Night Rhythms (1992)

Overused as the phrase “this could never get made today” is, that certainly seems to be the case with the erotic thriller. Controversial as a film like Basic Instinct (1992) was upon its original release, given the stranglehold woke cultists have on modern Hollywood and the sociopolitical climate in general, the wave of sexually provocative and confrontational films that defined a good chunk of the 90's would be damn near impossible to greenlight. Time works in funny ways however, and well over 20 years later many have started to look back at erotic thrillers in a different way. Films that were once lazily dismissed as sexist are now starting to be celebrated for their portrayals of uninhibited female sexuality and agency. The direct-to-video erotic thrillers, even more lurid than their studio counterparts, were also even more female driven. Ironic as it might seem that the director of some of the most infamous hardcore adult films would also be responsible for the most female-centric softcore erotic thrillers, but that's exactly the case with Gregory Dark's softcore films. Dark's films like Carnal Crimes (1991), Secret Games (1992), Mirror Images (1992) and it's 1993 sequel and Animal Instincts (1992) are all driven by female-centric narratives. Sticking out in the crowd a bit is Night Rhythms, a rare Dark detour into a male-centric narrative and a film that finds Dark really playing around in a genre sandbox.

Nick West (Martin Hewitt), the host of a popular late night radio call-in show catering to the needs of lonely and unfulfilled women comes to in his studio next to the dead body of Honey, a fan whom Nick unknowingly had sex with live on-air after being knocked unconscious. Although innocent of the crime, Nick has no memory of the events prior to being knocked out and is forced to go on the run into hiding. With the help of longtime friend and ex-stripper Cinnamon, Nick attempts to clear his name and discover Honey's real killer, getting on the bad side of Vincent (David Carradine), a ruthless gangster and owner of Cinnamon's former place of employment in the process.

“Yeah, there's a lot of Jim Thompson and Raymond Chandler in these shows” said Dark in regards to the hard-boiled crime fiction influence in the erotic thriller while speaking to Psychotronic Video in 1997. Indeed, a criminal element is an essential ingredient to any erotic thriller, with the other genre erotic thrillers are commonly lumped in with being neo-noir, and Night Rhythms is one of Dark's most explicitly nor-influenced films. Along with being a male-driven narrative, Night Rhythms also differs from Dark's other erotic thrillers by taking the story out of the cushy LA suburbs and into the heart of the city. The Hitchcock influence is also obvious, the man in over his head trying to clear his name being a favorite Hitchcock starting point, but the influence of giallo, a genre the erotic thriller owes a lot to, is quite strong in the plot of Night Rhythms. While the Italian influence may be more obvious in studio films like Basic Instinct and Jade (1995), a radio host going on the lam and playing detective in attempt to solve the murder he's being framed for could be the plot of an early Dario Argento film. One curious quality the film does share with Dark's other erotic thrillers is despite the lack of a domestic angle, Dark still works in some cynical commentary on relationships and the dating world and the film has become even more enjoyable overtime with some of the swerves sure to make the heads of the professionally offended spin.

Night Rhythms was the third of Dark's erotic thrillers to feature Martin Hewitt in the lead who has previously played the antagonists in Carnal Crimes and Secret Games. Although long retired from acting, Hewitt has become synonymous with 80's and 90's softcore and melodrama having starred in Endless Love (1981) and Two Moon Junction (1988) alongside Sherlyn Fenn in the later, directed by Zalman King, a softcore pioneer and the mind behind Red Shoe Diaries (1992) and the series that followed. Also crucial to the film is Delia Sheppard in her third role for Dark as Bridget, West's assistant at the radio station. Sheppard was also somewhat of a muse for Dark at the time, even playing a duel leading role in Mirror Images. Like Hewitt, Sheppard's name is forever linked with late night softcore, even playing the titular temptress in the second entry in the infamous Witchcraft erotic horror series prior to her series of films with Dark. Night Rhythms, if it wasn't obvious, is worlds removed from Witchcraft and one of Sheppard's finest showings. The same could be said for the film as a whole for Dark. While none Dark's series namesake films follow any sort of storyline continuity, being a standalone title, Night Rhythms does have a slightly different feel and despite Dark's flipping of the script with a male protagonist, the film is a key piece of 90's erotica.

Mirror Images (1992) / Mirror Images II (1993)

Just like 80's action films had guys like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone, horror had icons throughout the ages like Karloff, Lugosi, Robert Englund and the innumerable ladies dubbed “Scream Queens” and westerns were dominated by marquee names like Wayne and Eastwood, the erotic thriller, too, had its share of icons and genre synonymous names. Obviously Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone were the two biggest Hollywood names to be associated with the genre during its 90's heyday, but the direct-to-video erotic thrillers had its own roster of reoccurring players. Shannon Tweed, Julie Strain, Tonya Roberts, Kathy Shower, Monique Parent, Martin Hewitt and Andrew Stevens, all became very familiar to video store patrons and late night premium cable viewers and are all deserving of their statuses among the few who genuinely appreciate these kinds of movies. Two of the top honors however have to go to Delia Sheppard and Shannon Whirry. Along with being the best at what they did, both Sheppard and Whirry were also tremendous assets to Gregory Dark, the best director in the field, starring in some of Dark's finest films from the period, Whirry in particular being the driving force behind some benchmark films. After a small but memorable role in Dark's Secret Games (1992), Sheppard, a former Penthouse Pet, took center stage in a duel-lead role in the twin sister-themed Mirror Images, its 1993 sequel being another Dark/Whirry showcase.

