Erotic Tales (1993 – 1999/Region 4 PAL Import/Madman Australia DVD Set)
Picture: C+ Sound: C+ Extras: D Episodes: C
PLEASE NOTE: This DVD set can only be operated
on machines capable of playing back DVDs that can handle Region Four/4 PAL format
software and can be ordered from our friends at Madman Entertainment at the
website address provided at the end of the review.
The
“Freedom” of cable TV originally offered the promise of better, more mature
material that would be intelligent in a way broadcast TV was not, but we know
what a wasteland cable became and certain shows did not deliver. In the mid 1990s, Erotic Tales was an
anthology series that offered very mixed results and was not very memorable. Now on DVD from Madman in Australia, the works
included (with some well known names noted) are:
1)
THE
DUTCH MASTER (USA)
by Susan Seidelman w/ Mira Sorvino
2)
WET
(USA)
by Bob Rafelson w/ Cynda Williams and Arliss Howard
3)
VROOM,
VROOM, VROOM! (USA)
by Melvin Van Peebles
4)
THE
CLOUD DOOR (India)
by Mani Kaul
5)
THE
INSATIABLE MRS. KIRSCH (UK)
by Ken Russell
6)
TOUCH
ME (Australia)
by Paul Cox
7)
SWEETIES
(Italy)
by Cinzia Th. Torrini
8)
HOTEL
PARADISE (UK)
by Nicholas Roeg w/Teresa Russell & Vincent D’Onofrio
9)
DEVILISH
EDUCATION (Poland)
by Janusz Majewski
10) SAMBOLICO (Finland/Brazil) by Mika Kaurismäki
11) ELEPHANTS NEVER FORGET (Germany) by
Detlev Buck
12) THE WAITING ROOM (The Netherlands) by
Jos Stelling
13) GEORGIAN GRAPES (Georgia) by Georgi Shengelaya
14) DREAM A LITTLE DREAM OF ME (Greece) by
Antonis Kokkinos
15) CAN I BE YOUR BRATWURST, PLEASE? (Germany) by
Rosa von Praunheim w/ Jeff Stryker & Lucy Kryn
Shows 1 & 3 particularly did not work,
while 2 (to some extent), 4 (in an odd way) and 8 were the best, leaving the
others in a mixed position (no pun intended).
However, some are ambitious, yet the overall feel of this show is
restrictive and though I was not expecting something like hardcore XXX
material, I was expecting something more introspective more often and the show
has not aged very well at all. Still, it
is a curio and deserves to be on DVD.
The anamorphically
enhanced 1.78 X 1 full color image varies but all seem filmed for the most
part. They are generally soft throughout
and I don’t know if a High Definition Blu-ray would offer that much of an
improvement on most shows. The attempts
to have a sexy look can range from sometimes effective to too often clichéd,
but all are watchable enough. The
Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo is on all the shows and is not bad for its age, but
not exactly offering modern sound fidelity, though some sound better than
others depending on the director and sound approach. There are no extras.
As noted
above, you can order this PAL DVD import set exclusively from Madman at:
https://www.madman.com.au/actions/channel.do?method=view
-
Nicholas Sheffo
