The Film: 3.5/5

Over a decade after a low-budget porn flick by the name of Deep Throat broke box office records and became not only a cultural landmark but a phrase never to be forgotten in American legal and political circles, its director Gerard Damiano rolled cameras on what was to be a follow-up in name only. There would be no deep throating and the original’s infamous starlet Linda Lovelace was understandably absent as she was in the midst of her second career as an anti-pornography crusader, but the aptly titled Throat….12 Years After turned out to be far more intelligent and thought-provoking than its infinitely more popular predecessor.

Not only that, but Damiano assembled a cast of seasoned professionals and hungry newcomers in the adult film industry who were just as talented performing simple dialogue scenes as they were engaging in multiple bouts of carnal shenanigans, each one lovingly photographed in shades of pink and blue by the great Larry Revene (whose credits include Roger Watkins’ classic XXX thriller Corruption and the indescribably moronic early 90’s Italian creature feature Contamination .7) and Arthur D. Marks (credited as Mark Place), who later shot several lowbrow exploitation movies for the prolific gay porn director Tim Kincaid – among them Robot Holocaust, Breeders, and Riot on 42^nd Street.

I suppose that the decision to drop the “Deep” from Deep Throat was made to ensure that audiences wouldn’t go into 12 Years After with expectations doomed to go unrealized. Damiano, who also wrote the script, instead focuses the film on the stories of two couples who are linked in predictable ways. First there’s Walter (George Payne), an accountant, and his homemaker wife Marsha (Michelle Maren). This young married couple has been experiencing a lack of activity in the bedroom, compelling Walter to seek sexual solace from a talkative hooker (Sharon Mitchell) and Marsha to engage handsome meter reader Joe (Eric Edwards) in helping her conduct some ribald research that could save her marriage.

Their friends Louise (Sharon Kane) and Andy (Joey Silvera) are happily married and their secret happens to be that when the sun goes down, they go out to swing with the latest lover of each other’s choice. Louise takes a little interest in inexperienced male prostitute Kevin (Jerry Butler) and Andy squires his dim bulb secretary Cindy (Joanna Storm) to a members-only underground sex club called the Sewer that is located in a seedy New York neighborhood and run by the caring and sensual Mother (Annie Sprinkle, in a non-sex role unfortunately).

At the Sewer, they enjoy amorous alcoholic beverages (Cindy’s is given a unique additional ingredient by their bottomless waiter, played by Marc Stevens, that most habitual restaurant customers assume the wait staff adds to the meals once the kitchen doors are closed) and join in the orgy on the club’s center stage. Performers in this sequence include the gorgeous Annette Heinz, and one of the young actors getting a blowjob in a revolving cage is none other than Bill Landis, the late founder and publisher of the influential exploitation cinema fan ‘zine Sleazoid Express, who is credited here as “Bobby Spector”, the pseudonym he used in over thirty adult films from 1983 to 1989.

Once the film has more than met its quota of copious copulation, Louise and Andy invite the newly liberated and happier than ever Walter and Marsha over to their decadent pad for drinks and a viewing of the original Deep Throat (which we never see clips of, likely due to copyright issues). All is well.

That wasn’t a synopsis of the plot that I just provided you. That was the plot. It’s almost impossible to spoil a porno because, and this is one of the oldest moviegoing clichés in the book, no one goes to see a porno for the plot. That’s not a disservice to these movies because they’re only made in the first place to get their audiences off, but many of them manage to stand out over the decades in the face of serious competition by being genuinely well-made and featuring strong, competent performances and dialogue scenes that are written with maturity and skill and don’t serve solely to pad out the running time between bouts of sweaty sex. Even when not expected to strip to the nude and perform positions chosen at random from the Kama Sutra, the actors seem engaged and interested in the development of their characters and relationships.

The individual characters are at their best when they’re not playing against their onscreen significant others. Sharon Mitchell could generate enough sexual heat to speed up global warming just by talking and she has good chemistry with Payne. She tells her aroused customer a story about how, as a high school cheerleader, she gave a male student a blowjob through a chain link fence at the same time she orally pleasures Walter. The editing by the director’s wife Paula Reisenwitz Damiano playfully jumps back and forth through time as images from the hooker’s story begin to match with her present-day encounter with Walter. Damiano employs the same editing technique during a scene later in the film and they both achieve a hypnotic effect.

