Rating of
2.5/4
Dead good
Bribaba - wrote on 05/03/11
Jess Franco's masterpiece, now beautifully restored. At times it with its strong sense of necrophilia, it resembles a perverse version of Vertigo - Maria Rohm could even be Kim Novack's double, though in fact the story was inspired by a conversation Franco had with Chet Baker, the jazz trumpeter. Franco wanted the film to be about a black musician to emphasize the fantasy aspect, but was overruled because of the perceived racism of American audiences - a black man sleeping with a blonde would have been considered beyond the pale, so to speak.
James Darren, a friend of Baker's, got the role instead. Klaus Kinski is also present as a playboy, while the archetypical Englishman Dennis Price shows up as an art dealer. Manfred Mann supplies much of the music with Franco himself appearing on piano.
Like many of Franco's films, what's lacking in narrative logic is more than compensated for by a terrific sense of atmosphere, and eroticism. If that's not enough, then there's always the dialogue: 'If that's your scene baby, then tell me and I'll split' (a reference to some hot girl-on-girl action).
