In 1983, the film won an Homer Award from the prestigious Video Software Dealers Association in the category of Best Adult Tape. The recognition was considered by many as a turning point in the acceptance of adult entertainment by the mainstream video industry. At Website Adams Underground praised Kay Parker's performance and the movie's visuals. But criticed the unrealistic portrayal of incest, the movie's ending and several technical aspects of the film, including the editing and the sound. Concluding:"In closing, all of Taboo's flaws amount to nothing more than a quickly forgotten boo-boo that Barbara sweetly kisses away with a warm tenderness that leaves you with indelible, pleasant memories.". Roger Feelbert from Pornonomy gave the film a B+ rating, stating: "Overall, Taboo was well paced and acted and while I personally think it could have benefited from a slightly darker tone, as its own entity it's befitting of the place it holds in porn history." Roger T. Pipe from Rogreviews gave the film 11 out of 12 stars and said about "Taboo": "I don't think anyone is going to pick this up expecting a modern raincoater flick. If you were looking for that, please look elsewhere. The sex scenes are short, softer than we are used to and simply not up to the best of what we get these days. That's the down side of course. On the bright side, we get to see a classic. It is pretty easy to see why this is an all-time favorite. Kay Parker is a stunning woman who handles a rather difficult role. The script is pretty basic, but it is certainly has more emotional depth than most anything we see these days. Both she and Ranger are impressive in this film. The story touches on a number of things that would, if you will pardon me, taboo issues even today. Real incest, that is to say the portrayal of a genuinely incestuous relationship in porn today is nearly non-existent. That helps make the original "Taboo" somewhat edgy nearly thirty years after its release.". Steve Pulaski from Steve The Movie Man called the film a "landmark in porn...that could very well be considered an early American, feature-length porn film focusing on a fetish, in this case, mother/son incest". He also noted that "Taboo" was written by a woman and in its core, the film is about how women are treated in our society:"Amazingly, Taboo was written by a woman named Helene Terrie, which could very well explain the film's sensitive angle. One can easily look at the incest angle, view the mother/son sex scenes as deplorable, and find this film uncommonly offensive. However, one can look at this film as a sensitive portrayal of the desperate measures people can go to in order to combat their own loneliness. The film, at its core, shows how a woman is rejected from everything, society, employers, and even her husband for allegedly not being good enough, and the first time she finally does something she wants, she's overcome with guilt and shame. Who would've thought a pornographic film would ever go this deep ?". Still about the movie, Pulaski concluded:"The scenes here carry a terrific level of eroticism and hold weight as some of the sexiest I've seen in pornography yet. They are intimate, usually assisted by soft, soulful music choices rather than ones that hinder the scenes themselves, and are beautifully constructed to flow very naturally. It also helps that, again, Parker and Ranger are such talented performers, able to act, have sex, and get emotional all in a film that's very intelligently written, which only elevates the level of believability here. Taboo was a film born to divide in a genre born to be embraced by some and lambasted by others. Yet, it proves that even pornography can tackle a subject with a strong level of thoughtfulness, so much so that perhaps there's another reason why mainstream cinema won't touch the topic of incest with a ten foot pole."
