Obscene Mirror

Obscene Mirror (1973)

*** (out of 4)

This is a pretty well, if highly praised, film from the Spanish director, which is (apparently) available in three different versions. The version getting all the love and praise is the Spanish version while the French and Italian versions are re-edited with hardcore scenes and an alternate cast added to the mix. The version I watched was the Italian one, which is hard to review due to the hardcore scenes, which were added. The basic plot, I believe, is the same from each version and centers on a woman (Emma Cohen) who suffers a breakdown after the suicide of her sister (played by Lina Romay in this version). Soon after the suicide the sister begins to see her dead sister inside a mirror, which causes her to go out, bring men home and kill them. Again, it's really hard to judge this film due to the added scenes and the fact that the Spanish version is apparently totally different but there was enough here to I loved to recommend people seeing this but at the same time you should certainly try and get the original version (which I will be looking for). The film reminded me a lot of Franco's Venus in Furs, which is among the director's best films. There's a deeply haunting, sad and tragic nature and atmosphere, which runs throughout this film and it wasn't hard to get caught up into the mental state of the main character. Franco's direction is very sharp throughout but most of the credit has to go towards Cohen who is simply terrific in the film. She doesn't have to resort to nudity or cheap thrills to get her performance across. I guess the best way to explain it is that she comes across like a spirit and just floats from one scene to the next, slowing breaking down in front of our eyes. Sadly the disc I watched also didn't feature any subtitles so I couldn't follow any of the dialogue, which there was plenty of and I'm sure if I could follow the story more I would have loved it even more. The hardcore scenes, which again, were added, are pretty ugly and add absolutely nothing to the movie. These scenes really killed everything that was going on so I found myself hitting the FF button through them. I'm hoping to track down the director's cut soon since most fans think this Italian version is a complete mess. If it is a mess and I enjoyed it this much then I can't wait to see what the Spanish one offers.

Before I get into the review, here are my ratings for the movie.

The story gets 0.25 out of 2: The Direction a 0.75: The Pacing receives a 0.75: While the Acting gets 1.00: And my Enjoyment level earns a 0.75 out of 2: This brings the total for The Obscene Mirror to 3.5 out of 10.

I enjoyed Jesus Franco's version of Dracula, so when I came across this title, well, I had to give a viewing, didn't I? Let this be a lesson to me, just because a director has one good film under his belt doesn't mean they are all going to be to the same calibre. In fact, this story is woefully lacking in everything.

Now, listen to this premise: A Nightclub singer is haunted by the ghost of her dead father. A father who was so oppressive and domineering that he couldn't accept his daughter loved another man and so commits suicide on her wedding day. However, this is just the start of her nightmare. Not only does he and his death torment her, but is he forcing her to commit murder?

Doesn't this sound great? It did to me. I envisioned a dark and moody supernatural thriller filled with imagery and eeriness. Regrettably, the writers, Nicole Guettard and Jesus Franco, took a more moralistic view. The whole story has a pretentiousness to it. Guettard and Franco are pushing the differences between sexual equality. I love a good morality tale, but sadly they attack the issues with a heavy hand. And, hardly touch on the more supernatural elements of the story. We spend too much time on self-centred blokes waxing lyrical on how macho and "in-touch" with their feelings they are. One character even gives us a five minute narrative on the history of men in the region.

What this story needed was a much better structure. A better balance of morality and suspense.

I did learn one thing, though. A foreign language film with subtitles is way more boring if you have to read the drivel the characters are spouting. The act of reading forces you into the story more. You have to make the physical effort. When you're listening you can listen with half an ear... just like you do with your spouse.

I even believe the direction the story took hindered Franco in his directing. There's nothing eerie in this movie. It's a suspense-less thriller, and that is death for this style of movie. If the story is weak, the director has to step up to the plate and give the audience something interesting to watch. Alas, Franco opts for a basic, and below average, point and shoot style. By the twentieth minute, my attention was wavering. Luckily, the "history of men" comes towards the end of the movie, by which time, you think, oh well, may as well see it through to the end. Franco isn't too good with pacing. I think he got lucky with Dracula as his one-pace style worked in the confines of that story. Here, however, it only adds to the tediousness of the picture.

The acting is the best part of this film. Don't get me wrong though, the acting is still only average. This comes down to some of the characters being underused and poorly constructed. We needed to see why Ana was the way she was towards men. We are told her father wasn't great, but we are never really shown this. We needed more on this relationship and more on Ana's mental health and well being. The cast do well with what they are given. It's a shame they're not given much. And, if they are, it's generally drivel.

If you thought, upon reading the synopsis, that this movie would be a great film to watch, you have been warned. I cannot, in all faith recommend this nonsense to anyone. And, in all truth, I would suggest staying as far away from this Obscene Mirror as possible.

Now, smash that mirror and jog on over to my Absolute Horror and Killer Thriller Chillers and The Game Is Afoot lists to see where this claptrap crashed in my rankings. At the very least, you should be able to find something better to watch.

Take Care & Stay Well.

