By: The Vintage Reel Curator Published: October 26, 2023

Tonight, skip Netflix. Find a copy of The Laughing Woman or The Swimming Pool . Turn the brightness on your screen down to 40%. Pour a drink that matches the title (Blue Curacao for Blue Mood , naturally). And let the celluloid wash over you.

The episode argues that the best "blue films" (a vintage slang term for risqué movies) are those that prioritize mood over explicitness. The "X" stands for the X-rating that once signified artistic maturity (think A Clockwork Orange or Midnight Cowboy ), not the hardcore stigma of the 1980s.