Worlds removed from some of Sheppard's previous endeavors like Witchcraft II: The Temptress (1989), the first Mirror Images film is Sheppard's finest hour as twin sisters Kaitlin and Shauna. Although well off, Kaitlin is terminally bored, ignored by her husband Jeffery who cares more about his job on the campaign staff for corrupt businessman and wannabe politician Carter Sayles. Shauna by contrast is the archetypal free spirit. When Kaitlin receives an ominous message from Shauna saying she's going away for a while, Kaitlin suspects something isn't right. After snooping around Shauna's apartment, Kaitlin beings to assume her sisters identity and soon finds herself involved in a murderous plot, uncovering more than just Shauna's secrets.

Mirror Images is a case study in Dark's ability to slightly subvert a formula while still checking all the necessary erotic thriller boxes. The potential for the cliché good/bad twin dilemma was certainly there, but Dark turns it on its heels by giving both Kaitlin and Shauna plenty of shades of gray. Kaitlin certainly fits the bill as the archetypal erotic thriller neglected housewife, but there's an added layer of psychological depth to Kaitlin with her appropriating her twin sisters identity in her absence, even playing amateur sleuth while in her twin's guise. The crime plot that eventually develops even finds Dark treading some giallo territory, not rare for erotic thrillers, with some pretty major swerves and reveals. The giallo and even horror influence also rear their heads in some of the films visuals, most notably in the form of a strange mask, Dark injecting the film with a few moments of heroin-induced surreality making the film one of the most visually accomplished of Dark's erotic thriller cycle. Ultimately though, this is Sheppard's show to steal. Not simply just a sex bomb, though she knows it and flaunts it, especially as Shauna, Sheppard balances both Kaitlin and Shauna's personalities with ease. Speaking to Psychotronic Video, Dark claimed “My original intention was for one to be a mean, greedy, angry whore, while the other one was basically normal. But the distribution company felt her being so vicious was a little strong. In Mirror Images 2, I tried again and got closer to that idea.”

By 1993, Shannon Whirry had become Dark's main softcore muse having become the marquee name of Dark's Animal Instinct films, starring in the first two as well as Body of Influence (1993). Like Sheppard in the first film, Whirry really gets to show off in Mirror Images II as twins Carrie and Terrie, separated since their teens after Terrie witnessed their father murdering their mother. Years later, Carrie, though financially well-off, is repressed and unhappily married to Clete (Ghoulies (1985) director Luca Bercovici), a philandering, corrupt cop only in the marriage for the money. Carrie's issues only increase once the resentful and far more libertine-minded Terrie makes a re-appearance along with a plan to ruin her estranged sister.

Dark may have side-stepped the good twin vs. evil twin scenario in the first Mirror Images film but he dives in head-first with Mirror Images II, more-or-less realizing the vision he initially had for the first film. Things are pretty black-and-white from the start, with Terrie established as the obvious villain, and an pretty unrelenting one at that. Over the top some might say, though it was clearly intentional as Dark brings his sardonic sense of humor, usually reserved for his adult films, to Mirror Images II, giving Whirry (as Terrie) lines like “I have an overheated everything” and “I want to fuck on her bed so she smells me on her sheets!” and Bercovici nearly stealing the show from Whirry as Clete, the most diabolical of all erotic thriller husbands. The Ghoulies director is responsible for some of the films more hilarious moments, relishing in his character's horribleness, outdoing even himself while giving play-by-play color commentary of the sisters climactic confrontation while listening over a police radio. Whirry is not to be defeated however, embracing the outrageousness of Terrie and knowing exactly the type of character she's playing, while at the same time making Carrie an actually fully rounded character. Dark of course uses the identity theme to craft some tricky moments, and despite the obvious differences between the sisters, when the situation requires Whirry's subtlety at juggling the two personalities does leave things ambiguous, echoing a similar tactic she and Dark used the same year in Dark's blistering Body of Influence.

Dark singled out the scene of Bercovici giving commentary to the sisters confrontation, telling Psychotronic “Luca Bercovici is just great in that... That was my favorite part of the film. Yeah, I like things like that... extremes in emotion, violence... scenes that leave a very strong image, either sexual or violent, because I think in a sense that's what we do in life: we go though life collecting certain types of images or experiences, and then we relive those experiences over and over again. They become our reality... especially as we get older, then they become a history of ourselves. So I look for the extremes in these matters as often as I can, which has occasionally gotten me into some controversy.” Dark also spoke of getting around having one actress play two characters in one scene, saying “Technically the Mirror Images films weren't that difficult to shoot. I didn't use any split screens to show the twin sisters together. Instead, I just did over-shoulder shots and reverses. It's really all about eye-lines and sizes... Stuff like that. It's easy”. Dark also made quality control look easy in 1993, a being a banner year with Dark helming three of his very best softcore films alongside Mirror Images II, Body of Influence, Sins of the Night and Secret Games 2: The Escort, all essential titles in the genre as are both Mirror Images films.