Everything You Wanted To Know About Sex * But Were Afraid To Ask

Everything You Wanted To Know About Sex * But Were Afraid To Ask (1972)

Runtime: 88 minutes

Directed by: Woody Allen

Starring: Woody Allen (but of course), Gene Wilder, Burt Reynolds, Tony Randall, Lynn Redgrave

From: United Artists

Here is something interesting: an anthology film from Woody Allen where you not only get his trademark “unique” humor but also vulgarity, and while it’s based on a nonfiction book of the same name, it’s only in the loosest sense. Instead of a “sex manual” that the book was, the movie was a series of sketches that not only talked about such things as transvestites, flashers, bestiality (!), and S&M, but also spoofs Italian new wave movies, horror flicks, and more. It’s a movie I’ve seen a few times and I’m always amused by it, even though it certainly is uneven at times. It’s easiest to break down what the seven segments are:

1. Do Aphrodisiacs Work? Woody plays a court jester and he gives an aphrodisiac to the Queen (the late Redgrave), with comic results.

2. What Is Sodomy? Gene Wilder plays a doctor who falls in love with an Armenian patient he meets one day. Problem is, the partner… is a sheep!

3. Why Do Some Women Have Trouble Reaching An Orgasm? This is the spoof of Italian movies of the time period. I mean, from the way it’s shot to the fact that all the dialogue is in Italian. Woody plays a smooth lover (or at least a character that wants to be smooth) who can’t get his wife off, to be blunt. The solution to the problem is rather interesting.

4. Are All Transvestites Homosexuals? A middle-aged guy experiments with wearing women’s clothes… but it turns out much worse for him than he could have imagined.

5. What Are Sex Perverts? It’s a spoof of a 50’s era game show, where a panel has to guess what a guest’s sexual perversion is. Would you believe that one of the guys on the panel is REGIS PHILBIN? It’s true. Since the movie came out, his appearance in that role takes on great humor in of itself. Sure, he was known at the time for being a TV host, but not like in his Live With Regis and whoever days.

6. Are the Findings of Doctors and Clinics Who Do Sexual Research and Experiments Accurate? Woody and a young blonde meet up with a crazy mad scientist (played by veteran horror movie actor John Carradine, part of the ill-fated Carradine acting family), and things get really loony from there.

7. What Happens During Ejaculation? The last-and arguably-the best segment, you see what happens in the human body during a night of romance. You see what happens in the brain, with it being controlled by Randall and one of the operators is good old Burt. You also see some sperm getting ready for “deployment”, including Allen.

Like I said, it’s uneven, but if you think you would enjoy a quirky take on adult subject matter, then track this down. I'll be back Monday night.