Private Lessons is a 1981 American sex comedy film starring Sylvia Kristel, Howard Hesseman, Eric Brown, and Ed Begley Jr.[3]
The screenplay was written by Dan Greenburg, who wrote the original source novel, Philly. Greenburg appears as the manager of a motel in the film.
Private Lessons was one of Kristel's few major American film appearances; she was better known to European audiences for her Emmanuelle films which had only limited distribution in the United States. In early 2006, a 25th anniversary DVD release was issued in North America.
Philip "Philly" Fillmore is an adventurous 15-year-old boy and the son of a rich businessman in Phoenix; when his father leaves town on an extended trip during summer break, the young man is left in the passing care of Nicole Mallow, a French housekeeper, and Lester Lewis, the family's chauffeur.
Nicole playfully teases Philly for his constant leering at women. Resenting her initially, Philly later becomes infatuated. When Nicole goes out shopping, he sneaks into her room and touches her underwear. He frequently uses his binoculars to observe her through windows, deliberately walks by her when she is sunbathing beside the pool, and rides his bicycle past her room. One night, after spotting Philly peeping into her room, she tells him to come inside and, to his utter shock, starts undressing in front of him. However, when a fully nude Nicole invites Philly to touch her, it proves too much for him. He panics and leaves, but not before thanking her. He shares the story with his best friend Sherman.
