The Lickerish Quartet

It's a pretty adventurous movie, poised rather uneasily between constant arty inventiveness and a distinctly stilted coating of baroque overemphasis that, of course, makes due space for the porno calculations. From the very first scene of the family watching the dirty movies, heard initially as disembodied heads in darkness, there's an obvious hankering after seriousness, and the astonishment is that this ambition never becomes utterly foolish. It's quite a provocative film, and would likely not seem so dated with warmer, more nuanced actors, a less obviously titillating style, and without the unfortunate montages of running through the fields and suchlike to the accompaniment of gooey sixties music. There's ultimately no real revelation though, despite the constant return to doubling and echoing and evocation of the odd relationship between art and life, but it gives the feeling of having been intuitively (more than intellectually) shaped and prodded into something quite coherent. The highly designed library sex scene hardly fits but is memorable in its own right.

This was one of the films that brought Radley Metzger to the forefront of mainstream erotic films. The narrative is interesting and full of tricks. It uses flashbacks, pseudoflashbacks and multiple perspectives. Yes, it's a bit pretentious, but the plot keeps you watching. And how about that library scene? I laughed aloud when I saw it, being comfortably ensconsed in an apartment full of many books I haven't read either. Maybe what I need is a mistress to sweep everything away like that!!

It's hard for me to rate this movie because I have no reference to what porn or sexploitation film was like in the late 60s. This is definitely not one of those seedy production, but actually a decent dramatic movie.

I understand that the director was born in New York, but the movie has European flavor to it. The world was going through the sexual revolution, and many experimental films were created during this period. What I see in this movie is what the French used to call Nouvelle Vague (New Wave) where the reason for the story takes back seat to the unintelligible vagueness that's supposed to enhance the artistry of the production.

Nouvelle Vague didn't last too long as it didn't gather much following, but there were more than few of this type of movies made by Jean-Luc Godard and Roger Vadim. In fact, the film strongly reminds me of Roger Vadim's style of film making.

I have to give credit to the beauty of this film. The director certainly has eyes for keeping interesting and clean appearance to the picture.

How you rate the story of the movie probably differs widely depending on the audience. I kind of liked it for its modern appearance, and interesting story.

It really took me back in time to experience what it was like to live in the '60s and very early '70s. It will probably do the same to you.

This movie left me confused at times. This is one of those movies with confusing endings. If you watch this film, watch very closely, because if you're going to forward throughout the whole thing, then you miss out. There is some nudity in the film and brief frontal nudity. I wouldn't say there is real "sex" in the film, so don't get confused by what you read about the film. I hope this helps you understand a little about this film. I'll give it 7/10 for the little things in the movie(you'll see what I mean by watching it).

'The Lickerish Quartet' is very much a product of the early 70s when the idea of mixing the art movie and soft core genres was in vogue. Radley Metzger created a fascinating albeit very pretentious pseudo-psychedelic mindbender which is quite unlike any other similar movie of this era. At times I was reminded a little of Jess Franco's 'Succubus', but 'The Lickerish Quartet' is truly a one-off. Metzger plays with time, with frequent cuts, flashbacks, flashforwards, and dream sequences, so by the end fantasy and reality are blurred, and everybody, including the audience, is no longer exactly sure what actually happened, and what didn't. Silvana Venturelli is beautiful and well cast as the mysterious "visitor", and Frank Wolff ('Cold Eyes Of Fear') stands out from the supporting cast, as the wealthy sophisticate who gets a lot more than he bargains for. This movie is a real treat for lovers of 60s and 70s "head" movies, and will appeal to fans of Jodorowsky and Bunuel as much as Franco or Jean Rollin. Highly recommended.