Showing posts with label FRANCE. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FRANCE. Show all posts
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Amer (2009)
Amer (2009)
Genre: Horror | Thriller
Country: France | Belgium | Director: Hélène Cattet & Bruno Forzani
Language: French | Subtitles: English (.srt file)
Aspect ratio: Cinemascope 2.35:1 | Length: 86mn
Dvdrip Divx Avi - 720x304 - 25fps - 1.17gb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1426352/
Three key moments, all of them sensual, define Ana's life. Her carnal search sways between reality and colored fantasies becoming more and more oppressive. A black laced hand prevents her from screaming. The wind lifts her dress and caresses her thighs. A razor blade brushes her skin, where will this chaotic and carnivorous journey leave her?
Amer is just as indebted to surreal dream films like Meshes or the Afternoon, Un Chien Andalou, Lost Highway and Valerie and Her Week of Wonders as it is to 70s Italian Gialli. The thing that always intrigues me the most about 70s European exploitation cinema are the surreal imagery and the moments of avant-garde poetry that are nestled within the haphazard thriller plots. This distils 70s European Giallo and horror films to their avant-garde essence, disposing of clunky police procedurals, performances undone by poor dubbing and frequently questionable attitudes to sexuality and women and it puts the Giallo films frequently ravishing imagery and sound in service of a dream film about a woman's sexuality becoming twisted (amer = French for "bitter") over a lifetime by repression and thwarted desire. It gets the look, sound and atmosphere of those films absolutely spot on.
Despite Amer's almost non-narrative nature, this is a much more faithful and thoughtful homage to 70s Grindhouse films than the Tarantino/Rodriguez venture, which never really got the look right or got under the skin of its sources the way this film does. There are so many clever moments here. I particularly liked the heroine ageing a decade via an ant from Un Chien Andalou, a character who only appears as a silhouette and whose presence is always accompanied by the sound of crackling leather (in reference to the typical Giallo killers leather gloves) and the sheer joy generated by sudden bursts of vintage soundtracks by the likes of Stelvio Cipriani.
Genre: Horror | Thriller
Country: France | Belgium | Director: Hélène Cattet & Bruno Forzani
Language: French | Subtitles: English (.srt file)
Aspect ratio: Cinemascope 2.35:1 | Length: 86mn
Dvdrip Divx Avi - 720x304 - 25fps - 1.17gb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1426352/
Three key moments, all of them sensual, define Ana's life. Her carnal search sways between reality and colored fantasies becoming more and more oppressive. A black laced hand prevents her from screaming. The wind lifts her dress and caresses her thighs. A razor blade brushes her skin, where will this chaotic and carnivorous journey leave her?
Amer is just as indebted to surreal dream films like Meshes or the Afternoon, Un Chien Andalou, Lost Highway and Valerie and Her Week of Wonders as it is to 70s Italian Gialli. The thing that always intrigues me the most about 70s European exploitation cinema are the surreal imagery and the moments of avant-garde poetry that are nestled within the haphazard thriller plots. This distils 70s European Giallo and horror films to their avant-garde essence, disposing of clunky police procedurals, performances undone by poor dubbing and frequently questionable attitudes to sexuality and women and it puts the Giallo films frequently ravishing imagery and sound in service of a dream film about a woman's sexuality becoming twisted (amer = French for "bitter") over a lifetime by repression and thwarted desire. It gets the look, sound and atmosphere of those films absolutely spot on.
Despite Amer's almost non-narrative nature, this is a much more faithful and thoughtful homage to 70s Grindhouse films than the Tarantino/Rodriguez venture, which never really got the look right or got under the skin of its sources the way this film does. There are so many clever moments here. I particularly liked the heroine ageing a decade via an ant from Un Chien Andalou, a character who only appears as a silhouette and whose presence is always accompanied by the sound of crackling leather (in reference to the typical Giallo killers leather gloves) and the sheer joy generated by sudden bursts of vintage soundtracks by the likes of Stelvio Cipriani.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Les fruits de la passion (1983)
Les fruits de la passion aka The Fruits Of Passion (1983) Shuji Terayama
Country: Japan/France l Language: French/English/Chinese l Subtitles: English (srt file)
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen 1.85:1 l Length: 83mn
Dvdrip Xvid Avi - 608x368 - 697mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082422/
Country: Japan/France l Language: French/English/Chinese l Subtitles: English (srt file)
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen 1.85:1 l Length: 83mn
Dvdrip Xvid Avi - 608x368 - 697mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082422/
The story takes place in Shanghai. A girl loves a rich and much older man (played by Kinski). She is willing to do everything he wants to show her love, but he is playing a sick game with her. As part of this game he sends her to a Chinese brothel. A poor young boy sees her and falls in love with her. To get the money needed to sleep with her, he joins "the revolution". Additionally the movie shows the fate of some of the other prostitutes.