The most memorable dramatic scenes are Marsha’s kitchen conversations with her mother (Margot DuMont), and later Joe. How rare it must be for a character in a porno flick to not only have an elderly mom but actually exchange meaningful lines of dialogue with her. The same goes for her daytime dalliance with Joe, which begins with coffee and ends with an impromptu lingerie fashion show followed by hot sex. Michelle Maren only did a handful of XXX features, few of them involved sex, but she proves to be a natural in the acting department and more than a match for the better-known Eric Edwards when things go from flirty to dirty in a matter of minutes.

The rest of the cast, particularly Silvera and Kane, are in fine form regardless of what the film requires of them. The production was shot in and around New York City, granting Damiano (who cameos as the cab driver who squires Andy and Cindy to their nighttime rendezvous at the Sewer) and Revene to capture some great outdoor footage of the greatest American city to supplement the heavily stage-bound sex scenes and provide extra color and geography that most adult filmmakers wouldn’t even bother with in the first place. It’s the little touches such as those that, along with the excellent writing and cinematography, make Throat far better than your average mid-80’s skin flick.

Audio/Video: 4.5/5

Throat makes its debut on Region A Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome in a crisp and sumptuous new 1080p high-definition transfer in its original 1.85:1 widescreen aspect ratio. Recently scanned and restored in 2k resolution from the original 35mm camera negative, the film absolutely cannot look any better than this. The picture quality is quite clean and retains an authentic film-like appearance thanks to the balanced and consistent amount of grain. Print damage is practically nowhere to be found, while fine details are sharper than ever and the improved color timing reveals a fanciful array of vibrant hues not unlike most adult features shot on film and produced in the 1980’s. The much welcome improvement in image stability is terrific. On the sound side of things, the Blu-ray comes with an English DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0 mono track that does its job well by presenting a flat yet overall pleasurable replication of the theatrical sound mix with its skillful integration of the dialogue, coital moaning and groaning, and canned porn music without any single component overwhelming the rest or being unnecessarily relegated to the background. English subtitles have also been provided.

Extras: 4/5

The bonus features were all produced exclusively for this release and begin with an audio interview with co-star Sharon Kane conducted by Vinegar Syndrome’s Casey Scott that can be accessed as an alternate audio track during the film. The discussion covers Kane’s participation in 12 Years After and provides a detailed overview of her career in the adult film industry with plenty of juicy anecdotes, fond remembrances, and honest observations.

Looking as lovely as ever, Michelle Maren is the subject of the new video interview featurette “Making Michelle” (32 minutes), in which the Throat star recounts fleeing an abusive upbringing in small town New Jersey to find fame and fortune in NYC, a stint as a beauty queen that led to her becoming a magician’s assistant and opening act for Tiny Tim in Atlantic City, going into “glamour modeling” (a.k.a. nude modeling), and how that ultimately resulted in her appearing in several porn features. Throat was the first film in which Maren had a speaking part and performed sex onscreen, and her stories about working with Damiano are candid and interesting; unsurprisingly, the use of cocaine on the set was encouraged among the talent. She talks about how growing up with little to no self-esteem helped her find empowerment and confidence in modeling and acting. It’s a great interview with Maren in high spirits throughout.

“Filming Throat” (20 minutes) finds cinematographer Larry Revene dryly recalling his early days in adult cinema, his relationship with Damiano, positive impressions of other individuals in the industry with whom he worked, and more. His stories aren’t as interesting as those of Maren, but anyone fascinated with the more mundane professional and technical areas of making porn might enjoy this interview. The original theatrical trailer (3 minutes) closes out the extras.

Vinegar Syndrome has also supplied this set with a Region 1 DVD copy containing the remastered feature and the accompanying supplements, as well as reversible cover art.

Overall: 4/5

Throat….12 Years After is a first-rate adult feature from director Gerard Damiano, a thoughtful and lusty drama with fine performances, lush cinematography, and the occasional bit of offbeat humor to cover all the bases for an entertaining XXX flick. The outstanding restoration and insightful supplemental content help to make this Blu-ray/DVD combo pack a definite recommendation for those among you who appreciate the better porno efforts from the genre’s heyday.