It's easy to lament the dearth of porn flicks with plots, but the reason most of those films went away is because most porn performers just aren't actors. That's not what they're trying to do. As James Deen so pointedly said in our interview, "people need to get that out of their heads, that porn people are bad actors. No, porn people are amazing performers, and some of us act, some of us can’t, it’s not what we do."
Nevertheless some people, like the guys over at Made Men (link below), long for the days when there was a plot in between all the fucking. That led them to create a definitive ranking of the 10 best adult films, and it should be noted that the most recent film on the list was released in 1986. Below you can find their list and their reasonings, but I think these guys need to watch some films made in this century.
- “Deep Throat” (1972) - The top 10 best adult movies of all time list is topped by the film that began the “porno chic” craze of the 1970s, featuring Linda Lovelace’s oral talents in the service of a comedic plot, the tone of which is imitated in adult movies to this day.
- “New Wave Hookers” (1985) – This adult masterpiece from the Dark Brothers featured then popular new wave music and style, as two daydreaming losers’ fantasies played out onscreen.
- “Behind the Green Door” (1972) – The film debut of ingenue Marilyn Chambers was directed by adult entrepreneurs the Mitchell Brothers. Combining avant garde filmmaking techniques with hardcore action, it helped to usher in the surreally sexy seventies.
- “The Devil in Miss Jones” (1973) – The oft-imitated premise of this classic has a recently dead woman returning to earth as the embodiment of lust, “earning” her place in hell.
- “Naked Afternoon” (1976) – Perhaps the first “meta” porn movie, “Naked Afternoon” stars the beautiful and innocent-looking Abigail Clayton as an aspiring actress who ends up making adult films. It earns its place on the list of top 10 best adult movies of all time due to her enthusiastic and realistic performance.
- “Three Daughters” (1986) – Possibly the best example of a “feminist” adult film, Candida Royale’s masterpiece earns its spot on the top 10 best adult movies of all time list due to its sensual portrayal of womanly pleasure, a vast departure from most male-centered erotic films.
- “The Opening of Misty Beethoven” (1976) - Another adult comedy, this is a satire based loosely on “My Fair Lady,” taking a trashy hooker and placing her in the upper class, where she is quite the hit.
- “Debbie Does Dallas” (1978) - The title of this classic says it all.
- “Flesh Gordon” (1974) - This sci-fi spoof with adult overtones was popular enough to be edited into an R-rated release for mass consumption.
- “The Private Afternoons of Pamela Mann” (1974) – Probably the first porn film to be shot on a Hollywood budget, removing the sex scenes could have made this a hit in any circle. Though, where’s the fun in that?
Via Made Men