This film has less S and M and bondage than the original "Story of O", but the sex scenes are much more graphic. There is one obviously unsimulated oral sex scene and another "missionary" scene with Kinski and Illiers that looks pretty unsimulated as well. If you consider this a hardcore porn film, it is a veritable masterpiece. The cinematography is excellent and the musical score is good. There are a lot of poetic images--for instance, a long shot of a dead bird floating in the bay outside the convent, and later a surreal Jean Rollinesque image of a drowned woman floating on a grand piano (?!) in this same bay. Most hardcore porn films wouldn't bother with such arty digressions. As an art film though, which this is also obviously trying to be, it is less successful, mostly because all the characters are pretty thinly drawn
This film has less S and M and bondage than the original "Story of O", but the sex scenes are much more graphic. There is one obviously unsimulated oral sex scene and another "missionary" scene with Kinski and Illiers that looks pretty unsimulated as well. If you consider this a hardcore porn film, it is a veritable masterpiece. The cinematography is excellent and the musical score is good. There are a lot of poetic images--for instance, a long shot of a dead bird floating in the bay outside the convent, and later a surreal Jean Rollinesque image of a drowned woman floating on a grand piano (?!) in this same bay. Most hardcore porn films wouldn't bother with such arty digressions. As an art film though, which this is also obviously trying to be, it is less successful, mostly because all the characters are pretty thinly drawn
Les Deux Orphelines Vampires (1997)
Les deux orphelines vampires (1997) Jean Rollin
Genre: Fantasy l Horror
Country: France l Language: French l Subtitles: English (srt file)
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen l Length: 107mn
Dvdrip Divx Avi - 512x288 - 689mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112856/
Now *this* is the film that separates the men from the boys. If it's in-yer-face sex and horror you want; then I suggest you bugger off now, because Jean Rollin has concocted something very very different... And are you man enough to take it?
Rollin's filmic obsession with vampires- and let's face it, with erotic young women- has never looked this beautiful. Like many films to come out of Europe, this eschews huge action and movement in favour of stillness and thought. It's beautiful to look at, and within the frame Rollin has trapped a whole other world- a vivid, colourful world of rich tones and contrasts, waif-like vampires and deep brown earth. Like some kind of comfortable dream on a hot Summer's evening, 'Two Orphan Vampires' slides from plot point to plot point at its own leisure. At times there's not a lot going on; but there's always something to look at.
Perhaps the most astonishing thing about the film, is the way in which Rollin makes the tiny budget work to his advantage. We meet a vampire queen, a ghoul and a werewolf. But we are only *told* this is what they are- they appear outwardly 'normal'... and although it's a cliche to say 'our imaginations do the rest', here it is so true. Late in the film there is a scene in which one of the characters explains some of her past; stuff that Hollywood would salivate over. Rollin has her hunched over a table and s-l-o-w-l-y tracks the camera towards her. No fuss, no noise, no elaborately staged flash-backs and set-pieces. Stillness. Quiet. And an otherworldliness that will leave you changed. It's like looking at a painting that illustrates a poem you strongly admire, and finding the artist has got it just 'right'. 'Two Orphan Vampires' is a tribute to the enduring presence of Jean Rollin- a writer/director of integrity, vision and wit.
Genre: Fantasy l Horror
Country: France l Language: French l Subtitles: English (srt file)
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen l Length: 107mn
Dvdrip Divx Avi - 512x288 - 689mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112856/
Now *this* is the film that separates the men from the boys. If it's in-yer-face sex and horror you want; then I suggest you bugger off now, because Jean Rollin has concocted something very very different... And are you man enough to take it?
Rollin's filmic obsession with vampires- and let's face it, with erotic young women- has never looked this beautiful. Like many films to come out of Europe, this eschews huge action and movement in favour of stillness and thought. It's beautiful to look at, and within the frame Rollin has trapped a whole other world- a vivid, colourful world of rich tones and contrasts, waif-like vampires and deep brown earth. Like some kind of comfortable dream on a hot Summer's evening, 'Two Orphan Vampires' slides from plot point to plot point at its own leisure. At times there's not a lot going on; but there's always something to look at.
