THE FORBIDDEN

Q: What is The Forbidden about?

The Forbidden is a 1966 documentary exploring assorted forbidden pleasures and taboos from around the world, with a focus on striptease, sexploitation, and moralizing narration.

Forbidden by Law, Forbidden by Society, Forbidden by Common Decency, But Exposed by the Cameras of Olympic International Films.

1966 · 1h 6m · NR · Documentary · IMDB TMDB

A Documentary explores assorted "forbidden" topics from all over the world. Among the subjects depicted herein are a racy TV commercial for a female martial arts school, rowdy teenagers protesting a strict curfew on the Sunset Strip, an underground lesbian club in Geneva, a portable topless bar, and various strip acts around the world.

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Quick Answer

What is The Forbidden about?

The Forbidden is a 1966 France/Italy documentary directed by Benjamin Andrews and Lee Frost, exploring assorted 'forbidden' pleasures and taboos from around the world, with a heavy focus on striptease and sexploitation.

Programmer's Pick

If you like your documentaries served with a side of striptease and a heaping dose of exploitation, The Forbidden is mondo at its most unabashed. Don’t expect much globe-trotting accuracy—just a parade of recurring performers and provocations passing for anthropology.

— SassyFlix Programmer

Overview

The Forbidden offers a cheeky, globe-spanning tour through the so-called forbidden pleasures of the flesh, using the mondo documentary format to both titillate and moralize. With a wink and a nudge, the film hops from city to city—sometimes reusing the same faces and locations, regardless of the claimed setting—to peer in on strippers, underground nightclubs, and other risqué scenes. Along the way, it pauses to tout the virtues of self-defense, spins a crime of passion yarn, and never misses a chance to offer heavy-handed commentary. Less interested in authenticity than sensation, the film blurs lines between documentary and staged spectacle, serving up a voyeuristic sampler of 1960s taboo.

Details & Specs

Directors: Benjamin Andrews, Lee Frost
Writer: Benjamin Andrews
Release: 1966
Runtime: 1h 6m
Country: France, Italy
Language: French, English
Genres: Documentary

Cast & Crew

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Directors: Benjamin Andrews +1 more Writer: Benjamin Andrews

BB Baby Bubbles Rose Caulder PH Pat Hall Showering Victim

Explore More

Sexploitation Exploitation Mondo Female Nudity Female Full Frontal Nudity Exploitation Sexploitation Jealousy Stripper Female Full Rear Nudity Striptease Kung Fu Nazi Naked Female Breasts Swastika Mondo Crime Of Passion

Why Cult

Mondo Exploitation Tour

Experience a whirlwind of supposed international taboos, from strip clubs to underground scenes, all filtered through the lens of 1960s mondo filmmaking.

Recycled Locations & Talent

Spot the same faces and locales standing in for multiple cities—a signature wink at the genre’s disregard for boundaries (geographic or otherwise).

Sexploitation Focus

From topless bars to racy martial arts commercials, the film leans hard into striptease and nudity, defining the sexploitation label.

Moralizing Commentary

The documentary can’t resist lecturing its audience, adding a layer of self-conscious justification to its parade of taboos.