Ensenada Pickup

This story ostensibly concerns a family boating trip to Mexico. The "family" consists of a young man, his buxom wife and her equally buxom daughter. They rent a fishing boat in Long Beach operated by a young captain, his virile assistant, and their crew of two young buxom ladies. You can quickly imagine where this movie is heading! But wait, there is a genuine 'story', and it even has a twist: The captain and his assistant are using the boat as a cover; they are actually picking up an illegal item in Mexico and need the vacationing family as a decoy.

Pretty clever? Or not, as it turns out.

Once at sea, there are non-stop sexual escapades. While the couples are wearily 'going at it' in different combinations, you might find yourself more inclined to look out the window above the bed. Is there an ocean? Or any islands? I know I was doing that! It is not clear that this 'boat' is anywhere near water, as the picture outside (whatever it is) seems flat and still. Oh well, whether at sea or not, neither the precious plot nor action scenes are left suffering.

If you stay awake long enough you will be rewarded with a surprise ending. Yes, the writers have included yet another twist, all to convince the viewers that we are watching something complex and meaningful, and not just another silly porno movie! The dated 1970s costumes and dialog are a hoot. I especially noticed the men's long shaggy hair. In the early 70s this was common, and not just in movies of this caliber. Also, the dialog is unexpectedly tame; not much vulgarity at all.

For porno aficionados, this movie might be highly regarded. A dated piece, it contains a few semi-famous people in their younger days. But if you are actually looking for a crime drama, I have two words: Forget it!

I came across this movie only because of my interest in the title: Ensenada Pickup. I live in Los Angeles, California. Ensenada is a pleasant seaside town in Mexico, a short three hours away by car. A sensual and suspenseful movie set there sounded like fun. But I was left disappointed, as this movie is not any of these things. We see no Mexican locations, but instead a lot of stock footage of boats, seagulls, and very unromantic looking sunsets.

This is quite a remarkable movie. Not because of the acting, for it is not in existence here. Not for the plot, even though the end is unusual. Not for the filming itself: it sucks. Not for the direction, even though one has to admire the fact that the director is able to keep the film soft core. Not for the location: it is shot probably in one and the same room and at a boat in the docks. No, the true revelation is that this is one of the earliest porn movies made as a feature production. This is 1970 and we can tell from the clothes, the hair and the overall color of the film.

The story about a man, his wife and his stepdaughter hiring a sailing boat for a trip to Ensenada, Mexico, is just the excuse to show us some 4 porn scenes. Soft core of course. And according to the laws in many countries back then, male genitals are shown, but never erect. Still for the lovers of sleazy films, this is a masterpiece. The movements of the actors are identical to those displayed in the much later erotic thrillers, in which David Duchovny once starred.

For collectors of early porn and sleaze this is one of the monuments in history. All others better let this movie be.....

Ensenada Pickup (1971)

** (out of 4)

Mommy, daddy and his stepdaughter charter a boat to take them into Mexico but what they don't realize is that the guys running everything are actually fronting for a drug deal. Once the drugs are picked up the family will be executed. At least that's the plan.

ENSENADA PICKUP has a lot of plot but rarely do we get any action on that plot as for the most part this here is just your typical low-budget hardcore film. I should point out that there are actually two different versions: a hardcore and a softcore one and both are worth watching if you're a fan of any of the cast since both versions contain alternate scenes.

Obviously the biggest difference between the two are the actual sex scenes. The hardcore version was okay for what it was but I would recommend this version as the softcore one features those silly looking fake sex scenes that are more annoying than anything. Fans of Rene Bond will find her on display here with Ric Lutze once again. Candy Samples also shows up in the role of the mother so you'll certainly get an eyeful here.

Is this film a masterpiece of the genre? Not at all. For the most part there's really nothing too special here but it's a decent time-killer and if you love Bond and Samples then it's great seeing them in the same film.

This movie included a scene of an early Candy Samples showing her famous assets and coy techniques of being pleased by a toy boy. It reminds one of a fishing party without any fishing equipment but steeped in the use of another kind of rod to bring pleasure to the users and their recipients. While not much of a plot is involved this movie will amuse and be enjoyed by lovers of big busted newcomer (at the time), the mature and talented boober of all time, Candy Samples. Her scene with the young sailor provides a view of parts on Candy before she later reserved them to appear only in softcore simulations of the real thing. Photography in the movie copy that I viewed was poor quality but seeing Candy perform made the episode well worth watching.

Two things make this movie memorable to me; first, that I saw it at one of the now defunct but legendary storefront 16mm "XXX Theatres" that cropped up like mushrooms in the early 70s, this one in Hialeah, FL and there were few really erotic performers in those early pioneer days, Candy being one of the best. One other reviewer mentions this is a softcore feature, but it's readily available, streaming, for free online at Hamster and Candy goes h/c all the way, But secondly, dozens and dozens of those early LA 16mm gems used the same underscore music and during Candy's tryst on the boat, it plays in its entirety. Give a listen, you'll see what I mean..