IMDb RATING
5.7/10
2.6K
YOUR RATING
A man desperate for money and no income, turns prostitute and interplays with a variety of clients and hustlers.A man desperate for money and no income, turns prostitute and interplays with a variety of clients and hustlers.A man desperate for money and no income, turns prostitute and interplays with a variety of clients and hustlers.
- Awards
- 1 win
Roberto D'Allesandro
- Boy in the Street #2
- (uncredited)
Jed Johnson
- Solicitor
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaUK censor John Trevelyan was wary of issuing the film a cinema certificate and suggested to the distributors that the film be shown on a club basis. When it was initially shown at the Open Space Theatre in London in February 1970 the cinema was raided by police who attempted to seize the film, leading Trevelyan himself to hastily rush to the cinema and vigorously defend the movie against possible prosecution, calling the police action 'unjustified and preposterous'. In the light of this incident Trevelyan was able to grant the film an uncut 'X' certificate.
- GoofsDuring a scene with the go-go dancer, Candy and Jackie alternately call her by the character's first name (Terry) and that of the actress playing her (Geri Miller).
- Quotes
Joe, the Hustler: How am I supposed to make any money without clean underwear?
- Crazy creditsThe opening credits run sideways and list Warhol's name, the title, the main cast members, and that it was written, photographed and directed by Paul Morissey.
- ConnectionsEdited into Porn to Be Free (2016)
- SoundtracksMakin' Wicky Wacky Down in Waikiki
Performed by Sophie Tucker.
Featured review
the passive object of desire
Flesh is the first film of a trilogy by Paul Morrissey and Andy Warhol, and is perhaps the first attempt to create an icon of desire out of a male leading role. Although the film is focused on an uncomplicated character development of Joe (Joe Dallesandro), a gentle and subtly unhappy hustler, it depicts him as a passive and ambivalent object, who, in spite of a semi-evident sense of self-control, is possessed, shaped, and evaluated entirely by others. Joe is a young and somewhat naive Adonis who exudes comfort and beauty in his independence, but he works the streets to support his lesbian wife and her girlfriend. He is restlessly bored by an artist/customer's speeches on Greek athletic sculpture and 'body worship', but he sells his nudity anyway. He regards the increasing advances of his homosexual friend with ambivalence, but lets them happen nonetheless. This passivity dominates the film and succeeds in creating a visceral element to Dallesandro's appeal: not only is he desired, he is had.
Perhaps the film's most interesting element is the balance of its obviously experimental nature with its palpable directness. The snappy editing and fragmented dialogue make it fresh and 'real', yet it manages not to rely on the clichéd abstractness of art-films. It is rough, and indeed a weaker effort than Trash or Heat, but nonetheless presents a collection of perfectly plausible characters in a light of almost absolute neutrality.
Perhaps the film's most interesting element is the balance of its obviously experimental nature with its palpable directness. The snappy editing and fragmented dialogue make it fresh and 'real', yet it manages not to rely on the clichéd abstractness of art-films. It is rough, and indeed a weaker effort than Trash or Heat, but nonetheless presents a collection of perfectly plausible characters in a light of almost absolute neutrality.
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Details
Box office
- Budget
- $4,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 29 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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