One of the all time adult blockbusters, mainly because of the much awaited return of superstar Marilyn Chambers, who had taken a hardcore hiatus after exploding on screen in the Mitchell Brothers classics BEHIND THE GREEN DOOR and RESURRECTION OF EVE at the dawn of what was to be fleetingly labeled as "Porno Chic". In the meantime, the former Ivory Snow girl garnered considerable critical acclaim for her "straight" acting jobs both on stage and as the tormented anti-heroine of David Cronenberg's disturbing RABID. She was well aware however that she was the proverbial "big fish in a small pond" as far as her sex industry status was concerned, meaning that she could pretty much call the shots in ways her mainstream work would never allow. For her heavily hyped comeback extravaganza, she wisely called upon the talents of easy-going "Godfrey Daniels" a/k/a future TV producer Stu Segall, who had made a seamless transfer from sexploitation (including rough stuff like SADDLE TRAMP WOMEN and THE DIRTY DOLLS) to full color penetration with a slew of frothy fornication farces like the ludicrously titled but effortlessly entertaining TEENY BUNS, the terrific Laurien Dominique vehicle SUMMER SCHOOL and the sprawling SPIRIT OF SEVENTY-SEX, his most elaborate and ambitious feature to date. As he would put Chambers through her passionate paces on several more occasions the sequel, the Country & Western carnal concoction UP 'N' COMING and even some of Marilyn's PRIVATE FANTASIES videotapes we can safely assume that their collaboration was indeed a happy one.
Production and distribution was handled through Segall's newly founded Miracle Films, with the unforgettable tag-line borrowed from the Amero Brothers' wickedly witty BLONDE AMBITION, credit where it's due "If it's a good film it's a Miracle !" Sugar-coating aside and disregarding its top spot on many a favorites list of "those in the know", INSATIABLE actually proves a fairly flawed film in many respects, perhaps none more so than its unnecessarily disjointed narrative. As wealthy heiress, world-famous model and budding movie star enough already ! Sandra Chase (Marilyn, of course) wanders through London's tourist traps, complaining to elderly aunt Victoria (well-played by renowned British stage soprano Joan Turner, who recently turned up in Curtis Hanson's superior chick flick IN HER SHOES) how lonely life is at the top, the story proper unfolds through flashbacks within flashbacks in a structure that would be sophisticated if there were any story substance to support it. Auntie gets the flick's best line as she counters Sandra's self-pitying soliloquy with the remark that you can be lonely anywhere, "at least at the top, the food's better !" Much is made of our have it all heroine tragically losing both parents in a car crash on a trip to Switzerland a few years earlier, hopefully providing an explanation for her naughty needs, but Chambers doesn't strike me as particularly traumatized, just a happy healthy girl who likes sex a lot. Surely, porn has long passed the stage where supposed psychological aberrations were required to underpin such "bad" behavior in the name of "socially redeeming value" !
Better to focus on the film's handful of admittedly, perfectly realized sexual scenarios and let them tell the story instead. Sandra carnally congregates with reigning Hollywood superstar Renée Reynolds (Serena) in a steamy hot tub encounter that now feels frustratingly truncated in most versions due to the elimination of fist insertion footage. Much more satisfying is Sandra's pick-up of adorably dorky Artie Goldberg (Richard Pacheco), resplendent in full baseball Little League regalia, whose car has broken down on the way to the big game. Excellent acting by both stars with dialog that feels completely natural as it does throughout the entire movie heightens the eroticism of the explicit pay-off. The scene everyone remembers, Sandra losing her virginity to crude family gardener David Morris (Georgina Spelvin's tennis pro from Ron Sullivan's superlative BABYLON PINK) on the pool table as recounted to sympathetic personal assistant Flo (the incomparable Jesie St. James), has proved problematic for some female viewers as it's one of those "they may (mildly) protest at first" numbers. In its defense, and as far as rape fantasies go (and any Cosmo girl knows by now that it's perfectly natural to have them), this kind of scene has rarely been done to better effect. A tender tryst on a nighttime patio between Flo and matinée idol Roger Adams (John Leslie) supplies a romantic counterpart complete with marriage proposal ! with the time-tested chemistry between the perfectly matched stars (who worked together on TALK DIRTY TO ME, HOTLINE, Matinée IDOL, etc.) very much in evidence. Refusing to be eclipsed, Marilyn brings up the rear in every sense with an extended fantasy sequence involving Morris, Mike Ranger and, replying to her murmured pleading of "more, more, more", John Holmes !
