Product Description A Life in Dirty Movies is a love story about legendary sexploitation director Joe Sarno, the Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street, and his loyal wife and collaborator Peggy. The film follows the Sarnos for a year, as 88 year old Joe struggles to get what may be his last film project off the ground. The film s intimate perspective reveals a filmmaker s golden years and the search for significance once again. Intercut is a look back to the evolution of softcore films into hardcore porn that all but put Sarno out of business. A Life in Dirty Movies is a clever and sincere portrait of a unique couple who follow their passion in life onscreen and off. Review OFFICIAL SELECTION - BFI London FF OFFICIAL SELECTION - DOC NYC OFFICIAL SELECTION - Gothenburg Intl FF A Life in Dirty Movies...truly hits home with a heartwarming look at Mr. Sarno's relationship with his wife, Peggy. -- Nic Rapold, The New York Times A sweet and illuminating journey into cult cinema history… -- Stephen Dalton, The Hollywood Reporter ----Joseph and Peggy Sarno make for a poignant elderly couple, perhaps an embodiment of the dream of growing old together. -- Chuck Bowen, Slant Magazine ----3-Stars! - RogerEbert.com 3-Stars! - Slant Magazine ----
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About the Actor Joseph W. Sarno wrote and directed nearly a hundred films in the sexploitation, softcore and hardcore genres. Starting out in New York in the 1960s, he fell into directing sex films by accident, but soon established himself as a true pioneer of the genre - an erotic auteur with a unique artistic voice. Peggy Steffans-Sarno was as an actress in some of Joes early films. Rebelling against her conservative parents, she married the erotic filmmaker 17 years her senior and soon became his muse and closest collaborator. See more
Reviews
4.6
All from verified purchases
P**Y
Surprised because I actually enjoyed it!
I didn't purchase this here on Amazon.com but instead watched it on AT&T On Demand. I leave so many reviews here on Amazon.com for products I've purchased that I thought it would be great to leave a review about this.I'm an 80s kid and by the time I was coming along, there was nothing but hard core porn movies and to be quite honest didn't know what sexploitation was. I actually watched this documentary out of curiosity and boredom one night and was pleasantly surprised and introduced to erotic soft-core porn that I never knew existed. I had never heard of the Sarnos and was intrigued by their commitment to bring audiences soft core porn with real story lines and a certain film noir quality. I was impressed that his movies weren't just wham bam thank you ma'am but really focused on the woman's pleasure unlike so many porn movies today. From what little I had seen about his work in the documentary, his movies had just the right eroticism I like. In fact I was shocked that society had traded such interesting porn for what we have today. I'd love for porn movies to get back to this. There's nothing like a slow work-up to that good stuff with elements of darkness that appeals to an intellectual mind.Needless to say, after watching this documentary, I wanted to watch some of his movies but none were on On Demand. So I'm on a quest to buy as many as I can. I've since seen some vintage porn from that era and loved it. I definitely think the vintage stuff is better than what we have today. Of course I'm a woman so that may have something to do with this preference. It's also nice to see natural women that haven't had their breasts augmented. In fact, hands down to vintage porn for this. More natural un-shaven bodies feel more realistic to me when I'm watching old porn. It's more relatable.The documentary also gives us a nice intimate portrait of a loving couple in their golden age and a good sense of their commitment to each other. What an amazing woman to be comfortable enough with herself to trust her husband in such a business as this. Not sure if women of today could handle such a thing. It must have been so much fun to work together and I definitely sensed this while watching this documentary.Anyway, just wanted to give my 2 cents as someone who missed out on this great period of golden age porn.*****Update***** Decided to purchase my very own copy!
A**R
Adult filmmaker humanized and made loveable, along with his help-mate
The film celebrates that short period of time when tease and soft-core were new, when actresses were allowed to show some skin and were willing to do so, and female characters were sexually adventurous. Sarno was forced into hardcore but his ladies remained ladies. When Andrew Sarris gives your film a thumbs up, it's art, man.
E**N
ONE MORE TIME
About an elderly former movie writer/director who has come up with a new script that he desires to film a movie. The only issue is...FUNDING! This recounts his early success and includes actual images. Insightful.
