1972 = 2005
By Brad Friedman on 2/26/2005, 2:38pm PT  

We caught the excellent new documentary, Inside Deep Throat, yesterday afternoon while on “gf bday duty" and found it to be simply fascinating on innumerable levels.

The most notable of which, at least for BRAD BLOG readers, will be the remarkable parallels pointed up --- no accident, we'd think --- between the oppressive political atmosphere of 1972 and that of 2005.

The film covers the emergence and subsequent legacy of hairdress-cum-director Gerard Damiano ‘s Deep Throat in the early 70's as it rose out of the back alleys to become "Porno Chic" after it was described as such by a New York Times article.

Then, as now, one NY Times article officially declares something as "newsworthy", and then, as now, we had a politically damaged President who managed to get himself re-elected and then, as now, felt himself the holder of a mandate to be the personal guardian of all that is moral for the American people.

As Harry Reems, the male star of Throat was told at the time when he was chosen to be made an example of and put on trial under newly created obsenity laws --- specifically brought about by agents of the Nixon Administration in a futile attempt to stuff the genie back into the exploding bottle --- "If the Republicans win the next election, you're going to jail. If the Democrats win, you'll walk.”

Why is it that Republicans, for decades, have always claimed (with a straight face, mind you) that they want to get the Federal Government off the backs of American citizens, yet whenever they manage to come to power they are invariably the most intrusive with their use of that Government which they claim to hate?

Anway, there was much more to discuss about the film which kept us yackin' and ponderin' all throughout dinner afters. It's an incredibly thought-provoking and timely film, filled with a host of fascinating and often hilarious characters! It's well-worth your time should be lucky enough to live in a town with a theater willing to exhibit NC-17 films. Even one created by mainstream Universal Pictures.

Sadly, we have a feeling there are not many towns like that left in "the land of the free", so we have a feeling most of you out there in “Bush Country” may just have to wait for it to show up on HBO or at your local DVD store. (That is, if even they are willing to help spread the "liberty" that Dubya acts as if he's so interested in.)

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