All Ladies Do It – Cult Epics (4k UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1992
Director: Tinto Brass
Writers: Tinto Brass, Francesco Costa, Ted Rusoff, Bernardino Zapponi
Cast: Claudia Koll, Paolo Lanza, Franco Branciaroli, Ornella Marcucci, Isabella Deiana, Renzo Rinaldi

Release Date: April 2nd, 2024
Approximate Running Time: 96 Minutes 30 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / HDR10
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Stereo Italian, DTS-HD Mono English, DTS-HD Stereo English
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $49.95

"After five years of marriage, Diana discovers the joys of adultery, claiming that she can save her failing relationship with her husband through betrayal." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5 (4K UHD), 4.5/5 (Blu-ray)

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "New 4K Transfer (from the original negative) & Restoration with HDR."

All Ladies Do It comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD

Disc Size: 73.1 GB

Feature: 68.6 GB

This transfer looks exceptional. Flesh tones look healthy; colors are vibrant; image clarity and black levels are solid; compression is very good; and the image looks organic. That said, there are two things I considered when coming up with a score for this transfer. How does it compare to this film’s previous home video releases, and does it look any better than this transfer, which looks exceptional?

All Ladies Do It comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 34.8 GB

Feature: 27.2 GB 

This Blu-ray uses the same master that is used for the 4K UHD disc.

Audio: 5/5 (DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Stereo Italian, DTS-HD Mono English, DTS-HD Stereo English)

This release comes with four audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian, a DTS-HD stereo mix in Italian, a DTS-HD mono mix in English, and a DTS-HD stereo mix in English. The Italian mono track is this film’s original theatrical track. Quality-wise, you can’t go wrong with any of these audio tracks; they are all in great shape. Dialog comes through clearly; everything sounds balanced, and range-wise, they all sound great. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian language track, and when watching with the English language tracks, there is a second removable English subtitle track for Italian text.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include a theatrical trailer for All Ladies Do It (3 minutes 21 seconds, LPCM mono Italian and English, no subtitles), a theatrical trailer for Frivolous Lola (2 minutes 17 seconds, LPCM mono Italian with removable English subtitles) and an audio commentary with Eugenio Ercolani and Troy Howarth.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc include a theatrical trailer for All Ladies Do It (3 minutes 21 seconds, LPCM mono Italian and English, no subtitles), a theatrical trailer for Frivolous Lola (2 minutes 17 seconds, LPCM stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), a theatrical trailer for Paprika (1 minute 11 seconds, LPCM stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), a theatrical trailer for P.O. Box Tinto Brass (1 minute 15 seconds, LPCM stereo with Italian with text, no subtitles), a theatrical trailer for Istintobrass (4 minutes 13 seconds, LPCM stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), a photo gallery for All Ladies Do It (25 images), outtakes from All Ladies Do It (9 minutes 57 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Italian, no subtitles), an archival interview with director Tinto Brass (15 minutes 19 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles) and an audio commentary with Eugenio Ercolani and Troy Howarth.

Other extras include reversible cover art, four repro Italian lobby card prints (first pressing exclusive), slipcover (first pressing exclusive) and a 20-page booklet with an essay titled From Demon to Saint: The Career of Claudia Koll written by Eugenio Ercolani and Domenico Monetti.

Summary:

Tinto Brass originally started his career directing art-house films before shifting into erotic cinema in the 1970s. His films have always been softcore romps that come close but never cross the line into full-blown hardcore sex films. A lot has changed in the 40+ years Brass has been directing these types of films, as the soft-core market has all but dried up except for maybe cable TV, with the focus going towards making hard-core films. That said, Tinto Brass is the last of the dying bread, as his films are not only beautifully photographed; they are also some of the most sensual images ever committed to celluloid.

Since Tinto Brass made the shift towards erotica in the 1970s, he has steadily cranked out some of the best erotica-themed films. His masterpiece of erotica cinema is The Key. And when it comes to content, his bread and butter are beautiful women, and his favorite body part is the ass. That said, Tinto Brass’ cinema is best summed up as a perfect fusion of erotica and arthouse.

That narrative revolves around Diana, a sexually promiscuous woman who often tells her husband Paolo about her various affairs with other men. Paolo has never been the jealous type—that is, until he finds out about his wife’s latest lover, Alphonse, who is obsessed with women’s asses. And one night, he becomes the first man to penetrate Diana's ass. Paolo and Diana get into a fight over Alphonse, which leads to one last fling before she returns home to Paola, who takes her back unconditionally.

All Ladies Do It is Tinto Brass’s ode to anal sex, and if anyone knows how to build up the thrill of the moment, it is Tinto Brass with his ability to showcase women’s asses in the most sensual and creative ways. While watching All Ladies Do It, the Alphonse character reminded me a lot of Tinto Brass and how they both obsess over women’s asses. Whether this is just by chance that they are like or deliberate is anyone’s guess, but the similarities are striking. Tinto Brass even makes an appearance in All Ladies Do It as a dirty old man who the woman he’s with calls uncle.

Though there are many elements in the cinema of Tinto Brass that are interchangeable from one film to the next, the one thing that often changes is his leading lady, and when it comes to casting them, he always manages to find some of the most alluring women. Case in point: Claudia Koll plays the role of Diana, a sexually frustrated wife who tries to save her marriage by embracing adultery. She delivers an uninhibited and captivating performance that is among the best to appear in a Tinto Brass film. That said, none of the other performances left any lasting impression.

Something you can always count on with Tinto Brass films is that the production design will be exquisite and when it comes to the female form women in his film always look amazing whether in erotic moments or doing things one normally does not show in movies like going to the bathroom. Another highlight of All Ladies Do It is Pino Donaggio’s (Dressed to Kill) score. Besides being an ode to anal sex, other themes explored in All Ladies Do It are voyeurism, infidelity, jealousy, and sexual liberation. Ultimately, All Ladies Do is a celebration of one of the most fascinating areas of a woman’s body. And Tinto Brass once again surprises with his inventiveness and fearlessness to go where so very few filmmakers are willing to go.

All Ladies Do It gets an exceptional release from Cult Epics that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a trio of insightful extras, highly recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a VLC player and lossless PNGs.

Written by Michael Den Boer