The filmmakers succeeded in tracking down most of the original DDD's cast and crew—at least the male ones, who are mostly still proud to be associated with it—and so the film is almost more insightful as a look at what happens to ex-porn stars than as a document on DDD. The female stars of Debbie, with one exception, do not participate, either because they're dead or because they're now religious—which raises interesting issues about the relationships between women porn stars, drugs, and religion. This is one of several intriguing concepts that is not really explored to any depth in DDDU. The most interesting segments of the film are interviews with law officials and mobsters, each of whom offers a unique perspective on the DDD phenomenon. Both sides are, in their own ways, fascinating; my favorite moment was probably when a former FBI anti-porn agent cites "people having sex with snakes" as one of the only forms of porn that truly disturbs him … and ambivalently adds child porn as an afterthought. I was glad to see the unheralded Arcadia Lake get her due props here, and while I was drawn in by the "What happened to Bambi Woods?" mystery plot, I correctly predicted I'd be disappointed by the mystery not being solved. What DDDU does succeed in doing is illustrating "a lot of sad endings" to the people involved with the film, but unfortunately there is just not enough actual subject matter here to sustain even 45 minutes. Interestingly, that's exactly what my ex-wife used to say about me in the sack.
Review by |