Les lèvres rouges

This viewer will admit right off that he is more accustomed to horror movies of the more traditional kind. However, that doesn't mean that he can't appreciate what a movie like this tries to do. Harry Kumel's "Les Levres Rouges", a.k.a. "Daughters of Darkness", as I am sure has been said numerous times before, has higher aspirations than cheap thrills. (That doesn't mean, however, that fans hoping for a trash quotient won't get it, as there is a fairly generous dose of nudity, male and female, in one key scene.) It's stately, intelligent, and very deliberately paced, with a clear focus on character and ambiance. Now, there are some genuine shock moments and scenes of sudden violence, but they are few and far between.

The action, so to speak, is mostly set inside a vast, opulent hotel that a honeymooning couple is visiting in the wintertime. So, it is actually almost empty, until the couple, Stefan (John Karlen) and Valerie (Danielle Ouimet) make the acquaintance of sophisticated Countess Bathory (Delphine Seyrig), who just might be THE Elizabeth Bathory of real-life infamy, and her sultry companion, Ilona (Andrea Rau).

Enhanced by lovely music composed by Francois de Roubaix, the movie, just like its cagey main character, has a certain, seductive allure going for it; it's hard not to be captivated by Seyrigs' performance and hang on to every word she speaks. One can sense that her presence can only lead this young couple to some pretty dark places, as passionate impulse takes over and the violent side of Stefans' personality is more prone to emerge. In fact, as this story plays out, The Countess doesn't seem as bad as Stefan turns out to be.

The other actors do a fine job of reinforcing the notion that a substantial part of acting is REACTING, as their characters feel the influence of this sexy stranger. The atmosphere and mood of this movie are simply excellent, as right from the get go, there is a very somber feel to the characters and dialogue. Stefan and Valerie go so far as to admit that their relationship is not really based on love. Character details like this are given throughout; Stefan reacts with more than casual curiosity to being present at a murder scene, and when he and the Countess recount the horrific acts of Elizabeth Bathory, it arouses them more and more; Valerie yells at them to stop, and is it the sordid nature of what they speak, the fact that they're getting turned on, or both, that is unnerving Valerie? What the characters realize about themselves and the others becomes vitally important to what unfolds.

With its elements of lesbianism, eroticism, and sadomasochism, this is an interesting piece of cinema for patient viewers.

Seven out of 10.

I first saw this movie when I was 12 and it had a huge impact on my early artistic endeavors as a young man. I've seen it periodically over the years and can see what intrigued me about it so much. It's part Ingmar Bergman film and part bad vampire movie. There are some beautifully filmed scenes along with some awful dialogue. The brilliant Delphine Seyrig is superbly creepy. The other performances are only mediocre. The music is appropriately over the top; sometimes sinister, sometimes goofy- seventies movie. The new director's cut contains more sex and nudity, probably to avoid getting an x-rating at the time of release. It's definitely worth checking out if you've never seen it.

Stay with this film, it is incredible. Great acting, cinematography, direction. The lead actress isn't great, but the actress who plays Erzebet Bathory is phenomenal. Bizaar sets, and strange milieu really add to this film's strange portrayal of vampires and how they deal with the living. I really loved this film. Of course, today, everything happens at the speed of light. Back in 1970, they took their time with building the film and really letting it sink in before hitting you with the shocks. This one has plenty of shocking moments and some really great inventive scenes that add to the history of the vampire film. Unfortunately, today we now have 'Twilight', a disgusting parody of the genre that hopefully audiences will someday say, 'What the hell were we thinking?'.

Lesbian Vampire films had their heyday in the early 70s, and Belgian cult director Harry Kümmel's "Les Lèvres Rouges" aka. "Daughters Of Darkness" of 1971 is the most artistically made, mesmerizing and atmospheric film this particular sub-genre has put forth. The film maintains an exceptionally eerie and surreal atmosphere throughout its 100 minutes, the score is one of the most beautiful and ingenious horror film soundtracks I've ever heard, and Delphine Seyring is wonderfully eerie and seductive at the same time in the role of Countess Bathory. The film, of course, has nothing to do with the real Elisabeth Bathory, who terrorized medieval Hungary by murdering countless innocent girls. The real, terrible story of this sadistic countess, who is often referred to as the "Bloody Lady", however, is an immensely popular topic in Horror literature and film, and the Erzsébet Bathory story also provided a basis (as well as a villain) for this particular film.

Newlyweds Stefan (John Karlen) and Valerie (Danielle Ouimet) are staying at a Belgian hotel in the middle of nowhere, when two more guests arrive - A mysterious and tempting countess (Delphine Seyring) who is accompanied by a pretty young girl (Andrea Rau)...

"Les Lèvres Rouges" is a film as beautiful as it is eerie, mysterious and surreal. The greatest performance is delivered by Delphine Seyring, who is brilliant as the countess. Sexy Danielle Ourimet and Andrea Rau deliver enough female eye-candy to make this a classic of the erotic Horror film. I couldn't say I liked John Karlen's performance particularly, but he sure isn't bad either. Great supporting performances are delivered by Paul Esser as a hotel clerk and Georges Jamin as a retired police officer. The greatest quality of the movie, however is the mesmerizing atmosphere which is even fortified by the beautiful and hypnotic score.

All said, "Les Lèvres Rouges" is an excellent, immensely eerie, beautiful and atmospheric Horror film, and THE classic of the Lesbian Vampire sub-genre that Horror lovers can not afford to miss!

The follow-up to Kümel's "Malpertuis" (from Jean Ray's book),"Les Lèvres Rouges " has got a much simpler screenplay and ,with one exception no great stars (no Orson Welles,Michel Bouquet,Susan Hampshire ,Jean-Pierre Cassel.....)....

One star ,but what a star!Delphine Seyrig was one of the greatest stars France had ever had.She mesmerized her audience as no actress of her generation could;her death was a major loss for the European cinema.She could play the fairy godmother of "Peau D'Ane ",the dumb bourgeois lady of "Le Charme Discret De La Bourgeoisie" or the legendary bloody countess -many historians do not believe in those blood baths -with the same aplomb;three parts so different and the same woman with the same suave voice -you MUST hear her speak,a dubbed version would be a disaster;so make sure you get a DVD with subtitles.

I have always thought Belgian directors were very good at creating a supernatural atmosphere without using a ton of special effects;like Delvaux in "Un Soir Un Train" ,Kümel makes the simple picture of a train which comes to a standstill.The baroque hotel will remind some users of "L'Année Dernière A Marienbad" ,Seyrig's debut in France.

It's to state the obvious to write that Seyrig steals every scene she is in and fortunately she's featured in many scenes ;the three other leads seem bland by comparison and it takes all the talent of the director to pull them off.

"Les Levres Rouges" gave a renewed life to the vampire movie ,like Polanski's "the fearless vampire killers" did in the precedent decade .A strong lesbian interest in this movie too:Seyrig was so hot she could appeal to both men and women.