Alberto Moravia is dead and not amused

It's hard to believe that this film was 'based' (well, more or less) on a novel by Alberto Moravia, one of Italy's most famous writers and a superb literary artist. The novel was a serious existential study of a man rendered sexually neutral, reduced to merely watching (and longing for) women as he struggles to overcome the dominance of his father.

Needless to say, the great Tinto Brass, one of the best chroniclers of smut, takes liberties with Moravia, 'adjusts' the novel and makes it into a beautifully photographed anthem to female body parts. He claims in the DVD extras that Moravia was very happy to have Brass make the film, but I'm not sure I believe him. After Moravia died, his two ex-wives legally disowned the film and had Moravia's name removed from all credits.