If you have stumbled
onto this blog we likely have something in common. Namely, a love and
fascination for the movie “Hot Summer in the City.” Hailed by
Quinten Tarentino as “the greatest porn movie of all time,” it is a story about four black revolutionary gang members who kidnap, rape, and enslave a virgin, white female named Debby, shortly before they are to embark upon trying to start a race war. Gritty and disturbing in its degree of realism, the acting is overall done so brilliantly that it leaves viewers feeling as though they are actually watching a real life documentary. It leaves many viewers feeling absolutely disgusted that they watched it, yet also so riveted by the story and cast that they wanted to see more. The ending of the movie certainly leaves viewers with more questions than answers.
My blog seeks on the one hand, to be a gathering place for people who loved the movie and want to talk about it, and on the other serve those readers who like me, were left dying for a a sequel. I am doing my best to compose such a story and will invite your input on it as it unfolds and welcome your suggestions for shaping it.
First things first. For those of you who have not seen the movie, there are links to it for free in several places and you can find one here:
https://www.vporn.com/vintage/hot-summer-in-the-city/671948/
https://www.vporn.com/vintage/hot-summer-in-the-city/671948/
Spoiler Alert
Read no further if you haven't seen the movie and don't want it spoiled by reading about issues involving the movie which I hope to discuss, and include:
1. The Cast: Aside from possibly actress Lisa Baker (whose presence is also the source of some controversy-was she or wasn't she the Playboy playmate of the same name), no one else in the movie was a known figure, and neither she nor any of the other actors or actresses seem to have appeared in anything else. It's almost as if they made this movie together and then just disappeared into history. I find this surprising given the quality of the acting and would love to know more about the cast if anyone has any information.
2.The identity of the Director. The credits list the director of the movie as being "The Hare." According to IMDb, the director is actually Gail Palmer, who is also credited with directing a few other movies. See:
Yet controversy exists over whether she actually is the one who directed this movie. That will be the topic of a future post and I welcome anyone to provide any additional information (although I tend to think IMDb is accurate on this point).
3. The Paperback Novel and Magazine versions of the movie(?): Prominently advertised on the movie poster, yet to my knowledge the magazine has never been seen and the paper back is scarcer than hen's teeth. If anyone owns a copy of these, has seen them, or knows why they apparently were pulled from shelves or never made, let us know! I would love to have read these versions and see if they matched the movie or added/changed additional material.
4. The Soundtrack: Is AMAZING!!! How did they put all those songs into the movie with no one being sued?
5.The Set and Production: Lots of interesting things to talk about regarding where this film was made (Detroit area) and particularly the set with the gang members' cabin (Did any of you see what is written on the wall above Duke's bed?). Several interesting bloopers in the film as well, I think I will do a whole post on them.
6. The Plot and the unanswered questions left at the end: The ending of this movie to me was infuriating with all the questions it left unanswered! Did the gang go ahead and carry out the plot? Why did Duke let Debby go free and then he and his crew just drive off with two dead bodies in their cabin? Where were they going? Back to Detroit to start the race war, or had they changed their minds?
What about Debby, did she simply just walk home and try and act like nothing happened other than having a bad weekend? Did she call the police to save lives and/or report the men for kidnapping and rape? Afterward, how did things go between Debby, her fiancé, and her mother whom she had discovered was having sex with her future father-in-law (that important piece of info is in the movie preview and newly remastered version, but it
got cut from the 58 minute version of the movie that is more commonly found on the internet)? And what of the feelings Debby began showing for Duke? Were they real, or was she playing him to stay alive? Were Debby's tears at the end simply her feeling relief from being released, or was she crying because she want to be in the car with Duke? If the latter, did she want to be with Duke to save him from his criminal ways, or because she felt a desire to become a member of the gang herself? Could she have really wanted to take Duke up on his offer for her to "change sides" and go full blown Patty Hearst?
As for the gang, did Duke discover his humanity and change his mind about the terror attack, and if so, was this because of the feelings he began having for Debby? What about Shorty-was he really that big of a psychopath, or did we just see the persona he trys to project? What about Coke? He seemed the most humane and worried about Debby in the beginning, and one wonders if he really cared about a race war given he slept through the plans meeting! And what of the mysterious person who was representing someone known as "The Man, " who apparently planned the operation and hired them. Who was he and what were his true motives? 
