With still having good memories of being introduced to actress Marisa Mell by the overlooked Giallo Diary of an Erotic Murderess,I was pleasantly caught by surprise,when a very kind IMDb'er recently sent me a non-Giallo Mell title,which led to me excitingly getting ready to discover how obscene a desire could really be.
The plot:
Swept up in her holiday romance,Amanda decides that instead of travelling back to the US,she will instead live in Italy and get married to her boyfriend,Andrea.Taking Amanda to the mansion which his family have owned for 7 generations,Andrea is horrified to discover that his families most loyal butler has unexpectedly died.
Attempting to help her new husband deal to deal with his grief,Andera soon makes Amanda pregnant.Initially thrilled about the pregnancy,Amanda soon begins to fear that Andera and the surviving staff of the mansion may be planning something that is far from being in the best interest of her,or her unborn child.
View on the film:
Despite disowning the movie later on,co-writer/ (along with Joaquin Dominguez and Piero Regnoli) director Giulio Petroni closely works with cinematography Leopoldo Villasenor to give the film an elegant Gothic Romance appearance,with Petroni using wide angles to show the Gothic mansion that is towering above Amanda and Andera,and also giving the movie a crisp,stylish sheen.Emphasising Petroni's style,film director Jess Franco, (not the dictator!) gives the movie an unexpectedly superb score,with Franco showing a real skill in knowing when to use a deep bass for the movie's Gothic Horror moments,and also knowing when to unleash the strings for the romantic moments in the film.
Sadly,whilst Petoni,Villasenor and Franco give the movie a strong atmosphere,the screenplay fails to build any feelings of Gothic chills or psychological terror due to not allowing any details about the foundation of Amanda and Andera's relationship to be revealed,which leads to the Gothic Romance scenes in the movie to be rather dry,whilst the psychological Horror elements of the movie feel lack any sense of being connected to the roots of Amanda and Andera's relationship.
Appearing in the opening of the movie by hanging around the corners of the mansion,Victor Israel gives a wonderfully deranged performance as the mansion's last remaining servant,with Israel giving the film a great shot of Gothic Horror by delivering his lines with a sharp twisted cackle,and also creating a strong sense that the servant may know more then he appears to.Contrasting Israel's high shrieks,the beautiful Marisa Mell gives an excellent performance as Amanda,with Mell showing Amanda gradually change from having a head filled with romance,to psychotically crumbling over fears of discovering the obscene desire which lurks within herself and the mansion.
The plot:
Swept up in her holiday romance,Amanda decides that instead of travelling back to the US,she will instead live in Italy and get married to her boyfriend,Andrea.Taking Amanda to the mansion which his family have owned for 7 generations,Andrea is horrified to discover that his families most loyal butler has unexpectedly died.
Attempting to help her new husband deal to deal with his grief,Andera soon makes Amanda pregnant.Initially thrilled about the pregnancy,Amanda soon begins to fear that Andera and the surviving staff of the mansion may be planning something that is far from being in the best interest of her,or her unborn child.
View on the film:
Despite disowning the movie later on,co-writer/ (along with Joaquin Dominguez and Piero Regnoli) director Giulio Petroni closely works with cinematography Leopoldo Villasenor to give the film an elegant Gothic Romance appearance,with Petroni using wide angles to show the Gothic mansion that is towering above Amanda and Andera,and also giving the movie a crisp,stylish sheen.Emphasising Petroni's style,film director Jess Franco, (not the dictator!) gives the movie an unexpectedly superb score,with Franco showing a real skill in knowing when to use a deep bass for the movie's Gothic Horror moments,and also knowing when to unleash the strings for the romantic moments in the film.
Sadly,whilst Petoni,Villasenor and Franco give the movie a strong atmosphere,the screenplay fails to build any feelings of Gothic chills or psychological terror due to not allowing any details about the foundation of Amanda and Andera's relationship to be revealed,which leads to the Gothic Romance scenes in the movie to be rather dry,whilst the psychological Horror elements of the movie feel lack any sense of being connected to the roots of Amanda and Andera's relationship.
Appearing in the opening of the movie by hanging around the corners of the mansion,Victor Israel gives a wonderfully deranged performance as the mansion's last remaining servant,with Israel giving the film a great shot of Gothic Horror by delivering his lines with a sharp twisted cackle,and also creating a strong sense that the servant may know more then he appears to.Contrasting Israel's high shrieks,the beautiful Marisa Mell gives an excellent performance as Amanda,with Mell showing Amanda gradually change from having a head filled with romance,to psychotically crumbling over fears of discovering the obscene desire which lurks within herself and the mansion.