Production was clearly designed to achieve opulence on a limited budget, establishing a visual style that would become the stock in trade of the straight to tape/cable "erotic thriller" of the '80s. Sandra lives in a huge mansion, drives a convertible and has guests flown in by helicopter. 'Nuff said ? Plus, location shooting, however ineffectual, always gives the impression of tons of money having been spent, with Europe looking particularly expensive to American audiences for some deep-seated "Old World" reason. Subsequent TV camera ace James Bagdonas (a/k/a "J.R. Baggs"), who wound up shooting BOSTON LEGAL, makes everything and everyone look good with soft hazy lighting. An original song-filled soundtrack, a Segall trademark, completes the package. Even commonly cut-throat carnal connoisseurs like the late Jim Holliday seemed overly impressed with its shiny wrapping paper. Maybe Marilyn's award-winning theme song "Shame On You" sums it up best : "Sometimes love ain't nothing but a misunderstanding between two fools " Read into that what you will
Production and distribution was handled through Segall's newly founded Miracle Films, with the unforgettable tag-line borrowed from the Amero Brothers' wickedly witty BLONDE AMBITION, credit where it's due "If it's a good film it's a Miracle !" Sugar-coating aside and disregarding its top spot on many a favorites list of "those in the know", INSATIABLE actually proves a fairly flawed film in many respects, perhaps none more so than its unnecessarily disjointed narrative. As wealthy heiress, world-famous model and budding movie star enough already ! Sandra Chase (Marilyn, of course) wanders through London's tourist traps, complaining to elderly aunt Victoria (well-played by renowned British stage soprano Joan Turner, who recently turned up in Curtis Hanson's superior chick flick IN HER SHOES) how lonely life is at the top, the story proper unfolds through flashbacks within flashbacks in a structure that would be sophisticated if there were any story substance to support it. Auntie gets the flick's best line as she counters Sandra's self-pitying soliloquy with the remark that you can be lonely anywhere, "at least at the top, the food's better !" Much is made of our have it all heroine tragically losing both parents in a car crash on a trip to Switzerland a few years earlier, hopefully providing an explanation for her naughty needs, but Chambers doesn't strike me as particularly traumatized, just a happy healthy girl who likes sex a lot. Surely, porn has long passed the stage where supposed psychological aberrations were required to underpin such "bad" behavior in the name of "socially redeeming value" !
Better to focus on the film's handful of admittedly, perfectly realized sexual scenarios and let them tell the story instead. Sandra carnally congregates with reigning Hollywood superstar Renée Reynolds (Serena) in a steamy hot tub encounter that now feels frustratingly truncated in most versions due to the elimination of fist insertion footage. Much more satisfying is Sandra's pick-up of adorably dorky Artie Goldberg (Richard Pacheco), resplendent in full baseball Little League regalia, whose car has broken down on the way to the big game. Excellent acting by both stars with dialog that feels completely natural as it does throughout the entire movie heightens the eroticism of the explicit pay-off. The scene everyone remembers, Sandra losing her virginity to crude family gardener David Morris (Georgina Spelvin's tennis pro from Ron Sullivan's superlative BABYLON PINK) on the pool table as recounted to sympathetic personal assistant Flo (the incomparable Jesie St. James), has proved problematic for some female viewers as it's one of those "they may (mildly) protest at first" numbers. In its defense, and as far as rape fantasies go (and any Cosmo girl knows by now that it's perfectly natural to have them), this kind of scene has rarely been done to better effect. A tender tryst on a nighttime patio between Flo and matinée idol Roger Adams (John Leslie) supplies a romantic counterpart complete with marriage proposal ! with the time-tested chemistry between the perfectly matched stars (who worked together on TALK DIRTY TO ME, HOTLINE, Matinée IDOL, etc.) very much in evidence. Refusing to be eclipsed, Marilyn brings up the rear in every sense with an extended fantasy sequence involving Morris, Mike Ranger and, replying to her murmured pleading of "more, more, more", John Holmes !
Production was clearly designed to achieve opulence on a limited budget, establishing a visual style that would become the stock in trade of the straight to tape/cable "erotic thriller" of the '80s. Sandra lives in a huge mansion, drives a convertible and has guests flown in by helicopter. 'Nuff said ? Plus, location shooting, however ineffectual, always gives the impression of tons of money having been spent, with Europe looking particularly expensive to American audiences for some deep-seated "Old World" reason. Subsequent TV camera ace James Bagdonas (a/k/a "J.R. Baggs"), who wound up shooting BOSTON LEGAL, makes everything and everyone look good with soft hazy lighting. An original song-filled soundtrack, a Segall trademark, completes the package. Even commonly cut-throat carnal connoisseurs like the late Jim Holliday seemed overly impressed with its shiny wrapping paper. Maybe Marilyn's award-winning theme song "Shame On You" sums it up best : "Sometimes love ain't nothing but a misunderstanding between two fools " Read into that what you will