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7
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6 |
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10
= Highest Rating |
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Guest
Review by Troy
Howarth |
A
stripper (Diana Lorys) is haunted by morbid fantasies; when
her fantasies start intruding upon reality, will her psychiatrist
(Paul Müller) be able to save her?
Nightmares Come at
Night is one of Jess Franco's more obscure films, seldom
seen until this new DVD release. Similar in tone to earlier
Franco films like Venus in Furs
(1969) and Succubus
(1967), it also looks forward to the more blatant eroticism
and narrative structure of later titles like Doriana
Grey (1976) and Mil Sexos Tiene la
Noche (1982). The simple story unfolds effectively in
a dreamlike manner, but becomes disrupted by a needless dose
of reality (i.e., a jewel heist subplot). Were it not for this
unfortunate misstep, it might otherwise figure in the top ten
of Franco's works. As it stands, the film has enough going for
it to ensure a solid recommendation to Franco enthusiasts (as
if you wouldn't see it based on my review anyway!). Though rough
around the edges like so many of Franco's films, Nightmares
captures a bizarre strain of poetry in its use of handheld camera,
natural lighting effects and bizarrely distended setpieces that
threaten to overcome what little narrative there is. In particular,
one is reminded of the protagonist's striptease sequences set
to Bruno Nicolai's psychedelic jazz score. Scenes like this
were to become the norm in Franco — long sections of film that
do little to extend the plot but which weave a weird spell on
the viewer, or more accurately the viewer in synch with Franco's
style (cf., the insanely protracted drugged out orgy in Mil
Sexos Tiene la Noche or any of the memorable nightclub
sequences in his films).
Franco assembled a fine cast of familiar
faces often associated with his work, though the director sadly
does not provide one of his memorable cameo appearances. Diana
Lorys (formerly the imperiled heroine of The
Awful Dr. Orlof and one of Christopher Lee's torture victims
in The Bloody Judge) dominates
the proceedings; not only is she a stunning beauty, but she
also proves herself capable of handling the various emotional
peaks of her character without resorting to melodramatic overstatement.
She is every bit as bewitching as any of Franco's usual fetish
actresses (from Janine Reynaud and Soledad Miranda to Anne Libert
and Lina Romay) and makes one wish she had collaborated with
the director more often.
Speaking of Miranda, her visage used so prominently
on the DVD case, it has to be noted that her role is not only
very brief but is wasted in the weak jewel heist subplot — she
has ample opportunity to show off her beautiful body, but none
to show what a fine actress she could really be. Most of her
brief minutes are comprised of looking out of windows or lounging
around naked and swigging cheap booze.
Paul Müller, on the other hand, has
one of his very best roles for Franco, perhaps the best next
to the cruel sadist of Eugenie
de Sade. His conflicted psychiatrist is ripe with opportunity
for overacting, but Müller retains his low-key dignity
throughout. Simultaneously sinister and avuncular, he lends
dramatic weight to the proceedings. Jack Taylor, another Franco
vet (Count Dracula,
Sexy Sisters), has a small role
in one of Lorys' "fantasies." As mentioned before, the film
is rough around the edges but Manuel Merino provides some interesting,
at times sloppy and at others artistic cinematography. Bruno
Nicolai's score is mostly comprised of cues from Eugenie
De Sade and Eugenie...
The Story of Her Journey Into Perversion (1969), but the
new cues are very effectively blended with the old ones.
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| Shriek
Show's DVD release of this obscure slice of Eurosleaze isn't perfect,
but it gets the job done quite nicely. The source print was a
fullscreen master, so the image loses some info on the sides;
I would assume 1.66:1 to be the correct ratio. Print quality is
rather good for the most part, though there is some damage throughout.
Color and clarity are good to excellent. All told, this looks
about as good as one could hope for save for the cropping. There
are French and English track options; the latter sounds more than
a little corny, so go with the French track, with newly translated
subtitles by Franco enthusiast Lucas Balbo. It plays much more
seriously that way, and the track is in fine shape. Extras include
trailers for other SS releases (Franco's Faceless
among them), a still gallery, liner notes by Balbo and, best of
all, a lengthy on-camera interview with Jess Franco himself. As
usual, Franco (speaking in heavily accented English) is funny,
gregarious and full of great anecdotes.
5/10/04 |
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