Leçons très particulières

I just finished watching this on TMC. I haven't seen it in its entirely since I was about "Philly's" age...20+ years ago (ugh). Anyway, I enjoyed it thoroughly. Yes, the acting isn't first-rate (except for Begley, Jr's); the production is B-movie; the subject is taboo; the plot's full of holes; but, it has great moments of humor, sensitivity, eroticism without being 'dirty'; and one of the best 80's soundtracks ever. This movie is about having fun. Philly's best friend was hilarious. For me, it was reminiscing about the fantasies it provided when I was a teen. I had forgotten how sweet and sexy Sylvia Kristel was in this movie. Some of her acting was still a bit amateur, but her sweet seduction was first-rate. She put a smile on my face when I needed it most...and that's all that matters.

The last time I saw this movie before getting the newly-released DVD was back in my childhood, let's say 6th or 7th grade. Back then, the naughty scenes were quite exciting and the plot was good for a giggle. And of course young, awkward boys enjoy some small hope that one day they will become more suave through kind experiences of female beauty. On general principal I thought I should add the DVD to my collection. Overall, I was not disappointed.

One major detraction I didn't remember seeing before was the crude white-paint censor blots in the two full-frontal nude scenes (boooooo!). This film has a few details on refused-classification.com which suggest that it might have been doctored in this way in order to gain its R rating, even back in 1982. I wonder why it was not offered with a "director's cut" as a special feature of the DVD (e.g. "Dressed to Kill") - artistically speaking, I would rather have a scene cut than done up with something so cheesy and distracting as a censor box (shame!).

This movie is what it is - for me it represents just a little piece of my childhood, and contains a few moments that were interesting to revisit. If the features of the DVD had been more complete I would have given it about an 8. I'm hoping I will be amused by the commentary when I hear it.

Every boy's wet dream… well that's how the early 80's sex teen comedy "Private Lessons" plays out… and maybe more audacious than most with its precariously lurid context. While I wouldn't call it one of the best of its sub-genre, it still was rather a popular and influential outing that would spawn knockoffs like "Homework", "My Tutor" and to some extent "Class". This is one of those films that its best to just go along with its low-brow attitude, as its quite asinine (especially the plot progression)cringe-like (with the circumstances characters find themselves in) and smutty. But then again the hormones run wild. Older lady… young boy. What fantasy can you think up?

15 year old Philly Fillmore's father has gone away on business, where he's left home alone with Nicole the new French housemaid. Soon Philly becomes infatuated in her, but her open advancements towards him come at a surprise. While shy at first, she slowly starts gaining his affection. But unknowingly to him, his crooked chauffeur Lester has blackmailed Nicole to seduce Philly in the scheme of getting money out of him.

What the film has going for it is the iconic soundtrack of buoyant tunes from the likes of Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton, Crazy Horse, Air Supply and Earth, Wind & Fire. It was like a jukebox at times with some oddly placed tunes. The other distracting element (other than spending a lot time leering of its attractive female cast and extras) was that of European goddess, Emmanuelle's Sylvia Kristal as teasingly upfront foreign housemaid. She looks beautiful; the best moment arises when she seductively strips in front of a gobs-smacked Eric Brown. Although another body double was used for Kristal's nude scenes. Eric Brown plays the gawky naïve young lad Philly whose curiosity turns to obsession --- in what he believes is love for the housemaid. Howard Hesseman is good as the deviously slim bag chauffeur Lester and Ed Begley Jr. has fun with his little support role. In one humorous sequence he does his best "Dirty Harry" persona with Hesseman at the end of it. Patrick Piccininni plays Philly's obnoxious pal Sherman and Pamela Jean Bryant is Sherman's stuck-up older sister that Philly kind of fancies. Or better put likes to see naked. Ron Foster turns up as Philly's father and Dan Barrows amusingly chips in as the gardener. Also showing up in minor, but enjoyable parts are Peter Elbling, Dan Greenberg (the writer) and a delightfully titillating Meridith Baer as an uptight school teacher. It's technically well-made by director Alan Myerson and breezily paced with Greenberg's simple material.

Eric Brown stars in this unintentionally hilarious male teenage fantasy flick. The delectable Sylvia Kristel appears as a French maid hired by Brown's rich parents to look after the house while they are away.

Howard Hessemann, the brilliant D.J. from W.K.R.P in Cincinatti plays the role of the family chauffeur who gets involved in a comical plot which not even a kindergarten inmate could dream up.

Watch out for the obligatory seduction scene. The fortunate Eric Brown more than made up for his modest acting ability by appearing in a number of movies where he was seduced by beautiful older women. "They're Playing with Fire" with Sybil Danning is an example.

"Private Lessons" isn't astonishingly bad... if you can look at it from the standpoint of it being a cheap adolescent thrill on late-night "Skin-emax" or any other premium station du jour. I'm mostly fine with plots involving taboo; even the "Onegai" series of anime doesn't phase me. But I will say this: the one and only reason anyone should feel compelled to watch this movie is to see the rather hot (back then anyway) Sylvia Kristel in the nude. It does have a cute premise, but it's never done much justice due to all of the amateurish writing and pacing.

Eric Brown is Phillip Fillmore (Philly Philly??), a 15-year-old kid with hormones gone berserk. In other words, he's pretty damn average. His deadbeat dad has left on a... business trip (wink wink nudge nudge) and has left Philly back home with his recently arrived immigrant housekeeper Nicole Mallow (Kristel) and sleazy chauffeur Lester (Howard Hesseman). Seems Philly's got the hots for Nicole, and Lester takes advantage of this, persuading Nicole to fake her own death at the hands (or loins) of the boy so he can make off with Philly's money like a bandit. But Nicole switches around mid-plot, deciding instead to help stop Lester's Half-Baked Evil Scheme™. Cue several slapstick hijinks culminating in a final sex scene and serve.

Obviously, you don't watch movies like this for plots, no matter how inane and far-fetched they may be; you watch them to get sprung. Alas, this was back in the early eighties, and unless you had a big name and/or a lot of cash to burn, your film was almost destined to rot in film quality hell. Such seems to have been the case with "Private Lessons," and the fact that it is billed as a comedy rather than an adult movie bewilders me to no end. Even with the nudity, the filmography is agonizing to watch, but since this was probably produced as a "quick buck" teen-pleaser, that's not surprising. Panning shots of Kristel fondling or teasing Brown while the kid makes goofy, unrealistic "shocked and amazed" expressions are about as dynamic as this thing gets.

I should also mention that the character of Philly's chubby friend (Patrick Piccininni) is simply the most irritating part of the movie in my opinion. Some people have commented that this character, who comes across as being doomed to remain a virgin for the rest of his life, is rather cute in his behavior, and I fail to see how they arrive at that judgment... as if one gawking teenage boy wasn't enough. Hesseman's character is strictly porno-level, period, end of story. Even Dan Greenburg, the author of the book this film is based on, had the ego to have a bit role as the hotel owner, even going so far as to appear fully credited in the "profile" shots of the cast during the closing credits!

It's hard to recommend "Private Lessons" for any other reason than the aforementioned Ms. Kristel and the fact that it is better than most soft-porn out there. Aside from these aspects, it's downright mediocre.