The Image is a 1975 American adult drama. The film is also known by two other titles: “The Punishment of Anne” and “The Mistress and the Slave” and was directed by Radley Metzger. The film is based upon the classic 1956 sadomasochistic novel L’Image, written by Catherine Robbe-Grillet and published under the pseudonym of “Jean de Berg.”
Metzer directed The Image under the pseudonym of Jake Barnes, a name that will be familiar to you Hemingway fans. No matter which names he used, Radley Metzger was generally considered to be the intellectual of the porn world. His films were often adapted from novels or other literary sources.
According to one film reviewer, Metzger’s films, including those made during the Golden Age of Porn (1969–1984), are noted for their “lavish design, witty screenplays, and a penchant for the unusual camera angle”. Another reviewer noted that his films were “highly artistic — and often cerebral … and often featured gorgeous cinematography”. Film and audio works by Metzger have been added to the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City.
Even if you have never heard of him and don’t have any interest in porn, you’ve probably heard of some of his most famous films like Therese and Isabelle or The Opening of Misty Beethoven.
I fondly remember “The Lickerish Quartet”. Wonder how it holds up today
I felt the same way. My wife and I watched it together, and liked it.
I’m kinda afraid to watch it again and possibly find out how wrong I was.
I watched this film in the early 1980s when I was in high school. I was able to rent it from an adult bookstore near Times Square, but L’Image was not much like the typical pornographic film available in and around Times Square. I remember being confused about whether or not it was a pornographic film. While the film was certainly erotic and sexually explicit (in parts) there was much less explicit sex than the typical pornographic films of the day. It clearly had more artistic merit than films like Deep Throat. I just wasn’t sure if it was made that way to satisfy the obscenity standard from Miller v California (1973). Ultimately. I decided that Metzger was just scratching his artistic itches.
This film does not appear to be available to stream, but The Image Bluray is available on Amazon.
As I look at it, all the other contenders for babeliest porn actress ever are vying for second place behind Rebecca Brooke.
Rebecca Brooke aka Mary Mendum was also a Broadway actress who was in Hair and Lenny in the Valerie Perrine role. Here is an interesting article about the making of The Image.