Perhaps the most astonishing thing about the film, is the way in which Rollin makes the tiny budget work to his advantage. We meet a vampire queen, a ghoul and a werewolf. But we are only *told* this is what they are- they appear outwardly 'normal'... and although it's a cliche to say 'our imaginations do the rest', here it is so true. Late in the film there is a scene in which one of the characters explains some of her past; stuff that Hollywood would salivate over. Rollin has her hunched over a table and s-l-o-w-l-y tracks the camera towards her. No fuss, no noise, no elaborately staged flash-backs and set-pieces. Stillness. Quiet. And an otherworldliness that will leave you changed. It's like looking at a painting that illustrates a poem you strongly admire, and finding the artist has got it just 'right'. 'Two Orphan Vampires' is a tribute to the enduring presence of Jean Rollin- a writer/director of integrity, vision and wit.
Litan (1982) (French)
Litan aka Litan La Cité des Spectres Verts (1982) Jean-Pierre Mocky
Country: France l Language: French l Subtitles: none
Aspect Ratio: widescreen l Length: 83mn
Dvdrip Xvid - 560x336 - 699mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0163716/
Country: France l Language: French l Subtitles: none
Aspect Ratio: widescreen l Length: 83mn
Dvdrip Xvid - 560x336 - 699mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0163716/
Cast:
Marie-José Nat ... Nora
Jean-Pierre Mocky ... Jock
Nino Ferrer ... Le docteur Steve Julien
Music: Nino Ferrer
Marie-José Nat ... Nora
Jean-Pierre Mocky ... Jock
Nino Ferrer ... Le docteur Steve Julien
Music: Nino Ferrer
Lady Libertine (1983)
Lady Libertine (1983) Gérard Kikoïne
Country: France l Language: English dub l Subtitles: none
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 l Length: 84mn
Dvdrip Xvid - 640x480 - 699mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087287/
Cast:
Sophie Favier ... Maud
Christopher Pearson ... Charles Beaumont
Jennifer Inch ... Frank and Frances
Country: France l Language: English dub l Subtitles: none
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 l Length: 84mn
Dvdrip Xvid - 640x480 - 699mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087287/
Cast:
Sophie Favier ... Maud
Christopher Pearson ... Charles Beaumont
Jennifer Inch ... Frank and Frances
Tenue de Soirée (1986)
Tenue de Soirée (1986) Bertrand Blier 
Language: French / Subtitles: none
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen / Length: 80mn
Dvdrip Divx - 720x416 - 684mb
Cast:
Gérard Depardieu ... Bob
Michel Blanc ... Antoine
Miou-Miou ... Monique
Michel Creton ... Pedro
Jean-François Stévenin ... Husband in house 3
Mylène Demongeot ... Wife in house 3
Caroline Sihol ... Wife of the Rich and Depressed Man
Jean-Yves Berteloot ... Male Prostitute in night club
Bruno Cremer ... The Art Lover
Jean-Pierre Marielle ... The Rich and Depressed Man
Gérard Depardieu ... Bob
Michel Blanc ... Antoine
Miou-Miou ... Monique
Michel Creton ... Pedro
Jean-François Stévenin ... Husband in house 3
Mylène Demongeot ... Wife in house 3
Caroline Sihol ... Wife of the Rich and Depressed Man
Jean-Yves Berteloot ... Male Prostitute in night club
Bruno Cremer ... The Art Lover
Jean-Pierre Marielle ... The Rich and Depressed Man
With Tenue de Soiree, Blier is once again investigating male insecurity and men's relations with other men. Essentially a remake of Les Valseuses, this film quickly removes the presence of a woman (Monique) to leave the way clear for Bob's seduction of Antoine. A complex film, part crime comedy, part transvestite film, Blier seems to lose his way at the midpoint and the ending seems tacked on. Depardieu and Blanc in particular are excellent, but the script lets them down. A homophobe becomes a fully dressed transsexual in about 90 minutes, hardly realistic and the misogynistic tone of the film can be draining. A useful companion piece to Les Valseuses, but it is only half the film that Les Valseuses was in 1974.
Possession (1981) Andrzej Zulawski
Possession (1981) Andrzej Zulawski
Genre: Horror
Language: English / Subtitles: none
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen / Length: 123mn
Dvdrip Xvid - 967mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082933/
Genre: Horror
Language: English / Subtitles: none
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen / Length: 123mn
Dvdrip Xvid - 967mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082933/
Cast:
Isabelle Adjani ... Anna / Helen
Sam Neill ... Mark
Surely other Zulawski movies like "La femme publique" and "L'important c'est d'aimer" have dark, disturbing moments, too, but "Possession" must be the most terrifying of them all. It all begins perfectly normal, like something that could happen every day, anywhere in your neighborhood: Anna (Adjani) leaves Mark (Sam Neill), she confesses she found a new lover already a year ago, and then the breaking up of their marriage naturally affects their little son, too. "I'm the maker of my own evil", Anna says once, and the evil she creates is visualized literally as a slimy demon, whereas Mark "creates" a school teacher looking exactly like Anna (and also played by Adjani), a woman so pure and innocent they go to bed together without having sex, and of course the idealized woman immediately takes care of his son ... and the dish washing. The torment and hysteria of destroyed love is perfectly set in a Berlin before reunification, with the wall appearing countless times in the frame: an obvious symbol that divides what used to belong together, just like the characters in the movie. The "possessed" Adjani delivers an unforgettable performance, but if you are going to watch this, be prepared for more blood and guts than in "The Exorcist".
