Back in 1972, and right before Deep Throat broke, pornography was not a pretty affair. While the world was changing fast and taboos were ready to be shattered, making an adult film was the ultimate outsider move. There was no big money to be made, and legal consequences were still a gray area. Making porn was a labor of love. 

Alex de Renzy’s Little Sisters is a good example of a dude who simply wanted to make a movie. It’s that same feeling you get with a student film where everyone involved seems to be in it because, well, they’re making a fucking movie and they’re just happy about that.

While there’s a lot of sex – especially considering the film is pretty brief, clocking at 49 minutes – the story, its randomness and its quite possibly improvised outcomes are clearly what’s most important on Little Sisters. Some scenes are very slow paced, and there’s an overall feeling that, while there was an outline for the story, a lot of the actions happened naturally. It’s purposely sloppy and chaotic, not unlike the art films of its time that are now cult classics.

A mother left her two teenage daughters back at her farm for the day and asked them to be careful. In her absence, a gang of extremely creepy, long-haired dudes kidnap the girls and decide to force themselves on them. The awkward gang rape scene in the middle of the woods reminded me of the disturbing cult film I Spit On Your Grave – though significantly less violent/shocking.

When she comes back home, she sees a note misleading her into thinking a rival gang – an all-lesbian crew, affectionately called ’The Dykes’ – had their girls. She tries everything to find them, including a “confession” with a couple of very questionable members of the clergy. Eventually she finds ‘The Dykes’ and, just when you think the rape-y stuff is over, she’s pinned down for an unexpected female-on-female one, though she manages to get away.

In an inexplicably illogical hippie ending, a dwarf named Derek comes to aid the woman get her daughters back, and proceeds to whoop everyone’s ass – Dykes and otherwise – before giving them a heartwarming speech on love and respect. Everyone then proceeds to give each other flowers. I scratched my head and rolled another one.

While the budget was considerably limited and the images are grainy and low quality, it serves the story right. Pretty much the whole movie is shot outdoors, and while some of the sex portrayed is supposed to not be consensual, you get the feeling that everyone in it just had a fucking blast shooting that movie. Just a bunch of people in the woods, having sex, doing drugs and being part of something bigger. The sex scenes are not particularly good, but the music adds an odd intensity to them.

Mostly, though, you get the feeling De Renzy simply couldn’t give any shits about what you thought of the film. He just made the movie he wanted, and isn’t that what filmmaking should be about?