Playgirl Models (1963) Online

Hiding behind the usual "for educational purposes" banner is an actually educational nudie film. While failing to provide the prurient interest the fans dig, it does offer some useful instruction to neophyte photographers.

For anyone who loves movies and has heard terms like "low-key lighting" bandied about in discussions of film noir and such, this Manuel Conde short actually explains what various forms of lighting equipment are and shows the results. It's all about putting five beautiful Florida models to work on cheesecake, advertising or calendar photo shoots, with the before & after shots indicating how various black & white effects are achieved.

Several of the girls are familiar faces (and bodies) from appearances in sexploitation films, notably Carlos in her nudist camp work and Vickie Miles, memorable in Herschell Gordon Lewis's "Scum of the Earth". This film proves once again that non-stop nudity on screen does not translate as eroticism or arousing footage. Sadly, it is educational, not stimulating to our baser instincts.

Playgirl Models (1963)

** (out of 4)

Manuel Conde produced and directed this "educational" short, which is supposed to explain to us the various lighting techniques that are used on models during photo shoots. In reality, this short just shows us a bunch of women naked. They are quite beautiful women so calling them models isn't a stretch and we get some familiar faces including Dolores Carlos and Herschell Gordon Lewis' ex-wife, star and eventual co-director Vicki Miles. If you're a fan of either one of these ladies then you'll probably want to check this film out. There's certainly nothing ground-breaking about it but it's done in a very professional manor and it looks like a real movie (unlike so many of these shorts). There's obviously nothing really educational about this movie as it was made for men wanting to see naked ladies.