Talking Walls

A student named Paul is doing a thesis on intimacy. He hopes to catch people having intimate moments by placing hidden video equipment in several hotel rooms. Of course, this is a really stupid idea because how many people have truly intimate moments in a dumpy hotel? Sure...they have plenty of sex. That's not the same thing as intimacy though. The American student falls in love with some French lady named Jeanne. She wants to take their relationship to the next level but Paul has hesitations. *SPOILER ALERT* That same night, Jeanne gets caught on tape having sex with Paul's teacher. We are then pushed to believe that it's perfectly acceptable for her to have done that and it's all Paul's fault. What?!! She's in love with Paul and wants to have a more serious relationship with him. Then she gets over it in a matter of hours and sleeps with some other guy? Not exactly the type of behavior to make me sympathetic. The acting is horrible and the direction is strictly amateur. A perfect example of an empty '80s sex flick. 1/10

My review was written in August 1987 after watching the movie on New World video cassette. "Talking Walls" is a feature that can't make up its mind whether to be sexploitation or serious-minded about human relationships; comedy or suspenser. Resulting mishmash was lensed nearly five years ago, alternately titled "Motel Vacancy", and, hopelessly dated, gone to home video in lieu of a theatrical release. Filmmaker Stephen Verona delivers an opening reel emphasizing first-person camerawork that is pure sex tease: student Stephen Shellen setting up video equipment and 2-way mirrors at Don Davis' Total Media Motel in order to photograph couple for his master's thesis on intimacy and human relationships. After this cute opening, featuring plenty of nudity, attempted jokes and spoofing of the outlandish motel decor (with its sheep room, shoe room, etc.), pic bogs down in endlessly boring soul searching about whether his project is ethical (his sociology prof Barry Primus doubts this) or productive. Extremely corny romantic interludes with his girl friend Marie Laurin (who's also carrying on with Primus, it turns out) pad the film as well. Ultimately, Shellen rejects technology and after a recap filler montage concludes that "the answer is love -live life, don't record it". On this pithy note, pic launches one of its vulgar theme songs: "Better in the Backseat". Pic is so dated that it includes a joke about herpes. Of course, the constant bedhopping theme has been rendered archaic by the AIDS epidemic.

A student named Paul is doing a thesis on intimacy. He hopes to catch people having intimate moments by placing hidden video equipment in several hotel rooms. Of course, this is a really stupid idea because how many people have truly intimate moments in a dumpy hotel? Sure...they have plenty of sex. That's not the same thing as intimacy though. The American student falls in love with some French lady named Jeanne. She wants to take their relationship to the next level but Paul has hesitations. *SPOILER ALERT* That same night, Jeanne gets caught on tape having sex with Paul's teacher. We are then pushed to believe that it's perfectly acceptable for her to have done that and it's all Paul's fault. What?!! She's in love with Paul and wants to have a more serious relationship with him. Then she gets over it in a matter of hours and sleeps with some other guy? Not exactly the type of behavior to make me sympathetic. The acting is horrible and the direction is strictly amateur. A perfect example of an empty '80s sex flick. 1/10