Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex *But Were Afraid to Ask
Directed by Woody Allen
- comedy
The story
A collection of seven vignettes, which each address a question concerning human sexuality. From aphrodisiacs to sexual perversion to the mystery of the male orgasm, characters like a court jester, a doctor, a queen and a journalist adventure through lab experiments and game shows, all seeking answers to common questions that many would never ask.
What it’s like
Bright, flat studio light and bold primary sets give this 1972 anthology the look of a stage farce, with a few vignettes that flip into dreamlike monochrome or pastel parody. The camera mostly sits still in tidy medium shots, letting Woody Allen's rapid-fire verbal jokes and deadpan timing carry the frame, while the score is a jaunty, sometimes sly mix of period tunes and light comic stingers. Sexual content is frequent and openly bawdy in its jokes, with suggestive costumes, mock-clinical lab scenes and innuendo, but nothing graphic is shown; violence is minimal and mostly slapstick, and a few sheep and sperm gags are played for absurd laughs rather than shock. The vibe is brisk, cheeky and silly, the kind of comedy suited to a lazy weekend, a playful date night, or a group watch where people want to laugh at taboo subjects without anything heavy. The pacing is episodic, each short segment rising to a punchline and moving on, and the tone stays light and irreverent throughout. It suits viewers who enjoy vintage sketch-style comedy, fans of Allen's early work, and anyone who wants a bawdy, good-humoured film about sex that never gets mean.
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