Is It Worth the Watch?

Woody Allen’s 1972 satire Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask) may be vintage Woody, but most of it isn’t classic Woody.

Based on David Reuben’s famous (and scholarly) 1969 sex manual of the same name, the film is comprised of seven zany comedy sketches dealing with sexuality, fetishes, reproductive biology and television game shows. It plays like a naughty cross between Saturday Night Live and Love American Style, with a little Monty Python thrown in.

An early effort from Woody, produced during his silly period (his Make Funny Movies period, as he called it in Srardust Memories), it doesn’t really supply the laughs you hope for. There are a few very clever lines and situations, but the sustained guffaws just aren’t there.

It is fun to see so many major stars delivering filthy jokes, however, including John Carradine, Burt Reynolds, Anthony Quayle, and Lynn Redgrave.

Is It Worth The Watch? It’s certainly not boring but it is somewhat sophomoric. If you’re a Woody Allen fan, like I am, you’ll enjoy it, but don’t expect huge laughs or pithy societal observations.

1972

88 minutes

Starring – Woody Allen, John Carradine, Gene Wilder, Louise Lasser, Burt Reynolds, Regis Philbin, Lynn Redgrave, Anthony Quayle, Tony Randall, Lou Jacobi, Jack Barry

Director – Woody Allen

Screenplay – Woody Allen