Private Lessons (1981)

Director:

Alan Myerson

Writer:

Dan Greenburg (writer)

Release Date:

26 August 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

When EMANUELLE's Sylvia Kristel is your teacher the bedroom is the classroom [DVD Australia]

Plot:

An immigrant housemaid seduces a 15-year-old boy and later fakes her own death as part of his chauffeur's blackmail plot. Troubles arise when the two start to fall in love.

Plot Keywords:

Chauffeur | Blackmail | Housemaid | Love | Sex

Cast

Sylvia Kristel	...	Nicole Mallow
Howard Hesseman	...	Lester Lewis
Eric Brown	...	Phillip Fillmore
Meridith Baer	...	Miss Phipps
Pamela Jean Bryant	...	Joyce
Peter Elbling	...	Waiter
Patrick Piccininni	...	Sherman
Ed Begley Jr.	...	Jack Travis
Ron Foster	...	Mr. Fillmore
Dan Barrows	...	Green, The Gardener
Marian Gibson	...	Florence
Judy Helden	...	Miss Kristel's Double
Dan Greenburg	...	Hotel Owner
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Lee Rawlings	...	Lover boy (uncredited)

Directed by
Alan Myerson

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Dan Greenburg		writer

Produced by
Jack Barry	....	executive producer
Steve Bassin	....	co-executive producer
R. Ben Efraim	....	producer
Dan Enright	....	executive producer
Irving Oshman	....	co-executive producer
Maurie M. Suess	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Willie Nile

Cinematography by
Jan de Bont

Film Editing by
Fred A. Chulack

Casting by
Erica Enright

Art Direction by
Linda Pearl

Makeup Department
Yvonne Curry	....	makeup artist
Gigi Williams	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Tony Wade	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Beau Marks	....	first assistant director
Stephen Sassen	....	second assistant director (as Steve Sassen)
Russell Vreeland	....	first assistant director
Tony Wade	....	second unit director

Art Department
Kathleen Hughes	....	property master
Kevin Hughes	....	assistant property master

Sound Department
Andy Babbish	....	sound
Gordon L. Day	....	re-recording mixer
Michael Hilkene	....	sound editor
Mel Metcalfe	....	re-recording mixer
Rusty Tinsley	....	sound editor (as Russ Tinsley)
Stan Wetzel	....	re-recording mixer

Stunts
Judy Helden	....	stunt double: Sylvia Kristel

Camera and Electrical Department
Arledge Armenaki	....	assistant camera
Frank Byers	....	gaffer
Kenneth J. Jones	....	key grip (as Ken Jones)
Michael Paris	....	still photographer
Mark Wade	....	cinematographer: second unit

Casting Department
Lynn Kressel	....	casting: New York

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Linda M. Bass	....	wardrobe

Music Department
Robert Fawcett	....	music editor

Other crew
Margaret Goldsmith	....	production assistant
Alicia Rivera Frankl	....	production executive (as Alicia Alon)
Coby Turner	....	script supervisor
James Fargo	....	director: additional scenes (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Barry & Enright Productions
• Jensen Farley Pictures

Distributors

• Citadel Films (1981) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Jensen Farley Pictures (1981) (USA) (theatrical)
• Lions Gate Films Home Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2006) (Australia) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Phoenix Film Office  special thanks

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Australia:(Banned) (original rating) | Australia:R (2006 re-rating) (uncut) | Australia:R (cut) | Norway:16 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | UK:18 (cut) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Company:

Barry & Enright Productions

Trivia:

Near the beginning, after Philip is watching Sylvia through binoculars he is looking through a fashion magazine with half-naked women. The model he is looking at in the pages is Gia Carangi, who was a famous model in the early 80's, and whom the movie “Gia” is based on.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Philly's school, "Fredrick Douglass High School," misspells the name of Frederick Douglass (1818 - 1895).

Movie Connections:

Edited into Twisted Sex Vol. 23 (2007) (V)

Soundtrack:

I Need A Lover

Teen Sex, the 80's and Killer Soundtrack

Private Lessons (1981)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

The 15-year-old Phillip (Eric Brown) is starting to understand the bodies of women but he gets some "private lessons" from his maid (Sylvia Kristel). What he doesn't know is that the chauffeur (Howard Hesseman) is using her to blackmail the rich kid's father. If the visuals of an older woman having sex with a 15-year-old kid bothers you then it would be best to stay away from this film, which is without question one of the more "out there" entries in the long-running list of teen/sex comedies from the decade. I'm really not sure why anyone would take this too offensive, although I'm sure all hell would break loose if the roles were reversed and you had an older man giving private lessons to a teen girl. The film, for the most part, never takes itself too serious and instead comes off as a typical fantasy as the horny boy grows closer and closer the perfect woman. The film manages to be quite charming up until the final act, which nearly kills the things. I'm really not sure why they needed the subplot of the blackmail because it's not funny and really adds nothing to the film. The relationship between the boy and maid takes up the first hour and it actually turns into something nice but then it all gets thrown away with the blackmail. The best moments of the film happen after the boy fails to get some because he's too scared and then has to take some jokes by his friend. Brown does a pretty good job in the role of the kid and makes for a nice lead. Hesseman is good as the scumbag driver but it's Kristel's body that steals the film. She'll never be accused of being a good actress but she knows how to be sexual and that's all that is needed here. The soundtrack is also a great one as we get John Mellencamp's 'I Need a Lover', Earth Wind & Fire's 'Fantasy', Eric Clapton's 'Next Time You See Here' plus Rod Stewart's 'Hot Legs', 'Tonight's the Night' and 'You're in My Heart'. Fans of this genre will certainly find enough nudity, cheap laughs and more nudity to keep them entertained.