Café Flesh: Limited Red Case Edition – Mondo Macabro (4k UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, 1982
Director: Stephen Sayadian
Writers: Jerry Stahl, Stephen Sayadian
Cast: Andy Nichols, Paul McGibboney, Michelle Bauer, Marie Sharp, Tantala Ray, Dennis Edwards, Kevin James, Dondi Bastone, Richard Belzer 

Release Date: March, 2025
Approximate Running Time: 75 Minutes 38 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 & 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: OOP

"The time: five years after a nuclear apocalypse. The survivors: post-nuke, thrill-freaks looking for a kick. Able to exist, to sense, to feel everything... but pleasure. In a world destroyed, survivors break down to those who can and those who can't. 99% are Sex Negatives; call them "erotic casualties". They want to make love, but the mere touch of another person makes them violently ill. The rest, the lucky one percent, are Sex Positives, those whose libidos escaped unscathed. After the Nuclear Kiss, the Positives remain to love, to perform; and the others can only watch - can only come to Cafe Flesh!" - synopsis provided by the distributor

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

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "The following restoration of Café Flesh was made from a number of 35mm prints and analog sources with consequent occasional variations in image quality."  

Café Flesh comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD

Disc Size: 82.4 GB

Feature: 34.2 GB (1.85:1 Aspect Ratio), 34.1 GB (1.33:1 Aspect Ratio)

Though there are a few moments where quality dips, the bulk of the time the source looks excellent. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated and appropriately vibrant, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image looks organic. That said, it is difficult to imagine Café Flesh ever looking any better than it does for this release.

Café Flesh comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 41.8 GB

Feature: 14.3 GB (1.85:1 Aspect Ratio), 14.3 GB (1.33:1 Aspect Ratio)

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

Audio: 5/5

This release comes with one option, a DTS-HD mono mix in English, and included are removable English SDH subtitles. The audio is in excellent shape. Dialog always comes through clearly; everything sounds balanced; ambient sounds are well represented; and range-wise, things sound robust when they should.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 59 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), archival onset B-roll making of footage (3 minutes 8 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an interview with writer and adult film performer Jessica Stoya (9 minutes 39 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Jacob Smith, Northwestern University (17 minutes 49 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with screenwriter Jerry Stahl aka Herbert W Day (15 minutes 22 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with director, designer and screenwriter Stephen Sayadian aka Rinse Dream (57 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an audio commentary with Stephen Sayadian.

The extras are the same on both discs.

Other extras include a slipcover, and a 32-page booklet with an archival text titled “Café Flesh” and Me Confessions of a Cult Sex King written by Jerry Stahl, an essay titled United Mutations: Café Flesh as Dada xxx written by Daniel Bird, an essay titled We Don’t Dream: Shadows and Sadness in the Fallout in Stephen Sayadian’s Café Flesh written by Heather Drain, an essay titled Unmasking Café Flesh’s Customers written by Eric Peretti.

Summary:

Stephen Sayadian and Jerry Stahl are the creative minds behind Café Flesh. Their other collaborations include Nightdreams and Dr. Caligari. Stephen Sayadian is most known for his role as the creative director of humor and advertising for Larry Flynt Publications, and screenwriter Jerry Stahl’s autobiographical novel Permanent Midnight about his addiction to heroin was adapted into a feature film.

In a post-apocalyptic future there are two kinds of people: sex negatives who get ill from physical intimacy and sex positives who perform for those who can no longer experience pleasure.

Despite Café Flesh being made for adult film audiences, the result is an anti-X-rated film in how deliberately unerotic it is. Café Flesh is a film infused with avant-garde and surrealism. The look of Café Flesh is an infusion of 1950s and 1980s culture. Mitchell Froom’s remarkable score perfectly underscores the mood, creating a synergy with the visuals.

The narrative does an excellent job balancing exposition and sex scenes. At 76 minutes in length, things move quickly, and the narrative does a phenomenal job building to its climax. The premise and its post-apocalyptic setting are ripe with possibilities, and they are fully exploited.

The cast is a mixture of adult performers and theater actors. When it comes to the performances, they far exceed expectations. The most memorable performance is Marie Sharp, who portrays Angel, a woman who hides that she is actually sex-positive. Another notable performance is Michelle Bauer (Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers), who portrays Lana, a sex-negative woman who has a sexual awakening in the finale. Notable cast members include adult film actor Kevin James, who portrays Johnny Rico, a sex-positive performer, and Richard Belzer (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), who has a cameo as a loudmouth audience member.

There are six sex scenes, and each one has a different theme and vibe. In the first one, a 1950s housewife has a sexual rendezvous with a milkman who looks like a rat. In the second one, a secretary has sex with her boss, who has a pencil for a head, while other rigs are in the background. The third one is a lesbian scene in a Cold War setting. The fourth one is a self-pleasure moment with Lana. The fifth one is a Busby Berkeley-inspired scene. In the final sex scene, Lana has her sexual awakening.

Stephen Sayadian’s extensive background as an art director and production designer is on full display in Café Flesh. That said, the production design is exemplary; it is overflowing with imagination. The most surprising aspect of Café Flesh is how effectively it employs humor. Ultimately, Café Flesh is a unique cinema experience that those who normally don’t enjoy adult cinema are sure to enjoy.

Café Flesh gets a definitive release from Mondo Macabro, highly recommended.

Note: This edition is limited to 2000 copies.

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 MPC-HC player and lossless PNGs.

Written by Michael Den Boer