WARNING: Because of the explicit nature of this film, no one under 18 will be admitted. If you would be shocked at the total sexual frankness, please do NOT attend.
Also known by its U.S. export title Love in the Third Position, this is a fascinating entry in the filmography of adult cinema maestro Joe Sarno. Long before he was dubbed a pioneer of erotic art-house crossover, Sarno was crafting distinctively moody, psychological melodramas abroad during his productive 1970s Swedish period.
The story centers on Siv (Liliane Malmkvist), an icy, controlling and confident blonde fashion photographer. Siv is in a relationship with her favorite model, Sven (Bosse Carlsson), a man whose sexy mouth and easygoing demeanor catch others’ attention. Enter Anne (Britt-Marie Engström/Engström), Siv’s shy, innocent and buxom young brunette assistant. When Siv notices that Sven is drawn to Anne—and urged on by manipulative friend Lisa (Eva Roennklint), who senses Anne’s sexual ambivalence—Siv decides to take matters into her own hands. She seduces Sven while Anne hides nearby, inadvertently watching and becoming deeply aroused in the process. What follows is a tangled web of shifting power dynamics, Sapphic attraction and sexual awakening. The characters find themselves at Juno’s Place, a local roadhouse and sauna, a place made for women to explore pleasure. Ultimately, the love triangle results in emotional turmoil: Siv realizes her genuine feelings for Anne, but an overwhelmed Anne ultimately flees with Sven, leaving Siv to face a private hell of her own making.
Because Sarno operated under tight budgetary constraints during his time in Sweden, he could not afford to post-synchronize the dialogue with professional voice actors. Instead, he shot with live sound and had his cast speak English, often phonetically and without always fully understanding the lines. While some viewers will find the stilted and often difficult to make out deliveries jarring, Sarno championed the raw authenticity of his work, comparing the experience to watching a Brechtian play. And true to Sarno’s working methods during this period, the on-screen action is technically softcore, but the director permitted unscripted, real sex action outside the frame. So you have a movie about emotion that is unintelligible at times but also the kind of hot that you can’t fake. It’s a wild mix, like if Bergman decided he’d allow Max von Sydow to finger-blast Liv Ullmann.
The film’s otherworldly atmosphere is heightened by quirky Swedish folk-rock and soft-rock cues, including the memorable theme song “Is There a Place?” performed by Goran & Janine.
You can watch this on Cultpix.
