German period sex comedy relatively free of stupidity
I saw this movie in German (a language I don't speak at all)without the benefit of subtitles, so needless to say, I couldn't follow the plot too well. It was gratifying, however, not to have to listen to the bad jokes and lame double-entendres these kind of movies are infamous for, and it was VERY gratifying not to have to listen the typical idiotic English dubbing, which almost always makes these movies infinitely more stupid and annoying than they were to begin with.
The movie revolves around a Napoleonic-era madam named Susana who flees Napoleonic soldiers and sets up shop in a small German village, running a brothel disguised as a convent school under the watchful, but not too bright, eyes of the local authorities. After having difficulties with the weaselly mayor/magistrate-type, Susana hatches some hare-brained scheme to impersonate the man's bride-to-be, a contessa who he has never met before. Much zaniness ensues.
The Sexy Susana character, who appeared in a whole series of these movies, was played by Teri Tordai, an appealing red-headed actress who strangely disappeared from European exploitation films after this role. The series is more famous today for a whole slew of supporting actresses who appeared in it and who went on to leave their market in Eurotica and Euro-horror films of the next decade or so, including Edwige Fenech, Margaret Lee, Daniela Giordano, and Femi Benussi. This particular movie features Rosalba "Lady Frankenstein" Neri and Andrea "Daughters of Darkness" Rau. (Rau has a lot of nude scenes, but I'm not so sure about Neri). As usual female nudity was pretty much the raison d'etre of this film and there are plenty of naked Frauleins on display here. But the nude scenes are not much more racy than those in American "nudie-cutie" films of that same era, nor are they, despite the brothel angle, much less wholesome than the old classic German "mountain" films (which sometimes featured casual nudity even in the Nazi era). This movie does have decent production values though, and it's period setting gives it at least a veneer of class. It's also silicone and (at least, if you don't speak German) relatively stupidity free.
The movie revolves around a Napoleonic-era madam named Susana who flees Napoleonic soldiers and sets up shop in a small German village, running a brothel disguised as a convent school under the watchful, but not too bright, eyes of the local authorities. After having difficulties with the weaselly mayor/magistrate-type, Susana hatches some hare-brained scheme to impersonate the man's bride-to-be, a contessa who he has never met before. Much zaniness ensues.
The Sexy Susana character, who appeared in a whole series of these movies, was played by Teri Tordai, an appealing red-headed actress who strangely disappeared from European exploitation films after this role. The series is more famous today for a whole slew of supporting actresses who appeared in it and who went on to leave their market in Eurotica and Euro-horror films of the next decade or so, including Edwige Fenech, Margaret Lee, Daniela Giordano, and Femi Benussi. This particular movie features Rosalba "Lady Frankenstein" Neri and Andrea "Daughters of Darkness" Rau. (Rau has a lot of nude scenes, but I'm not so sure about Neri). As usual female nudity was pretty much the raison d'etre of this film and there are plenty of naked Frauleins on display here. But the nude scenes are not much more racy than those in American "nudie-cutie" films of that same era, nor are they, despite the brothel angle, much less wholesome than the old classic German "mountain" films (which sometimes featured casual nudity even in the Nazi era). This movie does have decent production values though, and it's period setting gives it at least a veneer of class. It's also silicone and (at least, if you don't speak German) relatively stupidity free.
- lazarillo
- 26 ago 2007