Netflix Picks: Happy International Working Women’s Day!

Although this day is now just called International Women's Day, we wanted to use the old term to put an extra bit of socialist flavor back in the mix. As Missy Elliott once said, "Is it worth it? Let me work it, put my thing down, flip it and reverse it." Ladies, you are indeed "worth it," and so this edition of Netflix Picks salutes you and all the different ways you work it.

And as you're about to see, we have a very broad definition of what qualifies as "work."

1. Cold Sweat: Shannon Tweed was one of the hardest working ladies in show business; she's a well-known Playboy Playmate, she's been in over sixty films, and Wikipedia calls her "one of the most successful actresses of mainstream erotica." Not many people these days remember her from her softcore era, and we think that's a damn shame. Look at this movie, "Cold Sweat," in which Shannon cheats on her husband with two different men, has a bunch of shower sex, and even takes time off to paint and be painted in blacklight sensitive pigment. Why oh why did Gene Simmons ever cheat on her?

2. The Big Bird Cage: This movie right here is pretty much the Platonic ideal of 1970s sexploitation films. It's about a young woman named Terry (Anitra Ford!) who gets caught up with some sketchy revolutionaries (including Pam Grier!) who are trying to infiltrate a concentration camp for women in order to start a revolt and take over from the inside. We probably don't need to tell you about all the ways sex, nudity, and sadism are mixed here, but we will mention that there is a tall, powerful woman who greases her whole body with chicken fat. Also, the movie's tagline is, "Women so hot with desire they melt the chains that enslave them!" Yes, please.

3. Frog Song: When Konatsu finds her man screwing another woman, she runs away and ends up living with a wannabe manga artist who turns tricks to supplement his income. Konatsu ends up hooking as well. Feelings start brewing between our two heroes, but Konatsu also starts considering returning to her spouse. "Frog Song" boasts a beautifully cathartic sex scene amidst the general exploration of sensuality, and since it's only 65 minutes long, you can watch it in one easy sitting.

4. Requiem for a Vampire: Being a vampire is work, right? Right. Well, anyway, you can guess what "Requiem for a Vampire" is like just from the name: it's a cheesy, surreal, nudity-filled dungeon crawler of a film. We chose to show the dignified film cover for this movie, but here is the alternate (and more honest) version. Boobs, blood, etc. Happy Working Women's Day!

[At top: Shannon Tweed covered with paint under a blacklight, because Netflix is awesome.]