For years and years, I fanatically defended the work of writer/director Jess Franco, but with every film of his that I watch, I wonder why I ever bothered. Maybe I should accept the fact Franco only made a handful of influential and genuine exploitation classics ("The Awful Dr. Orloff", "The Diabolical Dr. Z", "Faceless"), whereas the vast majority of his excessively large repertoire is just utter garbage.

And yet, for a good 15-20 minutes, it really seemed as if "The Obscene Mirror" would become another Franco-winner! The first quarter is definitely promising, with the introduction of a widower (Franco-regular Howard Vernon) and his two beautiful daughters Annette and Marie. Annette is head over heels in love with archeology student Arthur, but Marie is so jealous of her sister's happiness that she commits suicide by ramming a sword in her stomach one day before the wedding. Following the tragedy, Annette is so confused that she abruptly calls off her wedding and starts a new life as piano player in a raunchy bar. From this moment on, Annette hears and sees her sister appearing in an antique mirror, and Marie's vengeful spirit commands her to brutally slaughter every man she's sexually attracted to.

At least, this is the plot of the version I watched, because - apparently - there also exists a version in which it's Annette's father who commits suicide and commands her to kill. Oh well, just another typical flick in Jess Franco's bizarre universe.

With the exception of the compelling first 15 minutes, "The Obscene Mirror" is a dreadfully boring and frustrating film. Franco reverts to his bad habit of inserting overlong (and very un-sexy) hardcore footage, which absolutely doesn't have any added value. During countless of times during the film, you'll find yourself staring at extreme close-ups of a vagina (probably Lina Romay's), and listening to the sounds of either monotonous moaning or jazzy musical tunes. I don't know which of the two was more irritating.

For some strange reason I will never comprehend, "The Obscene Mirror" - in whatever version - is regarded as one of Franco's finest films, and this also gets confirmed by most of the user-comments on this website. Maybe it's fanstastic if endless close-ups of female genitalia are your thing, but it seems to me there are more effective channels for that.

This is a Jess Franco film which seems to have garnered something of a good reputation amongst the vast array of his output. While I perused through the user reviews here I couldn't help but wonder if I had seen the same film, as from the plot synopsis offered by many of these I found there were several very key things I couldn't recall even happening on screen. I soon discovered that the reason for this is that there are three versions of this movie - the Spanish being the definitive cut it seems – and I saw the Italian variant which, like several other Franco films from the period had been turned into an adult film by way of some hardcore scenes being spliced into the flow. I think it would be only fair to guess that this version is not the best out there and compromises Franco's original vision somewhat.

The story is about a woman who goes into a downward psychological spiral after the suicide of her sister. She subsequently sees visions of her dead sibling which leads her to go out and murder men.

One of the chief differences between the versions is that in the Spanish one it is her dead father (played by Franco regular Howard Vernon) who she sees from beyond the grave, as opposed to her sister in the Italian version. This change seems to have been made principally to allow for the introduction of Lina Romay who, in her role as the sister, spends the whole time frolicking around naked and is at the centre of all the hardcore scenes too. These scenes, incidentally, are fairly half-heartedly executed and seem to be there simply as a means of selling the movie as an adult feature. However, unless I simply wasn't paying very good attention, this change also means that the whole mirror idea seems to have been more or less eradicated aside from a scene late on where it is smashed resulting in the breaking of the supernatural spell. Up to that point however, it seemed to me that all of this malarkey was going on in the head of the main actress, not playing out in an actual mirror! Despite these issues with the Italian version, this still made for interesting enough viewing. Despite its definite sexploitation angle, it is in essence quite a haunting tale. It's quite hard to reasonably categorize in actual fact because it has several feet in different sub-genres without truly focusing on one thread fully. I can only really comment on the version I have seen and going by that I couldn't put this in the upper bracket of Franco features; it's in the top half of his output though for sure. Like most of his films it has that rushed look and feel, while the production values are pretty limited. But it would seem that the Spanish version is the one to see if you want a proper reflection of this one's merits.

I finally managed to watch this little-known but highly-praised Franco film via a VHS dub. At first I was shocked by the poor quality of the print but after a while it settled down to being quite watchable, considering the source material at hand.

Unfortunately, the Spanish language-version I saw which is considered to be the 'Director's Cut' was not subtitled in English. I have only the most basic knowledge of Spanish, so I'm afraid that the vast majority of the dialogue (of which there is an awful lot!) – if not necessarily the plot – just went over my head!! Still, here again my source came to the rescue: he e-mailed me and my brother a detailed plot synopsis beforehand that was also peppered with important character traits, developments, phrases, etc. that were essential for a deeper understanding of what the film was all about.

Having watched it, I'm not sure how I really feel about it. It's definitely one of the better Jess Franco movies I've seen but, considering the disadvantaged position in which I experienced AL OTRO LADO DEL ESPEJO, I hesitate to place it near the top spot as some (like Francesco Cesari and Robert Monell) have done. As it stands, however, it has still gained a very respectable fourth place in the 'Ranking Franco' section I keep on my database (!) – after VENUS IN FURS (1968), EUGENIE…THE STORY OF HER JOURNEY INTO PERVERSION (1969) and THE DIABOLICAL DOCTOR Z (1965) but prior to other renowned titles like SUCCUBUS (1967), A VIRGIN AMONG THE LIVING DEAD (1971) and EUGENIE DE SADE (1970).

