Kevin John Bozelka: 3 A.M. (Gary Graver [as Robert McCallum], 1975)

According to They'll Love Me When I'm Dead (Morgan Neville, 2018), the documentary about the making of Orson Welles' The Other Side of the Wind, Welles helped Gary Graver edit the scene in 3 A.M. where Georgina Spelvin (Kate) and Judith Hamilton (an unnamed hippie chick) have shower sex so that Graver could return to his work as cinematographer on Welles' film. History has not recorded Welles' exact contributions. But it's worth noting that it's easily the steamiest sex scene in the film. It's also worth noting that the scene in which Kate makes dinner for her nephew Ronnie (Charles Hooper, adorbs) mirrors a similar moment in The Magnificent Ambersons when Aunt Fanny (Agnes Moorehead) serves strawberry shortcake to George Minafer (Tim Holt).

I mention the Welles connection not to rope classical Hollywood dorks into watching a porno but to proclaim that 3 A.M. is every bit the match of The Other Side of the Wind in terms of commitment and formal pizazz and hence would make a dynamite double feature. A tale of murder, incest, and privileged ennui, 3 A.M. benefits from fantastic performances, especially Spelvin as a faux spinster, and Graver's painterly eye. This is truly a cinematographer's film which means subsequent viewings will have to determine the structural role played by the deft dollies, unmotivated fish-eye lenses, and Ozu-like pillow shots. For now, they're absolutely gorgeous to behold/ponder.

3 A.M. is also a sonic marvel. As befits the upper-middle-class milieu, the drama here results from the ways in which sound invades well-cultivated privacy. The first sex scene is tape recorded. So is a climactic murder confession. Family members are heard crying and fucking through the walls. Ronnie self-actualizes through his love of classical music. One delicate sequence has him taking steps towards losing his virginity by bringing over records to sexy neighbor Vicki's (Sharon Thorpe) house. ("Do you like good music?" Yeah, I like good music." "I mean, really good music.") The last sex scene is scored to Pierre Henry and Michel Colombier's electro-psych-rock frug "Too Fortiche." And the very last sound we hear, as the final credits come to a close, is three grandfather-clock chimes, an elegant time stamp acknowledging the precise moment the narrative kicks into gear.

Astonishing from the git, 3 A.M. is one of the finest adult films I've ever seen. The Graver obsession starts here.

Grade: A