Gloria Leonard, already an icon of unapologetic female authority from her classic era work, steps into the role of Barbara, a woman who has already crossed every line of desire and survived. Having witnessed the fallout of the previous film's events, Barbara is no longer a participant but an orchestrator. She is the cool, silk-voiced puppet master, watching from the shadows of her lavish, decadent home.
Following the incendiary success of the first installment, Taboo: American Style Part 2 doubles down on its thesis: that the most dangerous taboos aren't found in dark alleys, but in the well-lit living rooms of the American suburbs. While the original film shocked audiences with its nuclear family transgression, this sequel pivots to a more psychologically complex—and arguably more unsettling—dynamic, anchored by the formidable pairing of Raven and Golden Age legend Gloria Leonard. Taboo American Style Part2-Raven- Gloria Leonard-
Raven, by contrast, is all nervous energy and quickened breath. She plays Nikki with a convincing arc: from genuine fright to hesitant fascination, and finally to a shattering, desperate abandon. The film’s pivotal scene is not a sex scene, but a conversation on a velvet settee where Barbara calmly outlines her philosophy: “Desire doesn’t have a family tree, darling. Only fear does.” Watching Raven’s character process—and accept—this logic is genuinely affecting. Gloria Leonard, already an icon of unapologetic female
★★★★☆ (4/5) For the unflinching psychological realism and the unforgettable sight of Gloria Leonard playing chess while a world burns around her. Following the incendiary success of the first installment,
Taboo: American Style Part 2 (Raven/Leonard segment) is not for the casual viewer seeking nostalgia. It is difficult, uncomfortable cinema that uses the adult film format to explore genuine pathologies of control, loneliness, and inherited trauma. Leonard proves she was far more than a porn star—she was a noir villainess trapped in the wrong genre. Raven, often overlooked in the canon, delivers a career-best performance as the lamb who volunteers for the slaughter.
