The Story of OneTaste - Lilith Likes to Watch Documentary December!
Title: Orgasm Inc.: The Story of OneTaste
Year: 2022
Starring:Nicole Deadone
Director: Sloane Klevin, Sarah Gibson
Synopsis: A sexual wellness company gains fame and followers, then members come forward with shocking allegations. - Via Letterboxd.com
Lilith's Notes: We can all agree this is GOOP's fault, right?
"She would just become facinated with what she could get people to do. That was her entertainment."
We're in December, and you know what that means! All month we're going to watch dirty documentaries. Take a break from your holiday hustle and curl up with some educational films. Who knows, we might all learn somehting. We begin with Netflix's new true crime documentary, Orgasm Inc: The Story of OneTaste
I used to be rather new-agey. Not so much anymore. I sometimes idealize my life where I make my own candles and sell them at farmer's markets, or brew my own rosewater but that takes time out of my precious do nothing but stare at my phone hours. I still have echos of my new-age past. I buy incense, and when I do it's frankincense and myrrh because not only did the wise men bring those to Jesus when he was born, but they're also the signature blend for Anubis.
But I've never been into self-help, or gurus, or life coaches. I've never fallen into the TED-Talkification of social change. I'm not going to say I'm not susceptible to mob mentality or propaganda or advertising, but I am unable to understand why people find it so difficult to refuse the timeshare. Just sit through the pitch for two hours, say no, and enjoy the rest of your free vacation. Make them the sucker.
OneTaste was a movement imagined up by a woman named Nicole Daedone. It offered classes, some of which cost thousands of dollars, on "slow sex" and reaching female orgasm, and "orgasmic meditation" which they jargon-ified into "OM". I'm sure the similarity to the trope of humming the mantra of "ohm" while meditating is pure coincidence. Or maybe not, as the documentary shows us a supercut of Daedone plucking different terms from different theologies and philosophies.
What the documentary purports began as a method of female empowerment in the rise of the #MeToo movement, of health and wellness, quickly devolves into an abusive cultish mess. The entire situation was planted in a garden of red flags but I think it's reasonable to accept the first red flag being when the men come on board.
Men can take classes in flicking the bean, which, fine, I guess I'd rather they learn how to pleasure a woman rather than neg her, but it feels invasive for single guys to be there. Male partners to women, sure. Couples, fine. But a room packed with single guys all wanting to watch a woman orgasm in front of them? Look, I'm a voyeur, I'd be down to attend that sort of party, but they took something claiming to be about female pleasure and instantly turned it for the male gaze and male use. From empowerment to entitlement.
Ain't that always the way?
And it gets worse.
Many, many more men signed up for the course than woman, so the employees were encouraged to fuck the men who paid for the OM experience.
OneTaste used the idea of openness in their philosophy. An open woman says yes. An open woman accepts what is around her. Now, the group is told men have within them, a beast. And a woman must be open to the man's beast. If she refuses, she is closed off, and isn't OMing properly or whatever.
What sort of cultural-norm, conformist, trad-wife, cis-gendered hell is that bullshit?
There's more. There is so much more. Breaking people down through screaming matches. The use of people's personal trauma to coerce them into certain acts. Alleged prostitution. Until it all caught the attention of the FBI.
Throughout the runtime we are introduced to several characters including the creepy Nice Guy videographer, Daedone's ex-husband, a former OneTaster who looks to be a shell of her former self, and the sister to a woman who was allegedly gang raped at Daedone's behest.
And Daedone? She sold her shares, became even more wealthy and fucked off. The FBI investigation is still ongoing.
If you really, really want to be humiliated, coerced, objectified, abused and shamed, you don't need to spend thousands of dollars, you can find that sort of thing at your local dungeon. For much cheaper and probably a lot more respectfully.
Best Moment: At one point a former OneTaste member, an older gentleman, describes how Nicole tried to psychologically Electra Complex him and there's something so dark in the timber of his voice. That whole story stuck with me.
Worst Moment: They go in depth about how they set up this whole Eyes Wide Shut exclusive ritual party thing and it was just rediculous. It cost several thousand dollars to attend.
LILITH'S SCORE: 4/5
Until next time, my voracious voyeurs. I’m Lilith, and I’m always watching.
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