The Curious Female (1970)

Touches You

Better than most people think

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Ribald exploitation with a bodacious bevvy of nubile sci-fi starlets, all doing what nubile starlets do best: removing all their fab gear at the soonest opportunity, and, then, like, get it on to the super-fuzz, way-out beat sounds of Herr Stu Philips. While 'The Curious Female' isn't on par with the work of Radley Metzger it is still hugely entertaining, and genuinely funny to boot!Set in a not-so Orwellian future, the island of future Los Angeles is ruled by the omnipotent 'Master Computer' (little more than a sonorous baritone voice), and all the decadent youth must abstain from the dreadful calamity of monogamy; and it is expressly forbidden to watch stag reels from the early 20th century. Basically, one is encouraged to live a polymorphously perverse life, but should you cue up a Russ Meyer- type flick, 'Master Computer' blows a despotic diode and slams said errant voyeur into the clink. 'The Curious Female' is far more 'The Schoolgirl Report' than, say, 'Silent Running', so hardcore SF addicts would best look elsewhere (Theodore Sturgeon this 'aint!) but fans of far-out slap and tickle will find much to enjoy in Paul Rapp's effortlessly groovy 'The Curious Female'.I did enjoy seeing the nightclub Lothario do his oily schtick on one of the reluctant 'virgins', as he was also clearly the voice for 'Master Computer'. There was an equally amusing sequence in a day-glo hippie 'joint' whereby another of the film's 'virgins' was accosted by two idiotic, octogenarian bikers, and is then rescued by the most unconvincing martial artist since an especially irksome clutch of turtles took up Tai Chi. Apparently she was simply 'looking for trouble'? Obviously this fellow was a seer, with a far more acute sense of perception than mere mortal man; as the girl in question was simply sitting in a bar huffing on a desultory fag! So, naturally, this being the late, and oh-so permissive 60's, said lunkhead demanded the brutal sex from her that she so clearly craved, and gave her one beneath an epic, psychedelic light show worthy of 'Holy Mountain'.While this rather incongruous blend of clumsy SF and bawdy comedy is not exactly a masterpiece of erotica, it works brilliantly as a giddy microcosm of super-contrived 1960's grooviness! and it would make a suitable pairing with the likes of 'Valley of The Dolls', or 'Barberella' etc.

The Curious Female evolves around a futuristic (Year 2157) cultist society of moviegoers, whom gather secretly to watch old, prohibited works; as it happens, generally anything from the old world is forbidden by 'Master Computer' and therefore enforced by the laws of the time. This gathering of toga-wearing movie enthusiasts, entwined in emphatic orgiastic embrace, soon settle to watch their latest slice of Hollywood, acquired by Liana (Bunny Allister), their female host, accompanied by her male companion, Jorel (David Westberg).Their evening's viewing, introduced as "The Three Virgins" is described as a moralistic view of the old world – An era perceived to cling to the ideals and principles of marriage – Which essentially transports us back (relatively speaking) to a "Hi-Tech" dating agency, set in modern day Los Angeles, which utilises the same actors/actresses again to great effect!While much of the Curious Female is seen through the sometimes raunchy, soft-core lens of "The Three Virgins", the film is nonetheless punctuated with a periodic return (Between reel changes) to the future, while our cultists ask questions, like that of children about the world they have seen on film. "What is a Virgin"? one woman asks, while another questions "Marriage" in the same manner. These discussions induce shock and provide insight for the viewer, as the moral and ethical state of this very restrictive, Romanesque futuristic society unravels itself in brief, narrative exchanges...Although very cheaply made and extremely dated in tone, this 1969 effort from Paul Rapp (The Wild Angels (1966), The Trip (1967), Boxcar Bertha (1972)) is extremely well executed and does occasionally contain elements of sheer brilliance, though perhaps a second viewing may be the only way of revealing these narrative subtleties! Made at a time when computers were perhaps just beginning to eek into the mainstream fabric of industrialised civilization, there is a prevailing sense of hysteria being depicted here, perhaps suggesting that we might one day rely on computers a bit too much – Emphasised in no small part by the futuristic 'all-seeing' prohibitive eye of Master Computer (an early Big Brother metaphor?) and the dating machine, seen here to over-load when prompted for some data! In relation to the futuristic segments of this film, one might argue that constantly eroding boundaries of previously unacceptable sexual relationships, marriage and other formerly illicit practices within our own society might one day lead to such a future, though this is indeed a stretch of the imagination; within this context however, the restrained mastery of the Curious Female, whether intentional or otherwise, does occasionally shine…Despite being an admittedly average film, The Curious Female brims positively with 60's psychedelic euphoria and is, by all accounts, incredibly hard to find here in the UK! It's obscure, one-time video release, compliments of Iver Film Services (circa 1981) being it's only lease of life here.Currently unavailable on DVD anywhere, this forgotten gem surely deserves a reissue – Particularly when other, less deserving (and often atrocious sub-standard VHS print quality) movie product is routinely unleashed into a saturated and often ambiguously represented video market! On a closing note, let me just say that the soundtrack however is brilliant, oozing with 'original' Austin Powers confidence – Personally, I'd grab it immediately, if it were readily available! ( Personal Rating 6 / 10 )