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“That’s Sexploitation!” Terrific Documentary Captures The Seedy Majesty Of Grindhouse Cinema!

By johnrieber on April 20, 2016 • ( 7 )

“That’s Sexploitation” – Cinema’s Greatest Genre Is “Docu”-mented!

Fans of cult movies have a reason to rejoice – the “Godfather of Grindhouse Documentaries” is here!

Yes, even THIS “Psycho Cat” is happy about it!

First, check out this trailer – safe for work – yet also full of what makes “sexploitation” one of the most hilarious genres ever committed to celluloid!

There are so many scenes in that trailer that showcase what an “anything goes” genre of film “sexploitation” was!

Here is how the terrific website “Mondo Digital” describes the company behind this amazing documentary “That’s Sexploitation!”:

“You’d be hard pressed to find a company more responsible for creating exploitation video addicts than Something Weird Video, which started off as a grassroots VHS seller in the ‘80s but exploded into an incredible resource for sexy, scary gems either absent from movie screen for years or, in many cases, never seen at all!”

Yes, the terrific cult video distribution company “Something Weird Video” rescued films like “The Defilers” from obscurity. The review goes on:

“From there the company started racking up the catalogs of names like Harry Novak and Doris Wishman, not to mention the remaining H.G. Lewis titles, while also churning out countless volumes of loops (sexy short films) ranging from nudie cuties to vintage hardcore.”

Movies like “Forbidden Love” were classic “grind house” films – movies that played the grungiest theaters in America, like these on New York’s 42nd street:

I’ve posted many stories about these legendarily seedy movie theaters from the early 70’s, and you can read more here:

https://johnrieber.com/2012/11/23/sex-violence-grindhouse-have-a-purient-holiday-an-exploitation-gift-guide/

When Something Weird announced they were doing a documentary about this time in film, I knew it would be great!

Frank Henenlotter is the director of the cult classic “Basket Case” – another film that was part of the Something Weird brand – and “Frankenhooker”, a modern homage to “grind house” cinema. As Mondo Digital reports:

“His involvement with the company and friendship with the Vraney family included the beloved line of “Frank Henenlotter’s Sexy Shockers from the Vault” series, one of the company’s high points in its VHS prime, in addition to solidifying its voice by writing the vast majority of the incredibly witty and catchy copy for their releases.”

Henenlotter directed “That’s Sexploitation!”, and he had total access to the Something Weird catalog…this amazing new documentary also has a ton of extras! Here’s the product description from Amazon:

“From director Frank Henenlotter (BASKET CASE, BRAIN DAMAGE) and co-producer Mike Vraney (the late founder of Something Weird Video) comes the epic documentary critics call fascinating (Video Watchdog), titillating (Time Out Los Angeles) and jaw-dropping (Seattle Weekly): Henenlotter and legendary exploitation monarch David F. Friedman in his final film appearance are your hosts for this eye-popping expedition through the world of pre-code peekaboos, stags, sex-hygiene films, goona-goonas, nudie-cuties, roughies, druggies, white-coaters and more, featuring thousands of spicy clips from the SWV archives. And if that’s not enough. the Bonus Features include an additional 3+ hours of rare loops and shorts from five decades of Sexploitation history!”

Special Features on the Blu-Ray include:
Over 3 1/2 Hours of Sexploitation Shorts From The Something Weird Archives
Audio Commentary With Director Frank Henenlotter And Something Weird’s Lisa Petrucci
Trailer