The Devil In Miss Jones

In color, adults only!

Following our in-depth investigation about classic porn from the 70's, AKA the Pubic Wars it is time to review a friend's  favorite "The Devil in Miss Jones" so Mr. Ruta Flashback this entry is for your reading and viewing pleasure.

After DEEP THROAT's devastating success shook people's perceptions of porn as some sort of ghetto-bound form of entertainment, its director Gerard Damiano in turn twisted those same people's expectations by radically changing course and creating what is still one of the most thought-provoking adult films of all time. Though it has been the inspiration for a Swiss soft-core reworking (Erwin C. Dietrich's DER TEUFEL IN MISS JONAS) and a mostly forgotten gay porn adaptation (THE DEVIL AND MR JONES, duh !), not to mention five "official" sequels and a recent remake (Paul Thomas' glossy THE NEW DEVIL IN MISS JONES with Jenna Jameson and Savanna Samson as the Horned One and Miss Jones respectively), the original has lost none of its power to shock over more than three decades. Of course, much of this is thanks to the truly amazing Georgina Spelvin delivering one of the most awe-inspiring acting and sexual performances the world has ever witnessed. A former chorus line dancer named Michelle "Shelly" Graham (spelling varies according to source), she entered the adult industry at a relatively advanced age – in her late thirties – and went on to prove that experience (she'd been married and a mom before entering a same sex relationship with porno performer Judith Hamilton) can make a real woman far more sexually interesting than any prettier and younger girl could ever hope to be.

the Snake is long, seven miles...

No wonder why they called it "Pubic Wars".

The movie opens on Spelvin as Justine Jones, a lonely spinster pushing forty, wordlessly preparing her suicide by slashing her wrists in the bathtub as Linda November's soothing vocals wail the absolutely haunting "I'm Coming Home" on the soundtrack. As life's blood drains from her slumping body, she's suddenly transported to the office of Mr Abaca (character actor John Clemens who played leading lady Tamie Trevor's husband in Danny Stone's HIGH RISE) without any memories of her prior actions. It turns out she's at some sort of halfway house between Heaven and Hell where it'll be determined where she should go. While she has lived a spotless life of chastity ("I haven't even done that…"), the taking of her own life makes her ineligible for an eternity in Paradise. She's not expected at either place for a few days anyway, so Abaca grants her the opportunity to experience every form of sexual perversion in the netherworld so she'll at least deserve her damnation. 

Georgina Spelvin, that's her name.

No holes barred!

Guided along by the Teacher (THROAT's Dr Young himself, Harry Reems, in a solemn performance as far removed from that zany character as can be imagined), Justine discovers most erotic variations known to man (oral, straight and rectal penetration in groups of two and three of both men and women) and her gleeful responses to each new experience provide most of those scenes' turn-on value. Real life lover Hamilton (also with Spelvin in Gary Graver's excellent 3 A.M.) supplies the Sapphic action with the howling wind adding an eerie touch. The only other female, Sue Flaken (from Lloyd Kaufman's hard to see XXX musical THE NEW COMERS aka SEVEN DELICIOUS WISHES), playfully fights Spelvin for oral dominance over the massive member of Marc Stevens (who made a memorable Jacob Marley in Costello's PASSIONS OF CAROL), the latter returning for the legendary "sandwich" scene with Georgina and Levi Richards of A DIRTY WESTERN notoriety. Rumor has it that both "studs" were so nervous that the actress had to convince them the actual shooting was just a rehearsal, encouraging and talking them through the whole act ! Inevitably, Miss Jones winds up in Hell, a white-chalked dungeon of never ending boredom, the only escape of which is obsessive lunacy as demonstrated by Damiano's cameo turn as Georgina's cell mate trying to focus on an imaginary fly while the woman tries to tempt him with her fleshy wares. 

Two cumloads for the price of one.

"here, lemme clean those pipes"

Deep and downbeat (a reason the film has generated as many detractors as it has followers), DEVIL IN MISS JONES is a rare adult film that once seen can never be truly erased from memory. Plot (liberally "borrowed" from Sartre's HUIS CLOS a/k/a NO EXIT), acting and production were unlike anything experienced by audiences at the time, illustrating Damiano's huge gamble that pretty much generated the whole subsequent "Golden Age" deal, roughly encompassing the remainder of the '70s and the first half of the '80s. Time has not dulled its effect one iota. Spelvin's dramatic intensity still makes you feel Justine's despair at having (wrongheadedly, perhaps ?) lived a life of sin-free purity and her sexual performance scorches anything in its path. Anyone genuinely interested in the history of porn cinema should start his studies right here. The only downside being that this masterpiece will spoil you for life!

Some water to freshen up the beaver.

Boy this girl has cravings.

Here's the unfortunate heavily edited movie trailer I found for the film.Also,  don't forget to drop by later as we will be reviewing two more films from the classic pubic wars era: Behind the Green Door & Deep Throat. Moreover, there will be a review for Captain America II, The Winter Soldier, since we are also very interested in the world of Comic books, and at this point, in the world of the Marvel Universe Movies Phase 2 so, stay tuned my fellow readers!