Private Afternoons of Pamela Mann (1974)

April 19, 2013 by adamsunderground

Mr. Mann, a wealthy business proprietor, suspects his charity patroness wife, Pamela, of infidelity and hires a private investigator to surreptitiously film the socially conscious socialite going about her many daily errands. That is the simple premise, while not completely abandoned during the picture, its support and development are largely neglected throughout the story. Private Afternoons consciously follows in the footsteps of Deep Throat by stumbling through humor and tripping on odd sound effects around each sex scene, out of step with its premise of secret affairs.

Stock photo of Georgina Spelvin. Image by CapnFlix, via Photobucket

As the P.I. screens his captured footage of Mrs. Mann, both he and her husband crack deadpan jokes about the subject and the situation, understandable for a jaded, insensitive gumshoe but alien to any emotional vulnerability of his client. A sense of urgency or impeding conflict never materializes although the fundamental story ingredients to create them are there, unlike the movie sprinkled with characters of no impetus, Insatiable.

With their unexpected experimentation in performance and in-camera effects, both simple and stunning, the two best sex scenes pull Private Afternoons out from a swamp of mediocrity that mire the rest of its components.

Total Grade: B	Specialty	Grade
	Screenplay	C
	Acting	A
	Cinematography	A
	Film Editing	C
	Visual Effects	B
	Audio	C
	Sound Editing	C
	Audio Effects	C
	Musical Score	C
	Production Design	B