Flesh (1968 film)

Flesh (alternative title: Andy Warhol's Flesh) is a 1968 film directed by Paul Morrissey and starring Joe Dallesandro as a hustler working on the streets of New York City. It highlights various Warhol superstars, in addition to being the film debuts of both Jackie Curtis and Candy Darling. Also appearing are Geraldine Smith as Joe's wife and Patti D'Arbanville as her lover. Flesh was first shown at the New Andy Warhol Garrick Theatre at 152 Bleecker Street, Manhattan, New York City on September 26, 1968.[1][2]

Flesh
Directed byPaul Morrissey
Produced byAndy Warhol
Written byPaul Morrissey
StarringJoe Dallesandro
Geraldine Smith
CinematographyPaul Morrissey
Release date
  • September 26, 1968 (1968-09-26)
Running time
105 min
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$4,000

Flesh is the first film of the "Paul Morrissey Trilogy" produced by Andy Warhol. The other films in the trilogy include Trash and Heat. All three have gained a cult following and are noted examples of the ideals and ideology of the time period.

Plot

As the film begins, Geri ejects Joe from their bed and insists he go out on the streets to make some money for her girlfriend's abortion. This leads to Joe's various encounters with clients, including an artist who wishes to draw Joe, played by Maurice Braddell, Louis Waldon as a gymnast, and John Christian.

Scenes filmed on the streets of New York City show Joe spending time with other hustlers, one of whom is played by his real life brother, and teaching the tricks of the trade to the new hustler, played by Barry Brown. The film includes a scene of Joe interacting with his real life one-year-old son. Flesh concludes with Joe in bed with Geraldine Smith and Patti D'Arbanville. The women strip Joe and begin to get intimate with each other. In turn, Joe gets bored and falls asleep.

Cast

Production

Warhol and Morrissey conceived Flesh while Warhol was convalescing following the attempt on his life by Valerie Solanas. John Schlesinger was filming Midnight Cowboy, which featured several members of Warhol's entourage, including Viva and Ultra Violet who, with Morrissey, shot a separate short film during shooting of Midnight Cowboy's elaborate party scene.[3]

Warhol initially endorsed the participation of his people but grew resentful at what he perceived as Schlesinger's poaching of Warhol's scene. Warhol decided to undercut Schlesinger by filming his own story about a male prostitute.[4]

Reception

Flesh ranks 478th on Empire magazine's 2008 list of the 500 greatest movies of all time,[5] and in 2007, The Guardian picked Flesh as one of its "1000 Movies to See Before You Die".[6] It holds an approval rating of 63% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 8 reviews, with an average rating of 7/10.[7]

See also

References
  1. Garcia, Alfredo (11 October 2017). "Andy Warhol Films: Newspaper Adverts 1964-1974 A comprehensive collection of Newspaper Ads and Film Related Articles". WordPress.com. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
  2. Staff (August 3, 2010). Fodor's See It New York City, 4th Edition. Fodor's. ISBN 9781400004980. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  3. Hofler, p. 63
  4. Hofler, pp. 74-5
  5. "Empire's 500 Greatest Movies Of All Time". Empire. Retrieved February 11, 2014.
  6. "1000 films to see before you die". The Guardian. June 2007. Retrieved September 8, 2017.
  7. "Flesh (1968)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 11, 2014.

Further reading
  • Hofler, Robert (2014). Sexplosion: From Andy Warhol to A Clockwork Orange - How a Generation of Pop Rebels Broke All the Taboos. New York: itbooks, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 978-0-06-208834-5.
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