American Taboo

American Taboo is a 1983 American independent drama film directed by Steve Lustgarten.[3] Its plot follows a thirty-something year old photographer who begins an illicit romance with a teenage girl. It won the 1983 Academy Award for Best Student Film for Lustgarten, a film student at Portland State University.[2]

American Taboo
Artwork for 1991 revival screening
Directed bySteve Lustgarten
Written by
  • Nicole Harrison
  • Jay Horenstein
  • Steve Lustgarten
Produced by
  • Sali Borchman
  • Steve Lustgarten
  • Ron Schmidt
Starring
  • Jay Horenstein
  • Nicole Harrison
Cinematography
  • Eric Alan Edwards
  • Steve Lustgarten
  • Lee Nesbit
  • Mark Whitney
Edited by
  • Steve Lustgarten
  • Ron Schmidt
Release dates
Running time
94 minutes[2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$20,000[2]

Cast
  • Jay Horenstein as Paul Wunderlich
  • Nicole Harrison as Lisa Welch
  • Hester Schell as Betsy
  • Mark Rabiner as Michael

Production

The film was shot on location in Portland, Oregon on a budget of $20,000.[2] The feature was a student film by Steve Lustgarten, a film student at Portland State University.[2]

Release

Theatrical distribution

The film screened in Minneapolis in 1983 in the Film in the Cities' Gallery.[1] It had a revival screening at the American Film Institute eight years later, in July 1991.[2]

Critical response

Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the film "has a rich visual elegance. The portrayals Lustgarten elicits from Horenstein and Harrison are amazingly persuasive, especially in the case of Harrison, who keeps us guessing throughout as to whether Lisa really is as sophisticated as she would like us to think she is."[2] LA Weekly also praised the film, noting that Lustgarten "tiptoes around every cliché attached to older-man/young-girl and owl-and-pussycat types of films, creating a refreshing guide to bruised emotions and the insurgent power of love."[4]

Accolades
Institution Category Recipient Result Ref.
Student Academy Awards Best Film — Drama Steve Lustgarten Won [5]

References
  1. Lundegaard, Bob (April 15, 1983). "'American Taboo' has sex, but that's not all there is to it". Star Tribune. Minneapolis, Minnesota. p. 46 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. Thomas, Kevin (July 4, 1991). "MOVIE REVIEW : Debut Feature Touches on Taboo Theme". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 31, 2020.
  3. "American Taboo". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on October 4, 2017. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
  4. "Film: New Releases". LA Weekly. July 11, 1991. p. 58 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. Johnson, Belma (June 9, 1983). "Non-Locals Win Student Film Prizes". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
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