J**D
Disarmingly Charming
Joe Sarno and his wife Peggy had a long and happy marriage. Peggy was Joe's adviser, collaborator, and critic, playing an indispensable role in his successful career. The career? Pornography, beginning with soft-core in the 1960s and gradually (less successfully) moving into hard-core in the 80s and 90s. Joe was known as the "Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street" for the artistry with which he produced work that stood out from the common herd. He held the quaint conviction that a porno film's characters should have a back story and that the plot line ought to make sense.This documentary has plenty of material taken from Joe's movies, interspersed with film showing the Sarnos in their later lives, particularly the last year of Joe's life when he was struggling to produce one last film. I found Joe and Peggy to be warm, likeable people with a disarmingly prosaic outlook on life and on their career. Whether by happenstance or by design, quite a bit of what was said in the interviews could be taken more than one way. The final scene, in which Peggy proudly shows off Joe's New York Times obituary, is especially heartwarming.So, definitely not for family viewing, but definitely worthwhile.
H**N
A delightful film about a lovely relationship between a husband ...
A delightful film about a lovely relationship between a husband and wife, now in old age, who happened to make erotic movies together when they were young. Joe Sarnos is well-known as an auteur of soft-core erotic films in the 1960s and 1970s, the "Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street." A touching and well-done documentary. Based on screening of it I saw in NY at the Anthology Archives.
A**D
Five Stars
This is a very good and touching documentary. About passion for movies, love and companionship.
G**P
The way things were
Writer/Director Wiktor Ericsson presents a documentary shot at the end of pornographer Joe Sarnos's life, which reveals his attempt to make one last film, as well as his relationship with his wife, Peggy. Or perhaps as better summarized, THE SARNOS - A LIFE IN DIRTY MOVIES is a love story about legendary sexploitation director Joe Sarno, "The Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street", and his loyal wife and collaborator Peggy - their place in sex film history, life between New York and Sweden, and their struggle to make one last erotic film. A funny and touching portrait of a unique couple who has followed their passion in life - no matter the cost!'By today's `standards' this is a very mild piece - nothing like we see on television every day an din most films no matter the genre. There is a certain very entertaining and endearing simplicity and honesty about the film and once seen it makes the viewer grateful that documentaries such as this are now taken seriously. Grady Harp, January 15
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Joseph W. Sarno wrote and directed nearly a hundred films in the sexploitation, softcore and hardcore genres. Starting out in New York in the 1960s, he fell into directing sex films by accident, but soon established himself as a true pioneer of the genre - an erotic auteur with a unique artistic voice.
Peggy Steffans-Sarno was as an actress in some of Joes early films. Rebelling against her conservative parents, she married the erotic filmmaker 17 years her senior and soon became his muse and closest collaborator.
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I leave so many reviews here on Amazon.com for products I've purchased that I thought it would be great to leave a review about this.I'm an 80s kid and by the time I was coming along, there was nothing but hard core porn movies and to be quite honest didn't know what sexploitation was. I actually watched this documentary out of curiosity and boredom one night and was pleasantly surprised and introduced to erotic soft-core porn that I never knew existed. I had never heard of the Sarnos and was intrigued by their commitment to bring audiences soft core porn with real story lines and a certain film noir quality. I was impressed that his movies weren't just wham bam thank you ma'am but really focused on the woman's pleasure unlike so many porn movies today. From what little I had seen about his work in the documentary, his movies had just the right eroticism I like. In fact I was shocked that society had traded such interesting porn for what we have today. I'd love for porn movies to get back to this. There's nothing like a slow work-up to that good stuff with elements of darkness that appeals to an intellectual mind.Needless to say, after watching this documentary, I wanted to watch some of his movies but none were on On Demand. So I'm on a quest to buy as many as I can. I've since seen some vintage porn from that era and loved it. I definitely think the vintage stuff is better than what we have today. Of course I'm a woman so that may have something to do with this preference. It's also nice to see natural women that haven't had their breasts augmented. In fact, hands down to vintage porn for this. More natural un-shaven bodies feel more realistic to me when I'm watching old porn. It's more relatable.The documentary also gives us a nice intimate portrait of a loving couple in their golden age and a good sense of their commitment to each other. What an amazing woman to be comfortable enough with herself to trust her husband in such a business as this. Not sure if women of today could handle such a thing. It must have been so much fun to work together and I definitely sensed this while watching this documentary.Anyway, just wanted to give my 2 cents as someone who missed out on this great period of golden age porn.