Top 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsMost Popular Video GamesMost Popular Music VideosMost Popular Podcasts
    Release CalendarBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

American Taboo

  • 19831983
  • RR
  • 1h 34m
IMDb RATING
4.7/10
187
YOUR RATING
Ann Celsi, Katherine King, and Suzette Taylor in Tabu (1977)
DramaRomance
Unstable thirty-something introvert, who works as a photographer's assistant, becomes obsessed with his underage female neighbor, who, to his horror, reciprocates his feelings due to possibl... Read allUnstable thirty-something introvert, who works as a photographer's assistant, becomes obsessed with his underage female neighbor, who, to his horror, reciprocates his feelings due to possible Electra complex.Unstable thirty-something introvert, who works as a photographer's assistant, becomes obsessed with his underage female neighbor, who, to his horror, reciprocates his feelings due to possible Electra complex.
IMDb RATING
4.7/10
187
YOUR RATING
    • Steve Lustgarten
    • Nicole Harrison
    • Jay Horenstein
    • Steve Lustgarten
  • Stars
    • Jay Horenstein
    • Nicole Harrison
    • Hester Schell
    • Steve Lustgarten
    • Nicole Harrison
    • Jay Horenstein
    • Steve Lustgarten
  • Stars
    • Jay Horenstein
    • Nicole Harrison
    • Hester Schell
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 3User reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Photos

    Nicole Harrison in American Taboo (1983)
    Nicole Harrison and Jay Horenstein in American Taboo (1983)
    American Taboo (1983)
    Add photo

    Top cast

    Edit
    Jay Horenstein
    • Paul Wunderlich
    Nicole Harrison
    • Lisa Welch
    Hester Schell
    Hester Schell
    • Betsy
    Mark Rabiner
    • Michael
    Katherine King
    • Michael's Wife
    Dorothy Anton
    • Lisa's Mother
    Ann Celsi
    • Hooker
    Suzette Taylor
    • Model
    Ki Skinner
    • Model
    Jerilyn Tabor
    • The Couple (Man)
    Walter Shane
    • The Couple (Woman)
    Debra Gann
    • Kitty-Go,Go Dancer
    Stacey Thompson
    • Girl on Corner
      • Steve Lustgarten
      • Nicole Harrison
      • Jay Horenstein
      • Steve Lustgarten
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Tabu
    4.5
    Tabu
    7.3
    Taboo: The Single and the LP
    Taboo
    7.9
    Taboo
    Women in the Dark
    6.1
    Women in the Dark
    Honey
    4.9
    Honey
    Taboo
    3.5
    Taboo
    Emmanuelle on Taboo Island
    3.5
    Emmanuelle on Taboo Island
    La bella gente
    6.7
    La bella gente
    Bottoms Up
    4.2
    Bottoms Up
    Weekend with the Babysitter
    4.2
    Weekend with the Babysitter
    You Are Alone
    6.1
    You Are Alone
    Groove Cruise
    2.5
    Groove Cruise

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The movie is actually a student film completed in 1982.
    • Connections
      References Man with a Camera (1958)

    User reviews3

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    OK regional Oregon "student" film, not the the best title
    This is an "Academy-Award winning" film (it actually won a STUDENT Academy Award, which some might say is like winning a gold medal at the Special Olympics). The "taboo" here involves a shy thirty-year-old photographer's assistant having an affair with a girl in her late teens. This may very well have been an American taboo in 1984, but I watch a lot of 70's European exploitation flicks and this is a VERY common theme in those (except the guy is usually also the girl's stepfather, uncle, mother's boyfriend, best friend's father etc.)

    As in the European films, the girl is none-too-believable as a teenager. The actress (Nichole Harrison) is unusually attractive and looks to actually be in her early twenties. She also has kind of a weird accent considering this is supposedly set in Oregon (French Canadian maybe?--she talks kind of like Genevieve Bujold). Her character is also a little implausible. She's generally the aggressor in the relationship--and when's the last time you saw an attractive teenage girl with seemingly no close girlfriends or boys her own age sniffing around? The guy (Jay Horenstein)is a little better, not a strong actor, but he looks right for the character. He's a handsome guy, but also quite believable as a socially inept loner. He's even kind of creepy looking(it's kind of a relief he's only having a statutory affair with an older teenage girl as opposed to molesting 8-year-old boys or something). His character seems somewhat similar to the guy Carl Boehm played in "Peeping Tom", but Horenstein is not a good enough actor to make his character as sympathetic as Boem did (nor is he nearly as interesting since he doesn't stab anyone in the throat with a tripod leg).

    This isn't a bad film, but it's kind of leaden and serious (the European "lolita exploitation" films are a lot more fun). On the other hand it's not well-made enough to be able to take too seriously. As for the eroticism, well, Harrison has some nice nude scenes (and, believe me, men of all ages would probably want to take this "teenager" to bed). I actually think its title kind of works against it though. People drawn in by the salacious title will probably be disappointed by the rather tame content, and those seeking a more serious film will be turned-off by it seeming to be perverted exploitation. That's probably why it remains another of my obscure discoveries in the VHS graveyard (with no DVD release anywhere in site).
    helpful•10
    2
    • lazarillo
    • Jul 1, 2010

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 1984 (United States)
      • United States
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Al's Bar, Ilwaco, Washington, USA
    • Production company
      • Lustgarten Entertainment Organization
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 34 minutes
      • Color
      • Mono

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Ann Celsi, Katherine King, and Suzette Taylor in Tabu (1977)
    Top Gap
    By what name was American Taboo (1983) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.