SEX WISH
Directed by Victor Milt. 1976. United States.
As I began this week of horror/roughie pornos with the Harry Reems vehicle FORCED ENTRY, it only makes sense to end the week by reviewing Victor Milt’s 1976 DEATH WISH knock-off, SEX WISH. The two films make for a nice pair of bookends, giving us Reems as a perverted sex maniac in the former and an avenging angel in the latter. The plot of SEX WISH is really not that different from its source of inspiration. A man is driven to vengeance after his wife is murdered by a sicko. Unfortunately, as this was a low budget skin flick shot guerrilla style in New York City, you won’t be seeing very many explosive action scenes here.
That isn’t to say the film is boring or without merit, only that it isn’t half as good as it could have been. The fact that it was clearly made to be a more approachable porn flick than the similarly grimy FORCED ENTRY doesn’t help much either. Eroticism was not a key interest of that film, but SEX WISH does in fact want the audience to have a good time, even though it ruins the integrity of the characters in the process. People in the audience want to watch consensual sex so our depressed, mourning husband needs to forget the pain of losing his wife for a few impromptu bump and grind sessions, the first of which happens only a few hours after his wife’s death.
It definitely lessens the emotional impact of the film, though I fully recognize that I might be the only person in the world who gives a shit about that fact.
While Reems makes for a likable enough protagonist, SEX WISH belongs to Zebedy Colt. Colt had already made a name for himself by writing and directing a few rough and tumble pornos like THE FARMER’S DAUGHTERS, THE INTRUSION and TERRI’S REVENGE. Violence, rape and abuse were key components of all of those films. Colt was the Adults Only equivalent of the Findleys or Joe Mawra, the kind of guy who took delight in mixing eroticism with cold blooded immorality. There was probably no one better to take on the role of the murderous Night Walker.
Colt’s performance is simply fantastic. As a self-hating homosexual man with multiple personality disorder, Colt is creepy to the fucking max, with his shrill voice and strangely calm demeanor. It made my skin crawl to watch him on screen, especially in the later parts of the film when his otherwise solid grasp on his temper began to slip. It’s a controlled, layered performance, one I didn’t think Colt was capable of giving, one that is definitely far better than the film probably deserved. While the violence on display is kept largely off-screen, the frenetic editing, handheld camerawork and (mostly) convincing performances gave the film a real hard edge. SEX WISH actually gave me a few shivers.
The action finale is satisfying and the film doesn’t take forever to get there thanks to brisk pacing and an uncluttered narrative. SEX WISH isn’t as squirm inducing or repulsive as some of the other films I’ve reviewed this week, but it is definitely one of the best of the bunch. Colt’s performance is fantastic, Reems is always an engaging actor, the women are attractive, the soundtrack is… well, it’s something else, that’s for goddamn sure… and Colt makes for a truly strange, truly creepy antagonist. SEX WISH has a lousy title, but it’s a winner in virtually every other way.