*****Update***** Decided to purchase my very own copy!"},{"@type":"Review","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":"5.0"},"author":{"@type":"Person","name":"A***R"},"datePublished":"Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 29, 2018","name":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n Adult filmmaker humanized and made loveable, along with his help-mate\n \n","reviewBody":"The film celebrates that short period of time when tease and soft-core were new, when actresses were allowed to show some skin and were willing to do so, and female characters were sexually adventurous. Sarno was forced into hardcore but his ladies remained ladies. When Andrew Sarris gives your film a thumbs up, it's art, man."},{"@type":"Review","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":"4.0"},"author":{"@type":"Person","name":"E***N"},"datePublished":"Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 5, 2021","name":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n ONE MORE TIME\n \n","reviewBody":"About an elderly former movie writer/director who has come up with a new script that he desires to film a movie. The only issue is...FUNDING! This recounts his early success and includes actual images. Insightful."},{"@type":"Review","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":"5.0"},"author":{"@type":"Person","name":"J***D"},"datePublished":"Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 7, 2014","name":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n Disarmingly Charming\n \n","reviewBody":"Joe Sarno and his wife Peggy had a long and happy marriage. Peggy was Joe's adviser, collaborator, and critic, playing an indispensable role in his successful career. The career? Pornography, beginning with soft-core in the 1960s and gradually (less successfully) moving into hard-core in the 80s and 90s. Joe was known as the \"Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street\" for the artistry with which he produced work that stood out from the common herd. He held the quaint conviction that a porno film's characters should have a back story and that the plot line ought to make sense.This documentary has plenty of material taken from Joe's movies, interspersed with film showing the Sarnos in their later lives, particularly the last year of Joe's life when he was struggling to produce one last film. I found Joe and Peggy to be warm, likeable people with a disarmingly prosaic outlook on life and on their career. Whether by happenstance or by design, quite a bit of what was said in the interviews could be taken more than one way. The final scene, in which Peggy proudly shows off Joe's New York Times obituary, is especially heartwarming.So, definitely not for family viewing, but definitely worthwhile."},{"@type":"Review","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":"5.0"},"author":{"@type":"Person","name":"H***N"},"datePublished":"Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 23, 2014","name":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n A delightful film about a lovely relationship between a husband ...\n \n","reviewBody":"A delightful film about a lovely relationship between a husband and wife, now in old age, who happened to make erotic movies together when they were young. Joe Sarnos is well-known as an auteur of soft-core erotic films in the 1960s and 1970s, the \"Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street.\" A touching and well-done documentary. Based on screening of it I saw in NY at the Anthology Archives."},{"@type":"Review","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":"5.0"},"author":{"@type":"Person","name":"A***D"},"datePublished":"Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 13, 2014","name":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n Five Stars\n \n","reviewBody":"This is a very good and touching documentary. About passion for movies, love and companionship."},{"@type":"Review","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":"4.0"},"author":{"@type":"Person","name":"G***P"},"datePublished":"Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 1, 2015","name":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n The way things were\n \n","reviewBody":"Writer/Director Wiktor Ericsson presents a documentary shot at the end of pornographer Joe Sarnos's life, which reveals his attempt to make one last film, as well as his relationship with his wife, Peggy. Or perhaps as better summarized, THE SARNOS - A LIFE IN DIRTY MOVIES is a love story about legendary sexploitation director Joe Sarno, \"The Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street\", and his loyal wife and collaborator Peggy - their place in sex film history, life between New York and Sweden, and their struggle to make one last erotic film. A funny and touching portrait of a unique couple who has followed their passion in life - no matter the cost!'By today's `standards' this is a very mild piece - nothing like we see on television every day an din most films no matter the genre. There is a certain very entertaining and endearing simplicity and honesty about the film and once seen it makes the viewer grateful that documentaries such as this are now taken seriously. Grady Harp, January 15"}],"aggregateRating":{"@type":"AggregateRating","ratingValue":4.714285714285714,"bestRating":5,"ratingCount":7}}
