"Five years ago it might have been necessary to devise all sorts of defenses for Russ Meyer's 'Vixen,' finding hidden symbolism and all that. But I see no reason why we can't be honest: 'Vixen' is the best film to date in that uniquely American genre, the skin-flick."
Vixen! is a 1968 Exploitation Film directed by Russ Meyer.
Vixen (Erica Gavin) lives in the mountain wilderness of British Columbia with her husband Tom Palmer (Garth Pillsbury). Tom works as a bush pilot and wilderness guide, which keeps him away from home often, so the sexually voracious Vixen satisfies her urges by having flings with just about anyone she can get her hands on. This includes a Mountie, a married couple flown in by Tom, and even her own brother, but pointedly does not include Niles (Harrison Page), a black biker who's a favorite punching bag of the hideously racist Vixen.
Tropes:
- Attempted Rape: Judd goads Niles into trying to rape Vixen; he's also the one who stops him when he sees Tom come home.
- Between My Legs: Janet is framed between Vixen's legs as Vixen is about to seduce her.
- Brother–Sister Incest: Vixen constantly comes on to her younger brother Judd and he eventually caves in and sleeps with her. And she makes sure the audience doesn't forget that they are siblings by regularly calling him "baby brother" and such.
- Dead Sparks: Dave and Janet are married but are bored with each other. However their marriage is revitalized after they get it on with Vixen (separately).
- Double Entendre: The way the narrator at the start goes on about the bush country that provides the setting for this story and keeps repeating the word bush. The writers knew what they were doing.
- Draft Dodging: Niles is from the USA and moved to Canada to avoid getting drafted into Vietnam, and explains he did so because he doesn't feel like risking his life fighting for a country that doesn't treat him fairly on account of the color of his skin. Vixen is unsympathetic and calls him a coward.
- Halfway Plot Switch: The first 50-ish minutes of the movie are all about Vixen's softcore adventures, with a side of social commentary by way of how she treats Niles. Then for the last 20 minutes it suddenly turns into a sociopolitical thriller as Tom's airplane gets hijacked by a communist defector, who tries to convince Niles to side with him by promising he'll be treated fairly in Cuba.
- Making Love in All the Wrong Places: Vixen has sex with the Mountie and Dave out in the woods. It works because the setting is bush country (haha), so hardly anyone is ever around.
- Malicious Misnaming: Vixen constantly calls Niles "Rufus" or "Sambo" (both being racial slurs) instead of his real name.
- Meaningful Name: Surprise, surprise, the character named Vixen is brazen and promiscuous.
- Sleeps with Everyone but You: Vixen is a nympho and gender or consanguinity are not concerns for her, but she makes it abundantly clear she'll be damned if she ever sleeps with Niles, the one black guy in the area.
