This unpleasant little film was quite a pleasant surprise. I guess one has become rather hardened to sleaze when you wonder going in if it’s gonna be just another parade of sexual abuse and violence or what. Well, THE SINFUL DWARF is indeed chock full of sexual abuse, though little in the way of violence, at least in the conventional horror sense of the word. But THE SINFUL DWARF doesn’t take long to grab you in its clutches, and, notably, in multiple ways. Obviously, the severely weird little person with his crutch and peccadilloes is a significant portion of the film’s creep factor. But while title is very apt and honest, there’s more than just an evil, leering little dude. Take, for instance, his lush of a mother whose boarding house is a front for a mean prostitution service. The basement or attic – I was never clear on which – is full of women who, presumably, started out as boarders and ended up as heroin-hooked sex slaves in the basement for Mommy’s clientele. Mommy also likes to put on song-and-dance routines. Its these that the husband of our central couple points to as the source of the strange noises his wife hears while hubby is out earning his meager pay. Of course, we know her suspicions are well-founded and that she has been targeted by Mommy. This gives nothing away. Early on we see the pair apartment hunting. This run-down boardinghouse seems to be at the end of long list of hunted homes. It’s not much, but it’s cheap. But Mommy isn’t inclined to rent to hubby – until wifey catches up to hubby at the door and Mommy realizes there’s a beautiful babe and potential new sex slave victim in tow. The trick will be adding wifey to the harem without hubby’s interference. Maybe the disposal of hubby. At any rate, THE SINFUL DWARF charmed the pants of me. Not literally, I wasn’t nude like the fuck junkies in the basement. This sleazy little film made me happy. It’s my friend. It’s unique. And you know what? There’s even more creeped-out shit I haven’t mentioned yet. The titular dwarf, it seems, is quite fond of toys. (Stuffed animals are also part of a subplot involving a cohort of Mommy.) Including the toy animals that make noise and move and stuff. The opening credit sequence and a perfect closing scene feature these spooky fucking things to good effect. Also, you will never think of canes the same way again. A NOTE: This is the film’s first time on DVD in its uncut glory. Now, on the whole, the penetration footage – which stands out a tad since it’s been buried wherever while the rest of the film lived on in some form of underground/indie fashion – doesn’t add a ton to the film, unless you’re a hardcore hardcore fan. But it doesn’t detract. And it certainly doesn’t bring the movie to a screeching halt for minute upon minute upon minute. This isn’t a porno movie. It’s a sexploitation horror affair with a few hardcore sequences, frequently consisting of footage that pads out a pre-extant scene that was simply softcore without the, ahem, inserts. AND, you’ll never think of a cane the same way again. Oh, and I have to say that the entertainment appeal here goes beyond the gratuitous, though I hope I’ve made that plain already. Suspense builds until the denouement, when the viewer really has no idea what to expect. Are the good guys gonna come out of this alive? If so, unscathed? Will they come out of this at all? THE SINFUL DWARF is both titillating and, in the end, tense. It’s a subversive grindhouser whose value is more than mere tits onscreen.
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