Whore (1991)

Leave it to the MPAA to add more fuel to a fire they were allegedly attempting to put out. When the NC-17 rating was introduced in 1990, thus retiring the X rating, the intent was to make a distinction between films designed for adults with content stronger than normally found in R-rated films but weren't hardcore sex films which is what the X rating had become synonymous with. The rating quickly developed a stigma of its own however and became known as a “kiss of death” for any film given the rating, with many theater chains refusing to show NC-17 rated films and various retail outlets refusing to stock NC-17 films. With the exception of Showgirls (1995), which was one of the very few major studio films with the rating to get a wide release, the majority of the films given the rating were interdependent productions, making any attempt to gain an R rating especially difficult with the MPAA's vague suggestions for cuts as opposed to the detailed outlines given to studio films. Ken Russell's 1991 film Whore was yet another independent film given the rating, rather unjustifiably as had the film been released by a big studio it would have been given an R without incident, which no doubt played a hand in the films limited release, depriving a large audience of Russell's unfiltered antidote to the lies of Pretty Woman (1990).

Presented as docudrama, the film follows Liz (Theresa Russell), a streetwise Los Angeles prostitute going about her business, narrating the details of her life which led her to the life she currently lives, waxing philosophic on her line of work and life in general, giving detailed accounts of her failed marriage, estranged son and some of her more eccentric clients, all the while desperately trying to avoid her violent pimp Blake.

In a lot of ways Whore can be seen as a companion to Russell's Crimes of Passion (1984) which also dealt with prostitution albeit in a much more colorful fashion. Much like Crimes of Passion, Whore deals with some pretty heavy subject matter. Again, the film was Russell's response after being disgusted by what her perceived to be the glamorization of the life of a prostitute in Pretty Woman and sought out to present what the life of a lady of the night is truly like. Quite often it isn't pleasant with several of Liz's encounters ending very badly and at times violently and naturally the reoccurring motif of the threat of her abusive pimp brings an even more dangerous nature to Liz's already high risk job. At the same time, the film has a tendency to shift tones, often abruptly with Russell's bizarre sense of humor coming into play several times so a scene that is at once troubling suddenly becomes absurdly hilarious, Liz's accounts of the turn-on's of her clientele, be they an elderly man who loves to get beat with a cane or a successful business man with a peculiar type of shoe fetish are especially hysterical. Theresa Russell really goes for in both her exaggerated street-tough guise as well as during the more tender, confessional moments revealing the more unfortunate aspects of her backstory and despite the tonal shifts, the film is never short on sincerity or sympathy, with the constant fourth wall breaking making for more intimate characterization.

At a 2010 career retrospective Theresa Russell claimed the film was her most difficult both technically and emotionally. Russell stated “There was monologue after monologue after monologue. I mean just in terms of just pure, technical stuff... I was worried about being boring, so much of it was just me walking along on the street as a hooker just talking, constantly talking to the camera... but anytime your doing a character like her that basically feels very bad about themselves, you know that's the place where you gotta go and you have to understand what motivated her to do these things to herself and her body and be who she was... as an actor its hard sometimes your just oh man its such a beautiful day I just want to go in my garden... OK your a piece of shit... you gotta work your way into it and then go to work!” Perhaps due to the films limited release frightening potential future backers, Whore would become Russell's final theatrical feature with Russell working in television and making digital films on his own until his passing in 2011. Whore still remains one of Russell's most underseen works but it also stands as a film as bold as its title and the fact that the film is a collaboration between the two most fierce Russell's in film, Ken and Theresa, makes it a must see.