- Actors: Larry Kramer, Roger McFarlane, Scott Bromley, Alvin Baltrop, Barton Benes
- Directors: Joseph Lovett
- Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC, Import
- Language: English
- Region: (US and Canada This DVD will probably NOT be viewable in other countries. Read more about DVD formats.)
- Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
- Number of discs: 1
- MPAA Rating:
- Studio: Mongrel Media
- Release Date: Jun 13 2006
- Run Time: 67 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- ASIN: B000F0UUMS
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Product Details |
Product Description
Description
Gay Sex in the 70s pays a steamy visit to the sexually charged period post-Stonewall, pre-AIDS (1969-1981) when gay men experienced an unprecedented sexual freedom.
Hailed by critics and audiences alike, GAY SEX IN THE 70s director Joseph Lovett focuses his story on New York City between 1969 and 1981, using remarkable present-day interviews and stunning archival footage to take viewers back to days just after Stonewall. Lovett takes us back to the piers, the trucks, the Central Park rambles, the back rooms, and the baths. It was a time where repression and fear were replaced by a sexual explosion, where shame became joy.
Lovett interviews such luminaries from the scene as Larry Kramer and Tom Bianchi, as well as fascinating regular guys exploring their freedom at the time. As the men continue to reminisce, the story deepens. It wasn't just about sex, they discovered, but about creating friendships and a community that never existed before. But, storm clouds emerge as the men talk about sexual obsession, how drugs entered the scene at a larger scale, and how unusual STDs began to appear.
In recreating the gay story of the 70s, Lovett shows that AIDS was not the only legacy of this period. It was also a time of brotherhood and laying the foundation of a political movement with its biggest battles still ahead. For younger people-those who came of age after the onset of the AIDS crisis-the film is a startling revelation of what everyday life was like in New York City at the time.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
From Repression to Celebration,
By
This review is from: Gay Sex in the Seventies (DVD)
This is a documentary from the film maker Josephn Lovett, he actually appears in this too. He tracks gay life in New York from 1969 and the Stonewall riots, to 1981 and the beginning of the AIDS epidemic. It uses a mix of still photos, interviews and archive film from the era to tell the tale.It is said that this period was the most sexually liberating since the times of the Roman Empire and that certainly seemed to be the case. Absolutely everyone seemed to be having more sex than they could handle, at one time one of the commentators called it the 'narcotic of sex'. It was a bit like the old advert for 'Martini' ' 'anytime, anyplace, anywhere etc'. There are some heart felt pieces about the repression that was taking place before the change in attitude, and sadly a lot of that still exists like the religious cures for being gay and even then the use of electro shock therapy as well as medication. It was also classified as a deviant mental illness. We are taken on a tour of saunas, night clubs, back rooms, sub ways and the disused piers that used to line the Hudson. There were also the back of the 'meat trucks', where you basically took a chance by entering (no pun intended) and as one guy says if you managed to leave with an orgasm and your wallet then you were doing fine. We are given a taste of the politics, the drug use and the eventual wake up call that was AIDS. There are some genuinely touching moments when some of the participants talk about lost loved ones and we are not talking a few but way too many who were taken too soon. I genuinely liked this documentary, it is only 71 minutes long and I would have liked to have seen more footage of the era and more of the music too, but that is my choice, this never portrayed itself as a gay disco party after all. For anyone interested in gay history this is pretty much a must see. It is only limited to New York so may seem a bit parochial given the title; for lovers of period gay cinema, I can recommend 'Taxi zum Klo'Taxi Zum Klo and 'Nighthawks'Nighthawks / Strip Jack Naked [Blu-ray] both truly excellent.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
3.9 out of 5 stars (27 customer reviews) 12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Recommended Documentary About 70s Gay Scene,
By Dorrie Wheeler - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Gay Sex in the Seventies (DVD)
The documentary Gay Sex in the 70s examines the lifestyle and culture of gay men from 1969 to 1981--the dawn of the AIDS era. The documentary was produced by former ABC Producer (20/20)Joseph Lovett. Gay Sex in the 70s is an excellent film.The film primarily focuses on the disco era. Various gay men describe their lives and how things happened during that era. There is also a great deal of archived footage incorporated into the film. From back rooms at clubs to wild scenes in semi trucks at the docks things were definitely wild and free during that era. Gay Sex in the 70s is a great historical film. The saddest part of the film is when the early 1980's are discussed. The dawn of the AIDS era really impacted the gay community in a major way. One man shows a pile of pictures of all of his friends who died from the disease. Another man tells a story about how one of his patients called him when he was hospitalized for what he was told was a strange cancer. One great thing the film captured is how the gay community really took a handle of things and worked hard to promote awareness about the disease before the government or any other group got involved. Gay Sex in the 70s is a film I highly recommend to historians and people interested in gay/lesbian culture. I for one am someone who knew nothing about this era, so I found this film very enlightning. 23 of 28 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
"New York was a constant cruising opportunity.",
By Dymon Enlow "Dymon Enlow" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Gay Sex in the Seventies (DVD)
For a micro-budget documentary this is a good introduction to the gay scene in the 1970's, butt the title is misleading since it only tells the story of gay men in New York City in the 70's. There is absolutely nothing about anything outside of NYC which is sad because I was hoping this would talk some about gay oppression in other countries. Butt, oh well, I still enjoyed the film and was amazed by all the archival photos and video, especially the gay docks, "the trucks" and St. Mark's Baths! That was some crazy [...]!!! The St. Mark's Bath sounded awesome! Why can't there be something like that for heterosexuals nowadays?! I'd be there every weekend.My main beef though is there just wasn't enough meat to the story. Yea, everybody is [...] and [...] and [...] nonstop, butt hearing about it over and over chafed me kinda raw. I wanted the film to penetrate deeper into the story. Instead it just poked around the rim. I wish there had been some interviews with somebody other than just the sex participants, like city officials or doctors or even some anti-gay preachers to look at the story from a different perspective. Also a brief introduction would have been nice, people mentioned "Stonewall" and "LGBT", butt I have no idea what those words mean so I had to look it up myself. Those are just a few small complaints, don't let it scare you off from diving mouth first into this film. And at only 71 minutes it's packed tight with juicy information. For those out there keeping score: numerous rear nudity, a few flaccid wieners and no penetration. 7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Limited scope, but still worth a look,
By G. Mitchell "greggmitch" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Gay Sex in the Seventies (DVD)
While I was only a kid during the 70s, this documentary provides a fascinating, bittersweet snapshot of the "golden age of gay sex," i.e. after Stonewall and before full-blown AIDS - along with Friedkin's "Cruising," this doc shows us what NYC must have been like if you were young, hot, and single - and even if you weren't you could score, too. Hard to believe that this time period is only two decades ago, but it seems like a distant world, a long-lost era so alien from out contemporary culture. I wish the film had made an attempt to also cover other area around the nation like SF, LA, etc. but this insider glimpse of NYC nostalgia makes you pine for "the good old days" even if, in tragic hindsight, we know they could literally kill you.
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