The Naughty Victorians is an erotic tale set in the Victorian era featuring Beerbohm Tree. In this film, society man Jack (Tree) delights in having sex with women that are tied up in various ways, and has built a home full of contraptions for various forms of bondage sex. His first “victim” is his fiancé Alice (Susan Sloan, Heavy Load) who seeks shelter in Jack’s place because it is raining outside. Before you know it, he is putting the moves on her, forcing her to submit or he will hurt her. At first, she is reluctant to disrobe, and gets chased around the room while trying to keep her hat on her head. Alice, after being caught, ultimately enjoys the sexual experience when it’s over. Before you know it, Alice brings other unsuspecting women to his home, including her maid, forcing him to submit to his sexual advances or he will tie them up and take their clothes off himself. Various sexual scenes occur with the different contraptions as well as a sex scene including feathers.
The Naughty Victorians is based on the novel, “The Way of a Man with a Maid,” and was the first film from theatre director, Robert Sickinger and just a nice job capturing the Victorian era blending with eroticism. The cast does a credible job as far as the acting goes, although the acting performances are not what these films are known for. The excellent cinematography is by Joe Mangine (Squirm, Alligator II The Mutation) under the alias Joe Mann.
Vinegar Syndrome presents The Naughty Victorians on Blu-ray and it is a mighty good package. First and foremost, this is a Region Free release, which benefits all movie collectors. The release contains a Blu-ray disc and a DVD. Lucky customers will also get the film in a limited-edition slipcover. The film, which Vinegar Syndrome states is “newly restored from its 35mm negative” and given a 2K scan, looks as rich and bold as it probably ever will be. The color palette tends to be on the cooler side. Reds and blues look especially strong. Skin tones look natural; interiors of the house look terrific with fine details throughout. Film grain is present and there are no signs of any digital manipulation.
English DTS-HD master audio 1.0 and English Dolby digital 2.0 are the two tracks applied for this release. Neither track is all that overpowering, sounding somewhat flat. While both tracks sound fine and clear overall without drop-offs or hissing, I felt the 1.0 track was a bit more robust. English SDH subtitles are offered.
Extras include a historical commentary track by author and professor, Dr. Laura Helen Marks who talks about her research on The Naughty Victorians, which she had been doing for over eight years. She did mention how this Blu-ray bests previous releases of the film and discusses the differences between the film and the novel.
Other supplements include several original theatrical trailers (both softcore and hardcore), an alternate French title sequence, an archival still and article gallery.
The Naughty Victorians is an amusing kinky flick that fans of the genre will most certainly enjoy. The audio and video are top notch, plus some cool extras make this a recommended release!
The Naughty Victorians
Director- Robert Sickinger
Cast- Beerbohn Tree, Susan Sloan, Angel Barrett, Jennifer Jordan, Heather Austin
Country of Origin- US
Distributor – Vinegar Syndrome
Number of Discs – 2 (one DVD, one Blu-ray)
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date- 8/29/20