The Ribald Tales Of Canterbury 1985 Classic Updated [upd] -

In the mid-1980s, the animation industry was navigating a curious crossroads. Disney was licking its wounds after The Black Cauldron , and the direct-to-video market was a lawless wasteland of cheaply made, often bizarre content. Buried in that chaotic era—sandwiched between The Care Bears Movie and The Transformers: The Movie —lies an X-rated gem that modern audiences are only now rediscovering: The Ribald Tales of Canterbury (1985 Classic Updated) .

Where to watch: Available on Blu-ray via Severin Films and streaming on Arrow Player as of September 2025. the ribald tales of canterbury 1985 classic updated

Pour a flagon of mead (or a PBR), gather your own band of misfits, and take the pilgrimage. The road to Canterbury has never been this dirty. ★★★★☆ (4/5 – "More clever than its title suggests, and more raunchy than its reputation allows.") In the mid-1980s, the animation industry was navigating

The plot remains structurally pure: A disparate group of pilgrims—a bawdy Miller, a lusty Wife of Bath, a corrupt Pardoner, a lecherous Monk, and a naive Squire—travel to Canterbury Cathedral. To pass the time, they tell stories. However, unlike Chaucer’s subtler Middle English innuendos, this 1985 rendition translates every "queynte" and "pryvetee" into full, glorious nudity and slapstick sexual comedy. Where to watch: Available on Blu-ray via Severin

Look at the Summoner’s Tale in this cut. It portrays a friar who demands "gifts" (sexual favors) as payment for confessions. The 1985 creative team depicts the friar with the face of Jerry Falwell. The Wife of Bath’s prologue, where she argues that female "sovereignty" in marriage is worth more than virginity, is delivered with the ferocity of a punk rock feminist rant. It’s lewd, yes, but intellectually lewd. If you are diving into this film for the first time, fast-forward through the opening credits (a surprisingly dull rotoscoped trip through Canterbury). The gold is in these three tales: 1. The Miller’s Tale (The Absurdist Masterpiece) Running 21 minutes, this is the longest segment. The "Michael Naked at the Window" sequence is legendary in underground animation circles. The restoration reveals that the animators painted Nicolas’s backside to look like a cherub’s face—a detail lost on VHS. 2. The Reeve’s Tale (The Revenge Epic) Two students sleep with a miller’s wife and daughter while rearranging the miller’s furniture. The 1985 team plays this like a silent comedy—think Buster Keaton meets John Waters. The updated audio reveals a subtle theremin melody that underscores the chaos. 3. The Pardoner’s Tale (The Horror Turn) To break up the laughs, this tale turns into a psychedelic horror show about three drunkards hunting Death. The rotoscoped skeletons and glowing ale mugs are genuinely unsettling. It’s the Watership Down of the group—traumatizing, but memorable. The Legacy: From Midnight Movies to Streaming Queues For years, the 1985 classic languished in obscurity due to rights issues involving the original distributor, Video Gems. After the 2025 acquisition by a boutique horror/animation label, the updated version has become a midnight movie staple again.