| Element | Original (1907) | Sensational Janine (1976) | |---------|------------------|---------------------------| | | Josefine herself, recounting events as a “sex‑education memoir.” | Janine, a 19‑year‑old university student who discovers the Mutzenbacher manuscript and reenacts it as a personal research project. | | Temporal Setting | Early 1900s Vienna. | 1976 Vienna – a city in the throes of Studentenbewegung , feminist activism, and the rise of the Sex‑Positivismus movement. | | Sexual Agency | Portrayed as an innate “innocent curiosity” that inevitably leads to prostitution. | Emphasises choice ; Janine negotiates sex work on her own terms, framing it as a political act against patriarchal commodification. | | Social Commentary | Implicit critique of bourgeois morality. | Explicit critique of state regulation of prostitution, the commodification of female bodies, and the double standards of sexual liberation. | | Ending | Josefine achieves fame as a courtesan. | Janine publicly publishes a manifesto, demanding legal reforms for sex workers; the film ends with a symbolic march through the Mariahilfer Straße. |
“Janine,” she said, extending a gloved hand, “I’m glad you came.” sensationaljanine1976josefinemutzenbacher