Watching the film today is like stepping into a time capsule. The production values are a far cry from the prestige period dramas we expect today. Instead, you’ll find:
With a cast including Mike Horner and Hyapatia Lee, the performances are frequently cited as a defining element of the production.
While it may not offer any scholarly insight into Chaucer’s work, it provides a fascinating look at 1980s pop culture’s obsession with the "naughty" side of history. It is a piece of cinematic history that is as campy as it is provocative—a true relic of the VHS era.
One could argue that the film, unintentionally perhaps, critiques the hypocrisy of the clergy (through the lecherous Friar) and the transactional nature of marriage (through the Wife of Bath) far more crudely, but not necessarily less effectively, than a polite literary lecture. It is folk art. Unpolished, ugly, and distinctly human (despite being drawings). the ribald tales of canterbury 1985 classic
If you're looking for an excerpt (a "piece") from that film—such as dialogue or a scene summary—here’s a representative moment from the frame story:
Currently out of print on official DVD, but available through vintage adult streaming services and occasional specialty Blu-ray reissues from companies like Distribpix. Viewers should seek the uncut 86-minute version; edited broadcast cuts remove the very soul of the pilgrimage.
Released on VHS by Essex Video (and later reissued on DVD by Caballero Home Video), The Ribald Tales of Canterbury is a time capsule of mid-80s adult cinema. Shot on 35mm film, it boasts a surprisingly lush, studio-bound aesthetic. The costumes are deliberately anachronistic—think Renaissance Fair meets 1985 hair metal—with puffy sleeves, chainmail bikinis, and feathered roguish caps. Watching the film today is like stepping into a time capsule
Upon release, mainstream critics ignored it. Adult trade magazines gave it mixed reviews; Adult Video News (AVN) wrote in 1986: "The animation is crude, but the voice work is spirited. A curiosity for fans of the weird." Feminist critics have since panned it for its objectification, while film preservationists lament that the original 35mm negatives are likely lost, meaning only grainy VHS-rips survive online.
The seamstress offered a quieter, pricking tale. She spoke of mending more than clothes: mending reputations, sewing together the torn edges of relationships. Her story traced the seamstress’s hand as a map of the town’s intimacies—hidden letters folded inside hems, a camouflaged pocket for secret favors. She revealed how a single stitch could bind two lives or unravel them. Her moral was sly: where others pursued grand passions, she pursued control—knowing the place where threads met meant knowing how to pull. Her laugh at the close was small and knowing.
The three main "ribald tales" include:
The film, loosely based on Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales , transports the viewer to a rollicking medieval England. The premise is simple yet effective: a group of weary travelers takes refuge at a wayside inn. To pass the time, they engage in a storytelling competition, weaving tales of lust, deception, and desire.
: A young knight (Mike Horner) shares a story of a surprising encounter with a fellow pilgrim. The Miller’s Wife and Daughter