I caught FRANCY'S Friday (that's the title I wrote in my screening diary) back in 1974 at a local drive-in, and remembered enjoying it. So I'm extremely thankful that Something Weird recently revived this forgotten title on DVD-R, looking great.
Directed by Curt Ledger, credited with the strange though not very good SHE CAME ON THE BUS, FRANCY's is a complex softcore drama which plays like a circa 1965 film, though with full frontal nudity (circa 1969). It's in black & white, a format no longer used in the '70s other than for period pieces like Bogdanovich's THE LAST PICTURE SHOW and PAPER MOON.
Alisha Fontaine, perhaps my favorite starlet back in the '70s whose films regularly played drive-in venues, is perfectly cast in the title role, a teenage brat who inherits her family estate after tragedy hits both daddy and mommy.
Story unfolds on one Friday, a day of the week that had been fateful in the past for Francy, and she narrates a seemingly endless series of flashbacks filling out the feature's lengthy (95 minutes) running time.
Back at age nine she was exposed to sex, overhearing and seeing (voyeuristically) her mom Roz's infidelity with family friend Jordan and later having a gang-bang with Jordan and two other guys when daddy is unable to attend their poker foursome (!).
MANY SPOILERS AHEAD:
Latter event ends unhappily when Roz falls and is paralyzed. Ledger's melodramatic script has Roz later falling down the stairs to her death after killing Francy's dog out of spite in a somewhat clumsy sequence. Film has skimpy credits on screen, so the actress playing Roz (well-cast to match blonde Fontaine) remains unknown.
Daddy drank himself to death after Roz's first accident, leaving Francy to fend for herself as a teen. She is promiscuous at age 14, and after daddy's demise when she's 17, she agrees to a gang-bang in a guy's Cadillac (like mother, like daughter), only to be interrupted by the police.
As the storyline becomes even more complicated than a '60s Joe Sarno epic, Jordan shows up again and beds the daughter. He turns out to be a real cad, and Francy takes up with a luxury car salesman Tommy (presumably played by Ken Chandler, who gets film's 2nd billing).
Their on-again, off-again romance fills up the later reels, introducing several interesting characters: Claire, a noisy girlfriend of Tommy's whose Sarno-style orgasms give Francy ideas; Holly (played by Holly Conover in a very effective supporting role), Tommy's steady gal who he dumps for Francy; and various party guests when we finally return to the present and the big bash being held Friday night.
At this party, with everybody nude in the pool, Francy finds out how little Tommy cares about fidelity. He's humping a blonde beauty Joan right in front of everyone, including Joan's hubby Charlie (well-played flamboyantly by porn icon Patrick Wright). Tally Wright (Patrick's real-life wife) is present as another swinger at the party, completely uninhibited.
After a heart-to-heart discussion with Joan, Francy finally confronts Tommy late at night, making for a surprisingly thoughtful happy ending, as she, now aged 18, decides it's time to finally grow up.
Besides the excellent black & white lensing, film boasts an (uncredited) terrific musical score featuring folk ballads sung by Chandler (including one performance on camera), plus varied jazz themes.
Fontaine is always alluring and frequently nude throughout, with the unsung supporting cast doing yeoman work.
All told, an unusual softcore "Adults Only" porn opus that plays like a real film.
Directed by Curt Ledger, credited with the strange though not very good SHE CAME ON THE BUS, FRANCY's is a complex softcore drama which plays like a circa 1965 film, though with full frontal nudity (circa 1969). It's in black & white, a format no longer used in the '70s other than for period pieces like Bogdanovich's THE LAST PICTURE SHOW and PAPER MOON.
Alisha Fontaine, perhaps my favorite starlet back in the '70s whose films regularly played drive-in venues, is perfectly cast in the title role, a teenage brat who inherits her family estate after tragedy hits both daddy and mommy.
Story unfolds on one Friday, a day of the week that had been fateful in the past for Francy, and she narrates a seemingly endless series of flashbacks filling out the feature's lengthy (95 minutes) running time.
Back at age nine she was exposed to sex, overhearing and seeing (voyeuristically) her mom Roz's infidelity with family friend Jordan and later having a gang-bang with Jordan and two other guys when daddy is unable to attend their poker foursome (!).
MANY SPOILERS AHEAD:
Latter event ends unhappily when Roz falls and is paralyzed. Ledger's melodramatic script has Roz later falling down the stairs to her death after killing Francy's dog out of spite in a somewhat clumsy sequence. Film has skimpy credits on screen, so the actress playing Roz (well-cast to match blonde Fontaine) remains unknown.
Daddy drank himself to death after Roz's first accident, leaving Francy to fend for herself as a teen. She is promiscuous at age 14, and after daddy's demise when she's 17, she agrees to a gang-bang in a guy's Cadillac (like mother, like daughter), only to be interrupted by the police.
As the storyline becomes even more complicated than a '60s Joe Sarno epic, Jordan shows up again and beds the daughter. He turns out to be a real cad, and Francy takes up with a luxury car salesman Tommy (presumably played by Ken Chandler, who gets film's 2nd billing).
Their on-again, off-again romance fills up the later reels, introducing several interesting characters: Claire, a noisy girlfriend of Tommy's whose Sarno-style orgasms give Francy ideas; Holly (played by Holly Conover in a very effective supporting role), Tommy's steady gal who he dumps for Francy; and various party guests when we finally return to the present and the big bash being held Friday night.
At this party, with everybody nude in the pool, Francy finds out how little Tommy cares about fidelity. He's humping a blonde beauty Joan right in front of everyone, including Joan's hubby Charlie (well-played flamboyantly by porn icon Patrick Wright). Tally Wright (Patrick's real-life wife) is present as another swinger at the party, completely uninhibited.
After a heart-to-heart discussion with Joan, Francy finally confronts Tommy late at night, making for a surprisingly thoughtful happy ending, as she, now aged 18, decides it's time to finally grow up.
Besides the excellent black & white lensing, film boasts an (uncredited) terrific musical score featuring folk ballads sung by Chandler (including one performance on camera), plus varied jazz themes.
Fontaine is always alluring and frequently nude throughout, with the unsung supporting cast doing yeoman work.
All told, an unusual softcore "Adults Only" porn opus that plays like a real film.
