Naked Obsession (1990) Reviews

• A fun guilty pleasure movie with decent acting

  SykkBoy2001-05-25

  I first saw this movie a long time ago on Joe Bob Briggs' Drive-In Theater (remember when TMC had this...they REALLY need to bring him back). A decent cast with the gorgeous Maria Ford, one of my favorite porn stars Madison (billed as Madison Stone), Rick Dean (in an amazing performance), William Katt (Greatest American Hero), Wendy MacDonald and the lovely Elena Sahagan...plus a special appearance by my favorite cheesy movie director, Fred Olen Ray and Roger Craig (yes, the football player). The plot is a bit simple, a city councilman rallying against filfth wanders into a strip club and ends up in trouble... Rick Dean as Sam Silver is amazing and mesmerizing. The strip club scenes are great and the dances well choreographed...too often movies set in strip clubs have gals on stage who look like they've never seen a pole before.... The addition of a bit of a surprise ending and some dark humor make this one of those great popcorn flicks...

• An unknown gem -- superb psychological thriller

  smokehill retrievers2003-09-27

  Perhaps not enough car chases or gratuitous sex for the under-25 crowd, but if dark psychological thrillers work for you, don't miss this one. A very different film that seems straightforward at first but quickly descends to a dark, quirky film with outstanding performances by Katt and Dean, both very underrated and underused actors of great skill. Katt has come a long way since he was Carrie's ill-fated prom date. His dark partner-mentor in this film, "Sam Silver," keeps Katt -- and certainly the viewer -- confused and off-balance: who is this guy? Devil? Guardian Angel? The "666" address of the topless bar gives us a clue -- maybe. This guy Dean is further proof that Hollywood just doesn't know what to do with spectacular talent; he generally just plays strange character roles instead of the meatier stuff he should be doing. This offbeat little offering is in a class by itself. Perhaps not the perfect family film for the little kiddies, but for the viewer with half a brain and a taste for juicy, twisting plots this is a rare treat.

• AKA: Sunset Strip

  Tim4salt2002-11-28

  I saw this movie many years ago, and never forgot it. When I saw it on cable, it was called sunset strip. It is much better than most movies of this type, and much better than you would think based on the low rating. I have been looking for it under that name for many years. I just stumbled on it while looking for the actress in perfect fit (Maria Ford). Not just another sexplotation b-movie.

• NOT BAD

  jonpd2002-11-04

  Pretty wierd film. William Katt's performance makes up for a lot in this thriller about a man who is framed for the murder of a stripper with whom he had sex with. The other performances are stale (especially Wendy MacDonald's) but Maria Ford is a hot one and the sex scenes are pretty graphic (which should amuse some people out there). Altogether, worth watching with a date or with a bunch of your friends and a six pack on a boring Friday night. 5/10

• Roger Craig is in it! Nuff said. Spoilers!

  BlackJack_B2002-01-14

  As a long time fan of the San Francisco 49ers, I was very interested in seeing the great Roger Craig, the running back who was a member of 3 Super Bowl winning teams in the 80's in his acting debut. He doesn't disappoint in his cameo, playing a detective who is investigating a murder and chases a suspect who was pointed at by someone who saw him with the victim. Roger runs down an alley, showing off the moves that made him the NFL's first 1000-1000 player, including a nasty stiff arm and some strong language to boot. He then gets into his police car and barrels down the road, still on the suspects trail. After the car can't be driven no further, he gets out and while continuing the chase, is tripped up by the suspect's brand new friend. Roger then proceeds to beat him up and handcuff him to a pipe. Roger then lights a cigarette and gets back in the car, where he suddenly has a heart attack and dies. How did this happen? William Katt plays Franklyn Carlisle, a councilman who is running for Mayor. One of his plans is to clean up the city of it's filth. One night, while driving through the red district, he is mugged. He wakes up in an alley and meets up with a strange man named Sam Silver. Mr. Silver introduces Franklyn to the sins of the Ying Yang Club, a gentleman's club. One of the ladies who works there (Maria Ford) takes a liking to him, which excited him because he isn't happy with his marriage. He also finds that his car has miraculously returned after it was stolen. The next night, Franklyn returns to the area to search for Sam again. They meet and talk. Sam isn't happy with proposals to close down the club, saying that cities need to have a good side and and bad side. The woman that likes him has finished her shift and asks if he can drive her home. He agrees and you know what happens next. There is an interesting storyline with Lynn Hauser's interest in being choked while having sex. The night was such a smashing success that the next morning Franklyn goes down to Lynn's house for another session, only to find she's been murdered. Roger does his thing, then after he expires, Franklyn uncuffs Sam and tells him what happened. Sam just gives him some cryptic advice or something. Franklyn goes back home to discover his wife is having an affair with his best friend. They have a fight, and when he wins it, his wife admonishes him and goes to see how her lover is. While cleaning up in the bathroom, Franklyn hears gunshots and discovers his wife and friend have been murdered. He's also given a note to be at the Ying Yang Club, which is closed due to the investigation of the murder and to Roger's death. He goes in, is knocked out, awakens to see someone on stage doing a striptease, and finds out it's his secretary who has a big crush on him. She decides to choke him to death because he'd had sex with Lynn, but just before he's about expire, Sam comes in and shoots her with a gun to save his life. Sam also had a tape of what she said, admitting she'd killed Lynn and the others. Franklyn decides that he doesn't want to change the world any more and just decides to live a new life because his reputation was ruined, but he never finds out the true mystery of Sam Silver. Is he an angel, or the devil, or both? I loved this movie. It has good acting, direction, and the storyline has lots of twists. It's a bit silly, too. Fred Olen Ray, the infamous B-movie director, has a cameo, playing the MC who announces the acts at the Ying Yang Club. Maria Ford and Elena Sahagun are great, too, and do a better job of doing a striptease than Demi Moore could. Rick Dean is terrific as well. But it's Roger Craig who steals the show. Why he didn't get more offers after this is beyond me. See it just for him, you won't be disappointed.