A documentary (with some hardcore porno inserts added) examining the use of marijuana by young people in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Included are interviews with people who regularly use marijuana and testify to its beneficial effects as an aphrodisiac (hence the hardcore footage) and scenes of nude encounter groups, instructions for making marijuana brownies, soldiers in Vietnam smoking marijuana, etc. You know all those old classroom videos warning kids about the horrible dangers of doing drugs? Some educator or celebrity comes out and wags his finger, then the viewer is subjected to lots of staged scenes depicting the deplorable depths to which people fall when they take a toke or snort a line.



Well, what would happen if someone made a feature-length version of one of those, except the message is the exact opposite– pot is good for you! And not only that, they spliced in a little porn footage including John Holmes as an uptight desk jockey who learns to stop worrying and love the bong! Wonder no more, friends, because that movie actually exists, and it’s called Aphrodisiac!: The Sexual Secret of Marijuana. Not wasting any time, Aphrodisiac! kicks off with hilarious narration and man on the street interviews charting the history of marijuana use in America, complete with an implied endorsement of cooperation from the United Nations.



The “candid” interviews continue throughout the film (including a completely random appearance by ’30s midget actor Billy Curtis), interspersed with vignettes demonstrating that pot isn’t just good for you; it’ll also make you really, really horny. For example, a couple hooking up at a party are disappointed when their car petting session can’t get off the ground, so to speak, due to a surplus of alcohol. On the other hand, couples who enjoy a toke together have an amazing sex life, even with a group of their friends!



A married couple having trouble in the sack since their honeymoon discovers bliss when hubby slips his wife (Necromania’s Maria Arnold) some ganja without her knowledge; a women’s lib magazine writer (sexploitation favorite Sandy Dempsey) learns the joys of MJ-influenced bonking; and as mentioned earlier, John Holmes loosens up with a sexy young thing in his office decides to turn him on, in every way. Heck, apparently marijuana is especially great for interracial lovin’, too. The narration, interviews, and nutty set ups here are a lot more entertaining than the commercially-motivated copulation. As a stag film it’s just serviceable, but as one of the world’s few pro-drug educational grindhouse features, it’s pretty irreplaceable.