If you were a teenager or a young adult in the late seventies, you probably remember the explosion of the "midnight movie" culture. It was a weird time. Rocky Horror was gaining steam, and independent filmmakers were throwing anything at the wall to see if it stuck. Enter the Fairy Tales movie 1978, a film so strange, so specifically "seventies," that it almost feels like a collective fever dream. Directed by Harry Hurwitz (under the pseudonym Harry Tampa), this wasn't your Disney-fied bedtime story. Not even close.
It’s an adult musical comedy. Honestly, it’s a relic.
When people search for this film today, they’re usually looking for one of two things: a specific sense of nostalgia for the campy, low-budget era of filmmaking, or they’ve stumbled upon a clip of the music and can’t quite believe what they’re seeing. It’s a parody of classic folklore—think Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Little Red Riding Hood—but filtered through a lens of softcore humor and disco-era sensibilities.
What Was the Fairy Tales Movie 1978 Actually About?
The plot is... loose. That’s being generous. Basically, the story follows a prince who is, well, having a bit of trouble in the romance department. To solve his "problem," he embarks on a quest across a land filled with fractured versions of famous characters. You've got a Cinderella who isn't exactly waiting for a glass slipper and a Little Red Riding Hood who is much more interested in the Wolf than she probably should be.
It’s camp.
Hurwitz, the director, was known for The Projectionist (1971), which was actually a pretty well-regarded cult film. But with Fairy Tales movie 1978, he went full-throttle into the "adult parody" genre that was briefly popular before the home video market changed everything. The film thrives on its absurdity. You’ll see elaborate—if cheap—costumes and musical numbers that feel like they belong in a variety show from a different planet.
The Cast and the "Wait, Is That...?" Factor
One of the funniest things about looking back at these 1970s b-movies is seeing who popped up in them. The cast of this film features Linnea Quigley in one of her earliest roles. If you know horror, you know Linnea. She became the "Scream Queen" of the eighties in movies like Return of the Living Dead. Seeing her here, at the very start of her career, is a trip.
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Then there’s Professor Irwin Corey.
Corey was a legendary comic, the "World’s Foremost Authority." He plays a character in this film, bringing his trademark double-talk and chaotic energy. His presence gives the movie a weird bit of "legitimacy," or at least a connection to the old-school vaudeville comedy world. The rest of the cast is a mix of adult film performers and character actors who were just looking for a paycheck in a decade where the lines between "mainstream" and "adult" were often incredibly blurry in independent cinema.
Production Chaos and the Disco Soundtrack
The music in the Fairy Tales movie 1978 is arguably the most memorable part. It’s catchy. It’s also incredibly inappropriate for a general audience. The songs were written by a variety of contributors, but they all share that tinny, synthesized 1978 sound.
It was filmed on a shoestring. You can tell.
The sets look like they were borrowed from a local theater troupe, and the lighting has that grainy, 35mm grit that you only get from indie films of that specific year. But that’s part of the charm! If it were polished, it wouldn't be Fairy Tales. The movie exists in that pocket of time after Star Wars changed the industry but before Jaws and other blockbusters completely killed off the market for these strange, experimental independent comedies.
Why Do People Still Talk About It?
It’s about the E-E-A-T of cult cinema—Experience and Expertise in finding the "so bad it's good." To understand this film, you have to understand the context of 1978. Cinema was in a transition. The "New Hollywood" era of the early seventies was dying, and the era of the high-concept blockbuster was beginning. Small distributors like Group 1 International Distribution Organization (who handled this film) were scrambling to find niche audiences.
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Fairy Tales found its niche in the late-night circuit.
It wasn't a "hit" by any traditional metric. It didn't win awards. But it survived. It survived because it’s a time capsule of 1970s attitudes toward sex, comedy, and fairy tales. Today, critics and film historians look at it as a prime example of the "sexual revolution" hitting the world of low-budget parody. It’s a far cry from the sophisticated deconstructions we see in modern films like Shrek.
The Technical Reality of the Film
Let’s be real for a second. The editing is choppy. The sound mix is occasionally unbalanced. If you're looking for a masterpiece of cinematography, you're in the wrong place. However, for film students or those interested in the history of independent distribution, the Fairy Tales movie 1978 is a case study in how to market a movie based purely on a "gimmick."
The gimmick was simple: "What if your favorite childhood stories were R-rated?"
This was long before Fables comics or Once Upon a Time. It was crude, it was loud, and it was unapologetic.
Distribution and Rarity
For years, this movie was hard to find. It lingered on old VHS tapes in the back of mom-and-pop video stores. It finally saw some life on DVD and eventually digital, but it remains a bit of an "underground" title. Unlike many other films from 1978, it hasn't been given a massive 4K restoration by Criterion. It lives in the shadows, which is probably where it belongs.
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Actionable Insights for Cult Film Collectors
If you're looking to dive into this era of filmmaking, don't just stop at this one movie.
- Check the Credits: Look for names like Harry Hurwitz or producers who worked with companies like Troma later on. You'll find a web of interconnected creators who defined the 1970s/80s b-movie scene.
- Context Matters: Watch this alongside The Forbidden Dance or other late-seventies parodies. It helps to see how the humor was a reaction to the stiffness of the 1950s and 60s.
- Physical Media is King: If you find an original VHS or an early DVD of Fairy Tales, grab it. These smaller titles often vanish from streaming services because of licensing issues or the original film elements degrading.
- Research the Soundtrack: Some of the songs from these 1970s parodies have actually been sampled in modern lo-fi or electronic music because of their unique, dated texture.
The Fairy Tales movie 1978 is a weird, wild, and somewhat uncomfortable piece of film history. It isn't for everyone. In fact, it's probably not for most people. But for those who want to see exactly where the boundaries of "good taste" were being pushed in 1978, it’s an essential, if bizarre, watch. It reminds us that movies don't always have to be "good" to be interesting; sometimes, being a fascinating disaster is enough to keep people talking for nearly fifty years.
To truly appreciate it, you have to lean into the camp. Stop looking for a cohesive narrative and start looking for the tiny details—the improvised lines, the struggling costumes, and the sheer audacity of making a disco musical about Sleeping Beauty in the first place. That is the real magic of 1970s cult cinema.
How to Find and Watch
Tracking down a clean copy can be a bit of a hunt. Look for boutique labels that specialize in "cult" or "grindhouse" cinema. Often, these films are packaged in collections or "4-on-a-disc" sets that were popular in the early 2000s. Because of its "R" rating and adult themes, it’s rarely on standard family-friendly streaming platforms. Searching for "Harry Tampa" or "Harry Hurwitz filmography" on specialized film databases like MUBI or Letterboxd is your best bet for finding current legal streams or physical copies.
Once you see it, you'll never look at a glass slipper the same way again.