The Key is the tale of a Husband and wife in living in Venice during the run up to the declaration of the Second World War. After twenty years of marriage their sexual relationship has become stale. The husband Nino longs for his wife Teresa to set aside her modesty and inhibitions. Nina herself remains unsatisfied by their sexual encounters but is bound by her own modesty. After getting a little to drunk one night while out with their daughter Lisa and her Fiancé Laszlo, Nino stumbles upon a way to re-ignite the flames of their sexual encounters. How ever has he really thought through the consequences of such a scheme?
Nino Rolfe is a British born art professor living and teaching in Venice, his wife Teresa runs the guest house in which they live. Frustrated by his wife’s modesty which restricts his own sexual excitement, he devises a way in which he can explain his frustrations without actually confronting her. To this end he begins to write a dairy describing his fantasies and feelings. He locks it in a drawer in his study and then leaves the keys conveniently on the floor knowing his wife will find it when she cleans. Its not long before she too is writing her own diary and as such they are able to communicate their desires covertly without having to directly mention them, this in itself becomes part of the sexual interplay between them. How ever things don't stop here, Nino recognises that he is excited by jealousy and so through his writing and a number of schemes pushes his wife slowly into an affair with his daughter’s young Fiancé Laszlo. In the arms of Lazlo Teresa finds even greater sexual liberation and this she brings home to the marital bed.
The Key is adapted from the classic Japanese novel Kagi by Junichirô Tanizaki. The novel had been previously brought to the screen by Japanese director Kon Ichikawa under the title of Kagi which was released in 1959. Cult erotica director and some say European master of the genre Tinto Brass, had long been a fan of the novel and after several attempts was finally able to acquire the film rights from the then deceased Junichirô Tanizaki's wife. Brass moved the setting to Venice a city he describes as smelling like a female sex organ (See the interview on this DVD). On the surface The Key plays like classic soft-core erotica with an air of decadence and soft focus artistry, how every beneath the obvious Brass has in fact created a very subversive film. Brass is a pretty skilled director the film has a very European art house look and certainly does not look cheap and sleazy. Limited locations are used, but then they are all that's needed after all this is all about character interplay. The acting for the most part is of the serviceable variety, nothing outstanding but certainly not poor enough to bother the viewer. The film is dual language with the majority in English. The four main characters converse in English but if they speak to anyone outside of this circle they use Italian and are subtitled. The Italian seems more comfortable to all except Frank Finlay who plays Nino, but then he is English.
Tinto Brass clearly finds censorship especially around something as natural as sex an undesirable part of culture. His film is as much about that as the story we see on the screen. Nino in particular being an art professor constantly makes references to classic art and art history which featured nudity and erotic images, he also mentions Items that where censored in the past by church and state and the fate of some of those involved. In away it is this external censorship and the attitudes towards sexually prevalent in society that have spoiled the couples sexual relationship. The need for a woman to be modest, and overt displays of sexuality being frowned upon have shaped the way Teresa is. Brass illustrates this at several times in the movie, in particular the reaction of guests at the dance when a drunken Nino puts his hand on his wife’s bottom during a dance. As with many Italian films there are also some veiled swipes at the Catholic Church and its dominating moralising presence in Italian society. Maybe the most interesting thing is the change in the balance of power with Teresa and Nino's relationship once she begins to become sexually liberated. Anecdotal evidence often supports the idea that faced with the sexually liberated woman they wish for men feel a loss of power. Often a man who pushes his wife or partner into the likes of swinging comes to regret it once she begins to enjoy it and really want to do it in her own right.
The Key is first and foremost soft-core erotica, if nudity, overt sexuality and scenes of simulated sex offend your sensibilities; this is not a film for you. Those comfortable with such things will find much to like here as its an attractive and interesting film with the kind of protagonists who would maybe not feature in more modern takes on sexuality. Depending on what pushes your buttons you may even find some of it quite stimulating, I certainly am a fan of hosiery and I am sure I am not alone in that.
Buy It: amazon.com | Also available from Cult Epics at Amazon is The Tinto Brass Collection Volume 1 which Includes: The Key, Miranda and All Ladies Do It.
