The two erotic movies that caused a moral panic in 1970s Britain
These days, it’s common to see sex, nudity and violence on television, album covers, advertisements – you name it. Topics once considered taboo are now widely used to sell products or attract audiences to watch the latest movie, and we don’t blink an eye when we see models or actors scantily clad on our screens. It wasn’t until the 1960s that we began to see more controversial or provocative imagery becoming more widespread, with the younger generation leading the charge with considerably more liberal attitudes.
As The Beatles caused fans across the world to scream and faint just at the mere thought of their presence, young people were taking psychedelic drugs to open their minds, women’s liberation and civil rights movements were gaining traction, designers were cutting a considerable amount of inches off skirts, and a real sense of optimism and excitement seemed to be running through the youth.
Britain, particularly London, became a cultural capital, with countless artists, musicians, designers and filmmakers emerging with innovative ideas and creations that completely altered the course of popular culture. Many filmmakers captured these changing attitudes and the increase in hedonism and excessive consumption with movies like The Pleasure Girls, Blow-Up and Darling. While these films didn’t shy away from illuminating the negative aspects of the swinging sixties, they reflected a transitory time – highlighting the gateway that had opened for depictions of once-taboo topics, such as independent women partying and drinking or people being shown naked on screen, to become more normal.
As the New Hollywood movement across the pond became more of a prominent feature of the new cinematic landscape, with movies like Easy Rider and Bonnie and Clyde depicting unrestrained violence and sexuality, filmmakers elsewhere began to push more boundaries. Taking inspiration from the exploitation genre, two British movies emerged in 1970, which were so shocking for the time that many viewers with considerably less open minds were disgusted. Causing a moral panic, these movies led people to question whether the state of British society was too liberal and sexually free. People also wondered whether filmmakers should be able to explore such taboo, violent and erotic themes, worried that these films could promote a sense of moral corruption.
These films were Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly, directed by Freddie Francis, and Goodbye Gemini, by Alan Gibson. Both were released around the same time, and many British movie-goers believed that these films signalled a decline in proper values and decency. As a result, people were quick to advocate for the movies to be banned from cinemas, with several theatres removing the movies from their listings after protests gathered outside. As is the case with most moral panics, the worry surrounding these films was blown completely out of proportion, with people assuming that British culture was destroyed simply because a few movies depicted themes such as incest, murder and sex.
Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly sees four people gather in a country house and pretend to be a perfect family, only to lure local men and subject them to their bizarre game. Attempts to escape are met with murder, filmed and watched by the family as a twisted form of entertainment. The movie ended up struggling to find success in the United Kingdom due to its censoring, but it has since become somewhat of a cult classic.
Similarly, Goodbye Gemini, or as it is alternatively known, Twinsanity, is a compelling study of incest, with a pair of twins finding themselves obsessively attached to the other. Set against a backdrop of London during its swinging party years, the twins navigate their odd relationship, although many terrifying and violent acts come to define the film.
People simply couldn’t accept that British culture was changing, and filmmakers were now able to make more daring films that challenged audiences and explored the darker aspects of humanity. While neither films were heralded as masterpieces, they were important signifiers of the clashing attitudes between generations that encapsulated the era. The conservative state was at odds with younger creatives who wanted to push the boat out and expose the simultaneous joys and horrors of a period which allowed for a newfound sense of freedom and liberation.
