Michael Pitt showing off his provocative T-shirt

The temperature was rising at the premiere of the steamy uncut version of Bernardo Bertolucci’s racy film The Dreamers. Bertolucci (known for his erotic Last Tango in Paris) has created a decadent package of budding sexuality that includes masturbation scenes and incest, not to mention full frontal nudity — all tied up in a big French bow and stamped with the rare NC-17 rating (which hasn’t been given to a film in six years!). The indie film transports us to Paris in the springtime of 1968. Bertolucci, who lived there at that time, recalled “the magic of the 60s — it was a time when we were all dreaming ... merging cinema, politics, music, sex, philosophy.” The Dreamers is the fictional tale of twins “Isabel” (Eva Green) and “Theo” (Louis Garrel), who invite their American-student friend, “Matthew” (darling-of-Dawson’s Creek Michael Pitt—no relation to Brad), to live with them while their parents vacation. The threesome spiral off in the labyrinthian apartment into sexual experimentation and emotionally charged mind games.

Following the credits, the all-too hot-and-bothered audience cooled off at Gaustavino’s, including Liv Tyler and hubby/rocker Roystan Langdon, Joel Coen, Art Garfunkel, Debra Winger, Arthur Miller, Jonathan Demme, Anh Duong, and Roberto Cavalla. We sat back with Bertolucci, who clarified in his rich Italian accent that the difference between the sex scenes in Last Tango and those of his current Dreamer steamer was that “the sex in Last Tango was dark, but the sex in The Dreamers is light and joyful.”

Michael Pitt, 22, arrived at the premiere with You’re Too Young actress/girlfriend Alexis Dziena. He sported a wispy goatee and shoulder-length hair, reeked of booze, and was dressed in shredded jeans and a T-shirt with the Bertolucci quote: “An orgasm is better than a bomb” (perhaps meant to keep the outrage over the explicitness of the film in perspective). Pitt did seem a tad touchy about giving us the Full Monty in the film; when we asked him about the most difficult part of filming, he wryly shot back, “What do you think?” Probing further, we inquired how he was able to get past those in-your-face nude scenes. ”I didn’t,” he replied. “That’s why it’s so much fun to watch on the screen.”

Expect more of Pitt. His movie stardom is rising while he moonlights in his rock band Pagoda at the Sidewalk Café in the East Village. There, one source commented, “He’s a really great guy, but a troubled youth.” It’s been reported that his teenage years were marked by traumatic events. At 16, he fled from his home in West Orange, NJ, to the Big Apple, where he panhandled and worked as a bike messenger to survive. Looks like the makings of a star!