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Movie

Around the World in 80 Beds

1976 • Adult, Comedy

Woke Score

2

out of 10

Plot

This is an episodic erotic film mostly directed by Producer Erwin C. Dietrich. Jess Franco may have directed some brief footage, such as one scene which involves a sadistic cult and has some similarities to scenes in Franco's own EXORCISM (1974). A few of the episodes are the kind of crude, silly comedy familiar from 1960s and 70s German sex films. After a while it just gets rather tiresome. The film is very lightweight and lacks Franco's overall thematic vision and singular style.The episodes are mostly played for comedy but they're not very amusing and not very erotic. This was shot in 1976-1977, a very busy year for Jess Franco in which he made several of his better films (JACK THE RIPPER, LOVE LETTERS OF A PORTUGUESE NUN, DORIANA GRAY). It appears he just helped out producer Dietrich with a few scenes in this one. If you're a hardcore Jess Franco completest you might want to check it out, but I can't recommend it.

Overall Series Review

Around the World in 80 Beds is a lightweight, episodic erotic film consisting mostly of crude, silly sex comedy typical of 1970s German cinema. The narrative is thin, serving only as a vehicle for a series of unamusing and un-erotic vignettes. A brief, darker sequence involving a sadistic cult, possibly directed by Jess Franco, contrasts sharply with the main tone but is not central to the film's overall lack of artistic vision or compelling character work. The film's primary focus is base sexual situations and humor.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics2/10

Characters are defined by their immediate sexual availability or their role in a crude comedic scenario, not by a hierarchy of race or immutable characteristics. The narrative focuses entirely on non-political sexual themes, avoiding any lecture on privilege or systemic oppression.

Oikophobia1/10

The film is an unsophisticated, episodic sex comedy with no identifiable hostility toward Western civilization, heritage, or ancestors. The plot and comedic scenarios are a-cultural and do not contain any elements that deconstruct home culture or promote the 'Noble Savage' trope.

Feminism1/10

Female characters are depicted primarily as objects of male sexual desire, which is the complete opposite of the 'Girl Boss' or 'Mary Sue' trope. The plot is centered entirely on sexual pursuit and gratification over themes of female career fulfillment or anti-natalism.

LGBTQ+1/10

Sexual encounters are centered exclusively on traditional male-female pairing for titillation. The narrative is focused on the normative male-female structure for the purpose of the sexploitation genre and completely ignores any discussion of sexual ideology or deconstruction of the nuclear family.

Anti-Theism3/10

The movie operates on a base level of subjective sexual morality driven by immediate pleasure. A brief segment involving a sadistic cult critiques an aberrant spiritual group but does not explicitly target or vilify traditional religion or Christianity.