Inside Deep Throat

Right now you can watch Inside Deep Throat on streaming — and it earns the access it was given. It says what it needs to say in one sitting, no filler. 144 viewers have already rated it on TMDB — the kind of consensus that does not happen by accident. The access the production secured is remarkable, and it does justice to it. Put it on tonight and see for yourself.

Whatever else is competing for your attention this week, Inside Deep Throat is worth clearing space for. Inside Deep Throat resists the urge to oversimplify a subject that deserves better. In 1972, a seemingly typical shoestring budget pornographic film was made in a Florida hotel: "Deep Throat," starring Linda Lovelace. This film would surpass the wildest expectation of everyone involved to become one of the most successful independent films of all time. It caught the public imagination which met the spirit of the times, even as the self-appointed guardians of public morality struggled to suppress it, and created, for a brief moment, a possible future where sexuality in film had a bold artistic potential. Dennis Hopper and Peter Bart lead a cast that brings real weight to the material. It was released in 2005. What elevates Inside Deep Throat above most documentary work is a refusal to settle for the easy version of the story. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

Anyone after documentary work that genuinely informs rather than confirms will value Inside Deep Throat. It does not lean on comparisons to make its case. A contained runtime means every scene is doing real work. The subject drives every choice here, not the other way around. The kind of production you finish and immediately want to read more about.