Il complesso del trapianto

I agree with all who describe this film as poorly marketed. I'm not however sure what the correct marketing would be! The movie begins as a bawdy comedy and eventually becomes a rather sweet tale of people in pursuit of love, or a least a respite from loneliness or simple boredom. Some nice characters played by British stalwarts including Graham Crowden and Sheila Steafal. Cyd Hayman is stunning and charming in equal degree. Hywel Bennet is as reliable as always. Seems to be one of those films where a slightly confused script just seems to work. However my real weakness for this movie is that it captures London at the time beautifully. Like a swinging sixties movies (though released 1971 so presumably filmed 70 or 71) it catches the mood. Catch it if you can.

I've always been fond of this film. The seemingly intentional mis-marketing as a raunchy comedy is not uncommon for the time, and is really damaging to what is essentially a look at sexual relationships and sexuality. There's a sweet naivety about the films perspective, caught up in the era in which is was released. Not much raunchiness, innuendo base titillation is more the course. As for the comedy there are a few laughs, and they do help alleviate some of the melancholy moments. For me it's in the emotional twists and turns that the film really shows interest and variety.

The Kinks wrote and performed the soundtrack. The songs are well constructed with some touchingly sentimental moments. An appreciation of The Kinks would most certainly aid ones appreciation the film, the lyrics embellishing he drama considerably.

I'm really surprised this film has been rated so low. How much of that is related to the mis-marketing and an under appreciation of the soundtrack?

You might think that a movie concerning itself with a man getting a penis transplant and his adventures trying to find out about the donor would be a really raunchy affair. Surprisingly, the movie is extremely tame - there's almost no nudity, sex, or foul language. In fact, I am surprised this got an "R" rating even in 1971. Another surprise is that the movie doesn't try for as many attempts at humor as you might think. The second half of the movie is serious for the most part. As you might have guessed, this movie is not that much fun, and you'll get tired from it long before the end. The most curious thing about it is the score from The Kinks. It doesn't fit the movie for the most part, like how they play an instrumental of "Lola" when a woman is stripteasing for the main male character! Somehow this movie was successful enough to inspire a sequel several years later. Thanks, but I think I'll pass.

"Percy" has taken such a battering down the years i felt it was time to write something in its defence. The most dubious content occurs early on, but for the most part Percy is surprisingly thoughtful, with the organ recipient coming to realise that he can only enjoy a meaningful sexual relationship with someone he really loves. The late actor Hywel Bennett bitterly regretted his involvement with the film but at least he gives his character a sensitive side; in lesser hands, eg Robin Asquith's, it would indeed have been 90 minutes of terrible kn*b gags.

Also going for it is a brief cameo by George Best, a rather fine soundtrack by the Kinks, and some nice glimpses of late era swinging London. Unusually for its time, Percy also treats a gay character with respect rather than making him a figure of fun.

Sadly upon its release Percy got lumped in with the dire Confessions/Carry On films, but having watched it a couple of times on Channel 4 i can vouch that it's better than those, and Hywel Bennett had nothing to be ashamed of.

When antiques dealer Edwin (Hywel Bennett) loses his tally-whacker in a freak accident, he becomes the first ever patient to undergo a penis transplant.

The permissive society of the swinging sixties and early seventies gave rise to the great British sex comedy, bawdy farces that offered cheap titillation to the masses in the form of ribald innuendo, silly sexual situations, and gratuitous nudity.

Percy looks set to be a classic example of the genre, it's penis transplant subject matter lending itself perfectly to such bawdy treatment, and sure enough, viewers are quickly treated to some suggestive dialogue, unsubtle phallic imagery and curvaceous beauties in skimpy outfits. The lowbrow laughs don't last long, however, soon giving way to a much more sober approach, the film focusing instead on Edwin's confusion and emotional turmoil following his operation.

This shift to a more ponderous tone serves to make Percy a more respectable movie than it could otherwise have been—a shame, 'cos I'd been looking forward to a huge helping of shameless smut and seriously saucy giggles and what I actually got was that guy from Shelley looking downright miserable (yet again) even when faced with a series of sexy 70s babes desperate for a seeing to.

One thing's for sure, Robin Askwith wouldn't have wasted time deliberating his dilemma when he could've been testing out his new todger!