Queen of Manhattan (2023) (aka The Latin From Manhattan) in theaters Friday, on demand October 14

This is the story of adult film star Vanessa Del Rio, as told by Del Rio covering her days making some of the over two hundred porn films that made her a legend to this day.

Actually what made her a legend was her openness and positive attitude toward sex and sex work. She became a icon because she advocated for people in the porn industry, in the adult establishments and those working on the street. She was willing to talk to anyone about the life and set the record straight because she lived it. There is a reason that she is an icon and a reason that there are books about her and her work from places like Taschen. She is one hell of a woman who quietly changed the world over the last 50 plus years 

QUEEN OF MANHATTAN is a hell of a film. Its look at the "bad old days of porn" and what Del Rio had to go through.  Its a warts and all look at the life that will make you laugh, wince and be moved.  This is Del Rio's story and she is not hiding anything.  That said, this film is a theatrical memory play, with green screen, false sets, and Del Rio occassionally appearing behind peepshow windows. Del Rio is very much shapping the tale, softening it...

...to a degree. While the film does not have graphic sex it does have graphic violence. It's explosive and ugly. This is not kindergarten but life around the gutter. It's a world filled with sex workers, cops, mafioso, and other people you probably wouldn't want to take home to your mother. Bad things happen, even if Del Rio wants to color it brightly.

I really liked this film. Its a wonderful look at a life and life style that is alien  to most of us, especially since it is one that happened half a century ago. It's a well made and well told tale. On top of that this film was a shot of nostalgia in my veins. I am old enough that I remember when Del Rio was in her heyday, both because I was a curious young man and because I was working in a video store where customers would come in and speak of her wonders.

This film is an absolute hidden gem of the sort I started Unseen Films to highlight.

While I recommend the film, I do want to mention this is not for everyone. The subject and presentation will not work for some people. However anyone with an open mind, who wants to meet a hell of a woman this film is one to see.