The women at the Lusty Lady peep show seem at ease in their work. They gyrate on poles and flirt jovially with customers behind glass, and watching them do their jobs feels no different than watching workers in any other workplace.
But these exotic dancers are fighting for their rights as well. They’re trying to unionize and they protest issues like no sick leave, racial discrimination, and privacy and safety concerns.
The Movie
Despite the title, there is not a lot of nudity in this movie. The women in this film are mostly clothed and any nudity that occurs is more emotional than physical. The actresses in this film do an excellent job of delivering natural, unaffected performances. This is particularly true of Kim Cattrall, who rarely does nude movies but gives a very credible performance here.
Director/writer Julia Query (who codirected with Vicky Funari) was raised by her feminist mother to believe, she says, in ''freedom, justice and equality for all.'' She is a graduate-school dropout and a stand-up comedian, and she also worked as a stripper at the Lusty Lady, a San Francisco peep show house.
Despite the fact that Live Nude Girls is a ''B-grade'', low budget, 5.0 rated movie, it is pretty funny and does have some good performances. I would recommend it to anyone who is not offended by a bit of sexual talk and some very brief nude scenes.
The Cast
In addition to the obvious exploitation of female nudity, this film has a contrived and shallow script. It reflects a tremendous lack of intelligence, sensitivity and wit. The women’s romping, nude talk and steamy sexual fantasies are sophomoric and vulgar. The use of profanities is also offensive and unnecessary.
Girlhood friends Jill (Dana Delany), a B-movie actress about to get married, Georgina (Lora Zane) a bisexual hostess, and competitive sisters Rachel and Marcy (Cynthia Stevenson) gather for a sleepover party in honor of their friend Jamie’s impending marriage. The women discuss their hopes, fears and fantasies as the evening progresses. They also discuss their relationships with men, and share intimate sexual fantasies. Although there is nudity, it’s more psychological than physical. The movie is a must-see for anyone who is a fan of bad movies.
The Plot
Dana Delany, Kim Cattrall, Live nude girls Cynthia Stevenson, Laila Robins and Lora Zane star as girlhood friends who gather to celebrate the impending nuptials of one of their number. They spend the night gabfesting, squabbling and sharing intimate sexual fantasies as they get closer together.
The cast is strong and the script has a genuine feel, but it isn’t funny. The story is trite and contrived with a lot of sophomoric, shallow and rude sexual talk and descriptions.
The characters are a little too stereotypical but there are some in-jokes for fans of Dana Delany and Kim Cattrall (who was in the PBS documentary, Asylum). Query has directed for TV but this is her first feature film. Jay Leggett, who co-wrote this with Query and died before the movie was released, was a prolific comedy writer for TV and movies. He honed his skills at WTHI in Terre Haute, Indiana and worked in entertainment reporting before moving into acting and writing.
The Final Words
With a provocative title, the movie “Live Nude Girls” has a strong chance of disappointing viewers who go to see it expecting a film of strippers. Although there are some bared breasts and discreetly-photographed limbs and torsos, most of the nudeness in the movie is of the emotional, rather than the physical, kind.
The movie reflects on the issues of sex work and relationships among women. It also addresses feminist debates on whether sex work is inherently exploitative. Julia Query, who is the codirector and actress in this film, was raised by her mother to believe, she says, 'in freedom, justice and equality for all.'
Olive Films releases this movie on Blu-ray in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and presents it in 1080p high definition. Image quality is generally quite good with some shots displaying a bit of jaggedness and ill-defined focus, but overall this is a very watchable presentation. The soundtrack features some pretty decent jazz music as well.
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