The dare-to-defy-the-norm DVD label known as Smirk has proudly unveiled six classic Danish erotica classics from the Swingin’ Seventies starring the late Ole Søltoft. No stranger to appearing in erotica films, Søltoft either stars or co-stars in these six features, sometimes referred to as the “Zodiac Films” and most of which were written and directed by Werner Hedman. While the movies aren’t award-winning material on any end of the spectrum, they do make it on my list as some of the most appealing hardcore sex comedy flicks ever made. Yes, I said “hardcore sex.”
I suppose a half-assed explanation is probably due for those of you who are scratching their heads in confusion and who are probably on the verge of crying: okay, so during the '70s, as the world became increasingly more liberated sexually, it wasn’t entirely uncommon to see a hardcore act onscreen in a European cinema. Many movies featuring an abundance of softcore lovin’ were often fitted with some explicit sex scenes — it all depended on the region and the audience, I guess. Denmark had the distinction of being a little more liberated than certain other countries, and the “Zodiac Films” are proof.
Yes, these movies do show a bit of penetration here and there, although it is not as frequent as you would expect to see in a modern adult XXX film. Plus, the scenes are rather “tastefully” done when compared to what we see now. And, oh, just so we’re all clear here: technically, these are not “XXX” films (much in the same way In The Realm Of The Senses, I Am Curious (Yellow), or Thriller: A Cruel Picture are not “XXX” films), but rather Classic Danish Erotica that happen to feature a little of the real thing. For the most part, these films are just silly softcore fun.
But let‘s move on, shall we? The first entry in the series, In The Sign Of The Virgin (1973), is also the only film not written/directed by Hedman and is instead helmed by Finn Karlsson. The story here will have every lad and lassie with a schoolgirl fetish going nuts. A private boarding school full of young nubile women (including Anne Bie Warburg) is on the brink of disaster. The school’s Board of Directors have just discovered that the planet Venus is aligned to the point that all of the girls will be randy to the nth degree. In order to keep the ladies in line, they send Professor Armand (Ole Søltoft) to give them all a good dose of medicine that will suppress any and all erotic urges. Too bad for Armand that he accidentally switches briefcases with Professor Bomwitz (Bent Warburg), who has just developed the world’s most powerful aphrodisiac. Doh!
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