"PHALLACIES: THE MOVIE" (2024) Is A Members Only Anatomically Correct Exploitation Anthology (REVIEW)
Is provocation a reflection of someone’s sensitivity or because society deems it an affront? It seems like the “chicken or the egg” question of getting offended, and the answer is probably, it depends. Like so many things in life, taste in movies, music, and food, what offends us differs from person to person. While we may share traditions, habits, and rituals from our family, friends, and circles of influence what offends us is often personal, but not always unique. Much has been written about the fetishization and sexualization of women and gender in the horror genre, and in particular the hetero-gaze to which most horror films default. The one thing you don’t see a lot of in horror movies or genre films, generally speaking, is the penis. The last 7 years have seen an increase in the amount of male member representation on screen and genre films have certainly played a role in more ways than most. What has been missing is the next logical step, exploitation, and even further more, dicksploitation. That is where Domiziano Cristopharo and Jon Deviln come in, the co-creators and collaborators behind, “Phallacies: The Movie,” the first dicksploitation film ever made. Is the world ready for more dick, or has it come too early?
WHAT’S IT ABOUT?
11 short films ranging from extreme to gore, animation to quirky comedy and disturbing drama: the theme? The penis. No censorship, no moralism: PHALLACIES is the first DICKSPLOITATION film ever made.
HOW IS IT?
*** Content Warning: Descriptions of genitalia, predominantly male and self-harm ***
To preface, and disclose bias, one of the filmmakers is a friend. Aside from this work, there is no familiarity with any of the other filmmakers involved or their previous work and how this relates to that
The idea at the heart of “Phallacies” is that the penis “don’t get no respect” (tugs on shirt collar) when it comes to sexualization in the mainstream, and that’s largely true. As a society largely built upon hetero-normative and non-binary beliefs sexualization is gendered in film, and it largely errs towards women’s over men’s private parts. One could argue that we shouldn’t be censoring either gender, but we digress, “Phallacies” is more concerned with the male than female anatomy. The good news is that this is truly one of the most proudly penile works of transgressive horror that may have ever existed. It provokes you with phalluses audaciously and literally in your face for 101 minutes, proving an eggplant-shaped emoji exclamation point that the dick deserves some screen time. The not-as-good news is that it often confuses the message and the intent in a way that may or may not seem obvious. What is left are a handful of exciting and entertaining stories and a heap of guys just jerking off for the camera.
The idea of a dicksploitation movie sounds too good to be true, like something Troma would have a trademark on at this point. And what co-creators and collaborators Jon Devlin and Domiziano Cristopharo know is that when it comes to exploitation films, especially in horror, there is a heavy bias towards female nudity. The effort to change this brings us to “Phallacies”, and when it is at its best it is using the penis as either a teachable moment, a part of a trans allegory, or watching a clown play his dick-forward version of the removable finger trick. It is at these moments when the assignment of the anthology is clear; destigmatize (sidenote: it takes a lot of willpower, maybe professionalism, to not write dedickmatzie) the penis so that it can have more broad representation on screen. One of the reasons we don’t see more male genitalia in Hollywood is because of how ill-adjusted we as a society are to sexuality and the human form around us. If the goal of “Phallacies” is to make the world more comfortable with the male form, it partially succeeds by essentially making it the focal point of every single segment from the most narrative to the most ambiguous. The problem, however, is that the focal point of so many of these segments is about the same thing; a guy jerking off.
Where “Phallacies” runs into a problem with its message is that it does little to destigmatize the penis as sexual. While it certainly is a sexual part of our anatomy, the filmmakers defer in every single section to show masturbation. In some cases, just close-up shots of people masturbating and ejaculating and that is the entire point of the segment. From a shock value perspective, it will only affect the most prudish, but it shows a lack of diversity in ideas and thought, and potentially a bad sales pitch for the dick. Most of the shorts would fall under the category of pornographic and kink, and the ones that do offer some narrative only occasionally use the phallus as a part of the plot more than set decoration, but they are few and far between. The other challenge here is that while the assertion that the penis doesn’t get as much representation on screen is true, the proposition in so many of these shorts doesn’t have different options on how to break the stigma. Considering so many of the segments involve ejaculation, it does beg the question of how much suggestion there was around ideation to avoid redundancy and fatigue. It doesn’t matter how inclusive you are, it isn’t easy watching the same things over and over again with a few novel ideas strewn about. It is admirable what “Phallacies” has set out to do, there is no doubt about that. However, when blazing new trails it is important to lead with the best feet, or heads, forward.
LAST RITES
“Phallacies” is commendable for a few exemplary and innovative ideas that serve the self-proclaimed dicksploitation title, while also being an impressive global collaboration. The flip side of that is while some segments stand out, so many of them just amount to self-exhibition for the sake of it.
THE GORY DETAILS
Co-Creators
Written, Starring, & Directed By
Where can you watch it?
Phallaices: The Moviei was self-financed through the producers and a Kickstarter campaign. The film does not have a firm release date yet, but it will be in 2025. Follow www.phallaicesthemovie.com for updates!
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