The film achieves a disquieting and haunting quality which is a recognizable Franco trait, but which here becomes even more pronounced than usual for being set in his native country. Despite the obvious low-budget, the film is quite skillfully made (particularly the juxtaposing of images between what is taken to be fantasy and the reality behind it); a fine cast (mostly unknown to me) manages to give life to the multi-layered plot, even in this alien language. Howard Vernon was typically arresting in his brief but all-too important role, whereas the beautiful and effortlessly sensual Emma Cohen (which, unlike most of Franco's leading ladies, she achieves without resorting to copious and exploitative nudity) truly dominates the film with her remarkable performance – certainly one of the finest in the Franco canon I've seen so far!

Aided by very effective use of music (which, as in VENUS IN FURS, plays a very important role here), the film takes us on a journey of self-discovery – a favorite subject with this director – which is likely to provide plenty of interest for any viewer attuned to its particular mood, as well as a few surprises along the way. All the various romantic interludes may be perfunctory and somewhat redundant (as in EUGENIE DE SADE, the girl may well have been happiest in her relationship with her 'unstable' father!) but at least we are treated to three very different yet alluring life-styles – jazz music, classical theatre and the idle rich (these scenes reminded me a great deal of Antonioni's L'AVVENTURA [1960]; in fact, the entire film is more art-house than horror, which is how it is often mistakenly labeled) – all of which, however, end in the same way: a swift and apparently motiveless murder! The pace drops slightly during its last lap (a criticism which can be leveled at VENUS IN FURS as well), but like that film too, the resolution is an unexpected and incredibly complex scene which leaves one baffled (I'd love to have Francesco or Robert explain this one to me!) but at the same time satisfied with the realization of having just watched a genuinely great movie, the likes of which aren't often seen – and the ultimate concession towards Jess Franco being a real talent worthy of our consideration!

The idea of a mirror being the reflection of an alternate and often perverse reality (here prompting an amusing repeated vision of the hanged Vernon with hideously protruding tongue!) has been seen numerous times on the screen, drawing a particular affinity with the work of Jean Cocteau which –as in this case – is infused with references to Greek mythology and the 'underworld', yet Franco manages to give it a fresh angle by making us genuinely care for the leading character from the outset so that we can become eye-witnesses to her gradual but inevitable mental deterioration (impelled by her dead father's 'influence'). The following quote is borrowed from a post written by Robert Monell on the 'DVD Maniacs' Forum while discussing Image's DVD of Franco's A VIRGIN AMONG THE LIVING DEAD:

'Franco was working on a modern mythological cycle obscured by the requirements of pornography with VIRGIN, THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MIRROR and LORNA... which deal with real or symbolic incest destroying the protagonist and the possession of the living by the dead. Ana is led by the hanged father into the mirror where she discovers another dimension. She can walk down the hallway and appear in any locale: the park where she murders Robert Wood or the theatre where she stabs Ramiro Oliveros. It's always the stabbing of the male, relating to the execution of the bull in the corrida and the Spanish Catholic obsession with iconography. Franco understands that the camera is the dreaming eye [THE DREAMING EYE] so we look down at Ana in the park and realize it's HER watching herself kill. The zoom lens becomes the way to focus her attention within the zone and the affect of THE FATHER is translated by a sort of electro magnetism through the zoom as she picks up the knife to kill Wood. It's both mythological (Styx) and psychoanalytic (Lacan) at the same time. One can feel that Oedipus has NO choice and that's the comparison. The TRUTH is always the TRUTH, and it is usually hidden from view by APPEARANCES, which are always deceptive. The world we have created is a sham to escape the truth and Jess Franco's films take us back to the truth by penetrating the sham which is fortified by popular culture, the media and the codes of representation familiarized by Hollywood. The only other film directors able to achieve this are John Ford and Jean-Luc Godard, both prolific and widely misunderstood.'

And this from Monell's review of the film on the 'Dark Waters' website:

'Most fascinating is how Franco relates Ana's problem to religion, visually correlated by repeated shots of churches, religious statues, and evocative paintings. Ana's father is shown to be a devout Catholic who uses faith to hide from his darker impulses. The plot's mystery is never really solved, but a final 'vision' in the magical mirror suggests a possible explanation.'

Not only perceptive but beautifully written, too! I wasn't immediately aware of some of the concepts mentioned here but, having just read the 'How To Read A Franco Film' article, I felt decidedly more 'in tune' now with what the director intended. In the end, it's a real pity this film is so hard to come by, for I would really love to own it on DVD in an English-subtitled version (NOT dubbed) – though the available source material would seem to need a lot of work. It would definitely enhance the experience for me, and doubtless gain new admirers in the process.