Isabelle Adjani ... Anna / Helen
Sam Neill ... Mark
Surely other Zulawski movies like "La femme publique" and "L'important c'est d'aimer" have dark, disturbing moments, too, but "Possession" must be the most terrifying of them all. It all begins perfectly normal, like something that could happen every day, anywhere in your neighborhood: Anna (Adjani) leaves Mark (Sam Neill), she confesses she found a new lover already a year ago, and then the breaking up of their marriage naturally affects their little son, too. "I'm the maker of my own evil", Anna says once, and the evil she creates is visualized literally as a slimy demon, whereas Mark "creates" a school teacher looking exactly like Anna (and also played by Adjani), a woman so pure and innocent they go to bed together without having sex, and of course the idealized woman immediately takes care of his son ... and the dish washing. The torment and hysteria of destroyed love is perfectly set in a Berlin before reunification, with the wall appearing countless times in the frame: an obvious symbol that divides what used to belong together, just like the characters in the movie. The "possessed" Adjani delivers an unforgettable performance, but if you are going to watch this, be prepared for more blood and guts than in "The Exorcist".
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Baxter (1989) Jérôme Boivin
Baxter (1989)
Genre: Drama l Horror
Country: France l Director: Jérôme Boivin
Language: French l Subtitles: English (srt file)
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen l Length: 80mn
Dvdrip Divx - 640x368 - 700mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094713/
Genre: Drama l Horror
Country: France l Director: Jérôme Boivin
Language: French l Subtitles: English (srt file)
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen l Length: 80mn
Dvdrip Divx - 640x368 - 700mb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094713/
Baxter (1989) was a crazy film from France. It's about a Bull terrier that thinks like a human. He's a mean dog that only cares about himself and no one else. Baxter had several different masters (they include an elderly shut in and a young couple with a baby) and he cares about none of them. One day he finds a boy who he takes a liking to. The boy makes him very aggressive and runs him ragged. But the kid tries to turn him into something he's not (after witnessing him defend his master from an angry dog), a trained killer. The kid soon begins to neglects Baxter and he turns to other activities that don't include his dog. Tired of the boy, his weird fetishes and smelling his weakness, Baxter decides to take him out. But he doesn't get to do the job and his eliminated. Whilst Baxter expires, his memory will always live on.
A great intellectual thriller about a dog with a human brain. I loved the stark realism that the film makers brought to the table. They could have easily fumbled the ball and made a flat out terrible film. Underrated and neglected.
A great intellectual thriller about a dog with a human brain. I loved the stark realism that the film makers brought to the table. They could have easily fumbled the ball and made a flat out terrible film. Underrated and neglected.
L'Amour Violé (1978) Yannick Bellon
L'Amour Violé (1978) Yannick Bellon
Genre: Drama
Language: French / Subtitles: English (hardcoded)
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 / Length: 115mn
Vhsrip Xvid / 544x384 / 1.16gb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074141/
Cast:
Nathalie Nell ... Nicole
Alain Fourès ... Jacques
Michèle Simonnet ... Catherine
Pierre Arditi ... Julien
Daniel Auteuil ... Daniel
Bernard Granger ... Patrick
Alain Marcel ... Jean-Louis
Gilles Tamiz ... René
Genre: Drama
Language: French / Subtitles: English (hardcoded)
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 / Length: 115mn
Vhsrip Xvid / 544x384 / 1.16gb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074141/
Cast:
Nathalie Nell ... Nicole
Alain Fourès ... Jacques
Michèle Simonnet ... Catherine
Pierre Arditi ... Julien
Daniel Auteuil ... Daniel
Bernard Granger ... Patrick
Alain Marcel ... Jean-Louis
Gilles Tamiz ... René
This movie is not for the squeamish. A young French nurse is taken out in the woods and brutally raped and sodomized. The rape scene itself is pretty graphic and might be too much for some viewers. The film picks up from there and shows how the system treats the rape victim and how it affects the victim. She finally is able to come to terms with what happened in an attempt to bring her rapists to justice.
