Am I Missing Something?

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Plot Spoiler review.The Blu-ray disc I watched was a restored copy of a film with the year 1976, apparently an edited version. Jack (Gerald Grant) and Elvira (Claire Wilbur) are swingers. She is bored by being able to easily score due to the Al Goldstein publication which lets them advertise. Elvira has been attempting to score with Betsy (Lynn Lowry) and Eddie (Casey Donovan). She likes the chase.The couple swap didn't go as I would have liked as same sex couples paired up. The monologue comes across as a Creative Writing 101 project. I was not overly impressed, and in fact it brought a chuckle as I had to laugh at what passed for clever in 1970 something.Guide Sex and full frontal nudity (M/F)

Radley Metzger's THE SCORE is a "hip happening" where THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW's "Brad & Janet" meets WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? without all the sturm-und-drang as a couple of swingers set out to seduce a pair of naive newlyweds. It's about the furthest I've ever seen a (sort of) mainstream movie go for its time and if Metzger had lingered a moment longer on those fellatio shots (both male and female), this would be XXX. Way gayer than I thought it would be with lots of fetish foreplay (a cowboy, a sailor, a nun) but the director's hypnotic way with material like this should keep just about anyone riveted. Lynn Lowry's looks ("elfin", and then some) get on my nerves but I quite liked Claire Wilbur. The guys (Cal Culver aka Casey Donovan and Gerald Grant, who would both die of AIDS) not so much for some reason. Sylvester Stallone, like Wilbur, was in the Off-Broadway play but Metzger passed on him because he didn't like Sly's "Brooklynese". The film's loss, for sure.

A swinging couple (Claudia Wilbur and Gerald Grant) seduces a straight-laced couple (Lynn Lowry and Casey Donovan). That's about it for plot, but the movie is fascinating. It was made long before AIDS (and, ironically, two of the actors later died of the disease) so there are no boundaries on what the couples will do and there's no moralizing on what is right or wrong. That's the great thing about the movie-it doesn't judge. I saw this years ago at a film festival and was just astonished. It's hard to explain WHY I liked it but I did. It dealt with sex roles, male and female sexuality, bisexuality in an uninhibited and fun way.As for the sex...there's not much. I saw an uncut version and while somewhat explicit, it's tasteful. There's a man/woman coupling, and two long lesbian and gay sex scenes. In fact when this came out in 1973 it was a bomb. It was X but it wasn't explicit enough for the porno crowd or intelligent enough for the "intellectual" audience. Now it's being realized for how good it is.It's beautifully shot in Yugoslavia, has great dialogue and all the acting is good. Also the cast is attractive and look great with their clothes off. It's available uncut on DVD (previous versions were edited) and well worth getting.

"Score" is an amazing cult classic that should be seen by everyone. Even though I have only seen one other of Radley Metzger's movies ("The Lickerish Quartet"), I don't hesitate in calling him an "auteur of adult film." To call his movies "soft-core porn" would be an insult. "Score" and "Lickerish Quartet" are both top-notch turn-ons.What I liked about "Score" was the fact that nothing about it ever seemed gratuitous, given the subject matter. The same-sex seduction scenes in the movie were fun and genuinely erotic. I especially loved the oh-so subtle ways the characters would flirt and come on to each other. The fact that the nudity was used very sparingly only added to the erotic tension. The movie literally teases and arouses the viewer from beginning to end. And the love scenes between the two men (Jack and Eddie) and the two women (Elvira and Betsy) were done in beautiful taste.While very elegant and aesthetically pleasing, "Score" never takes itself too seriously. I think anyone could easily be hypnotized by this movie if they give it a chance. It is beautiful.