Female Vampire (aka Bare Breasted Countess, 1975)
Matt Boiselle
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Starring Lina Romay, Jack Taylor, Alice Arno
Directed by Jess Franco (as Jesus Franco/J.P. Johnson)
There’s no doubting Jess Franco’s artistic vision, and in the year of 1973, he cranked out a whopping 12 films that further etched his rock-solid take on the beauty of the female form on film. This particular review covers the re-release of one of Franco’s more notable films, Female Vampire – so let’s show some flesh and get to the bare essentials of this one, shall we?
Starring the stunning Lina Moray (Franco’s longtime companion) as Irina Karlstein, a scantily clad vampiress that…ah hell, scantily? She’s showing off all her goods with the exception of a cape and belt at the film’s opening, and it’s plain to see that yet another Franco production went for skin over substance – while some dug this, others ripped it in its time for its gratuitous nature and amateurish look. If you’re looking for really nothing more than a whole lotta skin and not much plot, then by all means this flick’s for you. Irina’s doomed to walk the Earth as a bloodsucking countess, and her feeding technique isn’t exactly the conventional route – you see, she goes for the crimson through the genitalia of her victims…bravo, Mr. Franco.
Lina’s conquests aren’t limited to only the male species, no, no, no – she hops in the sack with the ladies as well, wooing them with her hypnotizing gaze and seductive moves. The bodies pile up by the dozens and Irina continues to grow stronger…well, I didn’t say these were riddled with creative overload, did I? The bottom line here is that Franco’s films are polarizing at best: you’re either a huge fan, or you’re tearing them up for a myriad of shortcomings, and Female Vampire is certainly no exception to that viewpoint. Me? I never had a problem with the films (for obvious reasons, of course), but don’t expect to find any of these on display while taking a cinematography course…well, then again maybe you might. Make no mistake – this is Euro-sleaze at its finest point – revel on, ya pervs.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
