Taxi Zum Klo

A film from the seventies, released in 1980, Taxi Zum Klo tells the story of a life divided by society and standards into two different parts, respectability by day and licentious indecency by night. An autobiographic account from Frank Ripploh who by day was the respectable and liked schoolteacher yet by night a hedonistic, sex seeking, public toilet inhabiting cruiser. The bulk of the story is taken with Frank’s need and desire to hunt for the latest sexual conquest and encounters in risky and unsavoury places. He meets and falls for a theatre manager and they move in together, could this be the end of his hunting for sex in the underbelly of the very edge of Berlin society? Another question raises itself, does he manage to keep his seedy sex life out of the classroom, even if he does from time to time he has been known to mark students work in the public lavatories he inhabits hunting for his next slice of sex? This is a stark tale of promiscuity and the hedonistic freedom of the pre-AIDS days seemed to afford for certain members of our society. As this is, an autobiographical or semi-autobiographical tale it has an authentic quality to that is a fine mix between parody, caricature, honesty and realism. There is such sincerity in some scenes that have you anxious and worried for Frank and his vibrant lifestyle. It is a wonderful spotlight on the Berlin sexual subculture of the seventies as well as taking things to the absolute limit there are some lighter, tender and caring moments. The action has been spliced with snippets of old film including some of an erotic nature, yes I do really mean porn there, which only add to the quality and controversy of this picture. Taxi Zum Klo was originally refused a certificate and therefore could not be shown in cinemas on general release in the UK. They had to adopt a private club status in order to show the highly erotic film. Something that only a few were committed to doing so and thus a wide audience was denied the chance to experience Frank’s wild side. There was, I am told, some form of edited VHS version of the film in circulation during the mid-eighties. It was feared the unedited version would be lost, however Film4 came to the rescue a few years ago, managed to get it passed by the BBFC and it was shown on late night television in its entirety. An uncut DVD was also available from Peccadillo Pictures.  A film which is hardly ever mentioned these days yet was an absolutely seminal gay film when it came out.’Taxi Zum Klo', which appeared only a very short time before a certain AIDS appeared and brought so many lives crashing down. When 'Taxi Zum Klo' was released in 1981 it was not allowed to be shown in public cinemas and my local picture-house (then in Oxford) had to convert itself into a private club for one week only in order to show the film. To get in you also had to purchase your membership of this club in advance, which I did, and I knew immediately that it was a film of some significance, covering, for one thing, the rampant promiscuity of the main Frank Ripploh character - though none of us knew then what was just around the corner. A further curiosity about it was that, thanks to the then 'Child Protection Act', which came about largely because of pressure from one Mrs Mary Whitehouse and her ilk, there is a scene in the film which for British screens (even private ones) had to be blacked out, showing an old, short, scratchy piece of German film in which a man takes the hand of a young boy and puts it inside his fly. The bizarre thing about this was that this particular piece of film was compulsory viewing for children in German schools, highlighting the dangers The Film Four producers and staff had to find the makers of the educational warning film and ensure that everything done in the film was safe and not exploitive. It is a remarkable film in that it shows a side of gay life in the seventies before everything changed. It really is an indicative docu-drama of the time which is sometimes uncomfortable viewing, yet also compelling.

I thought this would be a bit of a 1980s Berlin underground document. Actually it attempts to be sexually titulating under the porn radar in the manner of lame 1970s hetero material of the confessions of a window cleaner type.

When it first came out the subject matter alone may have made it a ground-breaking film. With the passage of time male nudity and gay sex are no longer taboo and all you see is a film with nothing else going for it. It's like candid camera in a public loo showing all the guys hanging out - in every sense of the word!

German actor, film director, author and contemporary of Fassbinder, Frank Ripploh is best remembered for his semi-autobiographical 1981 movie Taxi zum Klo (Taxi to the Toilet), a relationship drama between a gay teacher called Frank (Ripploh) and his jealous lover Bernd (Bernd Broaderup). Frank spends his nights looking for casual pickups in public lavatories while marking the homework of his young students. Bernd on the other hand wants to settle down with Frank in a monogamous relationship; something he’s not prepared to countenance, enjoying his free and easy gay life stile in pre-aids Berlin.

Described as ‘not a pornographic film just one involving a love story about sex’. It was banned for public release by the BBFC for a total of 25 years because Ripploh would not agree to cut scenes involving fellatio, anal sex and a golden shower. At that time it could only be seen in privately licenced clubs and cinemas, although it was shown at the Edinburgh Film Festival in 1981 where it received threats from the local authorities that it would be impounded and the only subtitled copy in existence would be burnt, thankfully this never happened. In 1995 a heavily cut version was released for public consumption. Film4 resubmitted the film to the BBFC in 2005; it was reassessed and in its restored and uncut form was broadcast for the first time on Film4’s TV channel under the Extreme Cinema strand, introduced by film critic Mark Kermode.

The strength of this film is its honest approach to the gay lifestyle. It’s raw, explicit and sometimes shocking but Ripploh documentorial approach gives a realistic and ordinary view of gay life at that time. Seen as a revolutionary film in the development of gay cinema in America, it bucked Hollywood’s saccharine view of gays and their lifestyle but one can’t help but wonder if this film would be made today? Admittedly not to every one’s taste, but in my opinion well worth a look.

An interesting look back in time to when things were so different and care free compared to today. I wonder if a film of this nature could be made today, and if want to experience life before conformity set in this is the film for you.