Blue Heat (1978)

This one takes the classic movie within a movie and puts a whole new pornographic twist on it, when a porno production team is tracked down by the mafia. The first half of the film doesn't work very well at all because we see various stages of film making and the problems that amaturs come across in the process. We see editing, camera angles and lots of discussion on audio complications. Its a bit hard not to laugh when the actors are stumbling on lines and background noises interfere with dialogue. Especially in one scene in a editing room where the editor is upset and requests the film be dubbed over due to squeaky couch noises. If only a squeaky couch was the issue at hand on this one.

I found the second half of the film more interesting when I realized that Blue Heat was basically a message dealing with the struggle of film makers in the adult industry in the 70's. Its no secret that the mob had their hands in the pockets of the so called artists and by the end of Blue Heat, the film almost comes off as a cry for help. There is no escape from the dangerous mobsters in the film and I suppose this is how some of the casts and crews felt back in those days.

Aside from the protest type plot, Blue Heat tries to be funny and there is lots of homage payed to the industry its self. Dorothy Lemay shows up as Annette Slavin (kinda funny) and she gives a pretty decent blowjob scene. This is followed by a strange rape scene involving a massive dildo at the hands of a money hungry mobster. Blue Heat also steals the brilliant musical score from Hitchcocks Psycho during a rough-her-up scene and one can't help but laugh. We also have a very odd scene and I still can't really tell if it was supposed to be funny or not. It shows a couple in bed discussing their fear of the mafia. Then the girl pulls the sheets up and we see a stuffed animal head peaking out from the sheets. The couple start screaming as if it was a decapitated pet of theirs. I really hope this scene was supposed to be funny because its just reidiculous.

Not the best of 70's porns but definitely not the worst either. Worth a look for all the nostalgia nerds out there who are interested in the dark side of 70's adult cinema.