Moonlighting Wives Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		2.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.5

Moonlighting Wives Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman April 21, 2023

Note: This version of this film is available on Blu-ray as part of Moonlighting Wives / The Naked Fog.

Some Blu-ray collectors getting this double feature of Joseph W. Sarno films may end up checking twice about the label releasing it, since this might seem to be an effort that would arguably be more expected from the like of AGFA or Severin, rather than Film Movement, especially Film Movement's Classics imprint. While there are no doubt many who might quibble with that "classics" designation, Sarno was a rather interesting filmmaker in what might be generally termed the "sexploitation" subgenre, but as both Moonlighting Wives and The Naked Fog demonstrate somewhat comically, that may amount to little more than women stripping off their tops at parties to dance with completely dressed (like, suits and ties) men. That aspect gives both films a certain quaint quality, but both of them are perhaps surprisingly chaste, especially given the fact that they were produced during the nascent days of the so-called Sexual Revolution which would become one of the defining characteristics of the mid to late sixties, which in these cases might be jokingly referred to as only semi swingin'.

Commentator Tim Lucas mentions that Moonlighting Wives was arguably as close as Joe Sarno and his frequent repertory company ever came to grabbing that veritable brass ring, and the film actually got exhibited as a mainstream offering, evidently for years, albeit often as the second or third billed item in a double or triple feature. Perhaps just slightly hilariously, the story here was more or less "ripped from the headlines", at least purportedly so according to Sarno himself, with a Long Island steno pool engaging in a little extracurricular activity, if you catch my drift, and I'm sure you do if you're reading this review.

Maybe just a little comically, Lucas mentions this film is "glamorous", and in the annals of Sarno's filmography, that may be at least relatively true, but the story here is kind of an upper middle class version of so-called Women in Prison films, replete with a not very well closeted lesbian "assistant" keeping the "girls in line". The production values may not set the world on fire, but again within the context of what Sarno's films typically can offer, they're rather decent, and the film's almost lurid color cinematography is another calling card.

Kind of hilariously, the film begins with a "warning" text crawl which seems almost deliberately reminiscent of old "scare tactic" outings like Reefer Madness, where the "horrors" about to be depicted are offered as an example of what might be happening in "your home town" at that very moment.

Moonlighting Wives Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Moonlighting Wives is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Film Movement Classics, an imprint of Film Movement, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer 1.33:1. As is typically the case with Film Movement releases, there's no real technical information imparted on the cover, other than a generic "2K digital restoration" in some very fine print. The best thing about this presentation is its palette, which is still rather nicely intact, though it's easy to spot color temperatures varying from moment to moment. As can probably easily be gleaned in virtually any screenshot I've uploaded to accompany this review, the element is really badly and ubiquitously scratched, with many large green (typically but not always vertical) scratches covering the entire frame and lasting for quite some time. Despite the abundant amount of age related wear and tear on display, there also seems to have been some high frequency filtering done, since grain is not very evident.

Moonlighting Wives Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Moonlighting Wives features a Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono track. Regular readers of my reviews know I tend to chafe when there's no lossless audio option on a Blu-ray disc, but it's arguable how much of an improvement might have been made here, though some of the music is actually quite well done and might have gotten a bit of energy in the midrange and low end without being "Dolby-ized". There are occasional skips and some background noise, but dialogue makes it through the gauntlet largely intact.

Moonlighting Wives Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Film Movement has packaged Moonlighting Wives and The Naked Fog together on one disc. See screenshot 7 of the Moonlighting Wives / The Naked Fog Blu- ray review for the menu offered on the disc, which also offers access to the following supplements:

• Commentary on Moonlighting Wives by Tim Lucas is a substantial overview of Sarno's career along with some interesting tidbits about this production and its history.


• 2006 Interview with Director Joe Sarno (SD; 7:09) is a sweet reminiscence about Moonlighting Wives by Sarno, who mentions some of the "true life" aspects that inspired it.


• 2007 Interview with Cinematographer Jerry Kalogeratos (SD; 11:40) is another fun look back, though this one might have benefited from some optional subtitles, as Kalogeratos has a rather thick accent which may make understanding him a challenge for some listeners.

Moonlighting Wives Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I Music Directed the Burt Bacharach - Hal David - Neil Simon effort Promises, Promises a few years ago and the general consensus was that, while the show has a fantastic score and often quite funny book, its general subject matter may just not be palatable to a post-#metoo audience, and that same warning signal may be relevant with regard to this film, which is most definitely the vestige of a bygone age. To paraphrase a song from another sixties musical with a perhaps out of date view of "working women" (in both senses of that term), How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Moonlighting Wives suggests that, in opposition to Frank Loesser's assertion, a secretary is indeed a toy. Video is hobbled by some nonstop damage and filtering, but Sarno fans will probably be delighted to have this film in high definition.