between the late 60s and the early 80’s he had six features to his name, as well US TV episode. His features went from a few horror films Nightmare In Wax (1968), and Terror At Red Wolf Inn(1972). A sexploitation Alice in Wonderland: An X-Rated Musical Fantasy(1976), and a teen sex comedy The Beach Girls(1982). Ecstasy was his final film, and in a way, I’m not surprised as production wise it’s a little rough around the edges. Though it’s an entertaining enough drama, which at points does revel in glitzy 80’s soap-ness/ camp.

The film opens with a selection of sun-soaked beach & sea shots, as lush synth scaping & smooth jazz sax music drifts. We move up from the beach to a blocky glass mansion house- and here we meet our lead characters respected actress Val(Tiffany Bolling), and her director husband Peter(Fran Luz). Peter wants Val to be in his new film, but he’s looking to make a rather controversial erotic picture entitled Love Scenes- and she has never really done nudity before.

Added into the film early on we have gruff, ring-covered-handed, and cigar-puffing producer Sidney(Jack Carter), and photojournalist Annie(Britt Ekland)- who later on becomes Val’s confidant. After doing some topless shots for Annie, Val decides she will do the film. And Peter starts gathering the other actors for the film including Rick(Daniel Pilon) who has reputation for being a bit sleazy/ touchy-feely with the female actress.

The filming gets underway, and clearly Val is uncomfortable acting alongside Rick. She expresses her feelings to Peter, but he brushes them aside and asks her to go right to the edge in the coming-up shot- which is set in the backroom of an art gallery. Rick fumbles and caresses ending up with brief(unseen) penetration- and fairly soon we find out it’s the first time she reached a climax in many years, and she fakes it all with Peter.

As the film, and the filming of the film within the film goes on, Val struggles with what has happened, Peter comes up with more erotic scenes, and their marriage becomes very, very rocky. With the nearing one & half-hour film passing by entertaining enough- if you enjoy camp/soapy-edged drama.

Initially, Bolling felt rather flat/ vapid as the white-teethed blond actress, but in time she starts showing some good and convincing acting- really selling a woman out of her depths. Luz as her director husband also starts off rather flat/ one-dimensional, and sadly aside from a few later scenes remains that way- sure I know he’s meant to be an arrogant/obnoxious filmmaker, but there really is no depth to his performance. Ekland works well as the photojournalist/ confidant. And Pilon is a perfect fit for the womanizing macho man, who is really just after the next lay.

On the skin/ sexy side of things- this is very light softcore, with topless female nudity, brief simulated sex, and very fleeting glances of female/male genitals. Towards the end of things, we do get a swimming pool scene, with a large selection of female flesh, though this is very brief. So if you’re looking for that side of things, you’ll be disappointed.

Lastly, let us talk about the ‘production’ issues I mentioned, and these are largely on the audio/foley side of things. Often we get overload droning/ reeling sounds( camera equipment I’m guessing), as well as other environmental sounds- and at one or two points this issue almost blows out the dialogue. I think I can safely say( and this is coming from someone who watches/ enjoys micro-budget fare) that this stands as some of the worse audio I’ve heard on a film, which at points does impact on the picture itself. Initially, I thought it was done deliberately to indicate we were within the film within the film, but that’s not the case as we go on this issue spreads out into the whole film. I’m guessing there was little or nothing Severin could do about this, and the stock quality itself is good & bright- so clearly they did do work there. 

 

Moving onto disc number two, and we have Black Venus ( aka Venus). This is from the year 1983, and is a period set erotic drama. It was directed by Paris-born Claude Mulot- who had twenty credits to his name. These went from plastic surgery-led horror thriller The Blood Rose (1970), comedy adventure Profession: Aventuriers (1973), softcore romantic The Immoral One(1980), and stalking model’s horror Knife Under the Throat(1986).

The film is largely set in Paris in the 1800s and focuses on Venus(Josephine Jacqueline Jones) a Montenegro native who has caught the eye of more than a few men & women in the City. Two key admirers are bald, bearded, and rich ‘collector of beautiful things’ Jacques(Emiliano Redondo), and talented-but-painless artist Armand(José Antonio Ceinos). Though she also encounters a randy rich housewife, a couple of leering politicians, and a selection of characters that want to pleasure or abuse her. 

The film plays at around the one hour and twenty-minute mark- and for what I presume was fairly small budget softcore it has some decent production values, with some rather memorable impressive scenes/ set-ups along the way. One of these comes early on in the film, when we see rich collector Jacques takes a tour of a high-class whore house- looking through the two-way mirror corridor into all the different rooms, and the different fantasies. We have a pirate & his female first mate, a king on his throne & sex subject, and lastly Venus as a plantation worker being abused by her white slave master. The film keeps an even blend of female flesh & story- as you’d imagine we get to see a fair bit of Ms Jacqueline Jones, but there is a selection of other women too. The film is sort of mid-range in its softcore action, and at points looks like it might go a bit more kinky/ wild, but doesn’t really.

Acting wise Josephine Jacqueline Jones, who appeared in three other 80’s softcore films, is largely a little flat/ one note- though we do get attempts a more emotion/ depth, which doesn’t really pay off. Otherwise, Ceinos is believable as the obsessive artist, and Redondo works well as the suave-if-perverse collector. On the whole Black Venus is a well-made & engaging example of softcore period drama.

Finally, on disc number three, we have 1986’s Melody Of Passion( aka La chica que cayó del Cielo), and this is the most formally softcore film of the boxset- with liberal/ at points non-plot related moments of female flesh. Though there is still some story/ sense here, which adds in 80’s campness, bumbling cops, and general euro trashiness.

The film’s an Austria/Spanish production, with it originally being filmed in German- so we get an English dub, which adds even more unintentional humour & camp to the whole thing. The film was helmed by Slavonice, Czech Republic Hubert Frank. He had twenty-five feature films to his name- these went from a few crime thrillers like Das Rätsel der roten Quaste(1963) & God's Police Patrol(1968), onto largely adult & saucy comedy fare like Wedding Night Report(1972), Has Anyone Seen My Pants (1975), and Triangle of Lust (1978).

The film kicks off in high-80s camp fashion, as we see a couple driving along on a sun-glinting day- with very cheesy euro pop playing in the background. The pair quickly rush up to an apartment- she goes topless & starts caressing him. There’s a knock at the door- she puts on something very skimpy to answer, giving the postman more than an eyeful. She pulls open the letter, and we find out her Spanish aunt has died leaving her a property. And here we also find out she’s a German Student named Betty (Sonja Martin).

So she heads off to Spain finding out what she’s been left is a huge castle- but there’s a problem, her aunt’s shifty & bespeckled lawyer has set up a luxury brothel in the castle. So as things unfold we get lengthy softcore encounters- with smaller to larger proportioned women. A pair of bumbling & leering comedy cops, a trumpet playing & designer stubble love interest, a shady figure on a motorcycle, and a generally 80’s campy blend of low-key drama, light thriller, and generally euro trashiness.

Melody Of Passion rolls in just over the one hour & twenty-minute mark, and for the most part, it’s an enjoyable and entertaining slice of softcore sleaze, with general campy euro exploitation mixed in. So a good end to this collection.

Three Between The Sheets offers up three different takes on 80’s softcore. Going from a lightly erotic drama, onto period set sleaze, though to all out-euro trash campness. I do hope this is going to be a start of a new series of 80’s softcore releases from Severin, as each of these films has its worth/ enjoyment- and I’m sure there are many more 80’s softcore gems to be uncovered!.