Baba Yaga

Baba Yaga is the story of Valentine, a photographer who photographs women(just one is model is used throughout the movie however), usually in various states of undress. She meets the mystical Carroll Baker and becomes entranced with Baker(Mystically not sexually at first). Carroll Baker puts some sort of hex on Valentine's camera and ,everytime Valentine shoots a picture of an individual, she metaphorically, at least I think, injures them as well. Slowly, The attraction pulling Valentine to Baker's character evolves into a sexual one. Valenntine is lured to Baker's home, molested and whipped and saved in the end by her boyfriend. It is a fascinating movie. I will not say that it is a great movie cause there are a few things that the viewer is left wanting. Partly, It is, in my opinion at least, based on an adult comic book that was probably relevant more in 70's Italy, and partly because of censor's scissors that chopped a bit of the movie. Farina, the director, creates wonderful atmosphere and lures you in. Isabelle De Funes, as Valentine, is absolutely gorgeous and intriguing. The Blue Underground version of this film has the censored scenes that were cut out in the extra section of the DVD. Of note in that is a full frontal nude scene from Carroll Baker. Also, A twenty two minute interview with Corrado Farina who, though no great surprise, says Jean-Luc Goddard was an inspiration of his.

Guido Crepax erotic comic 'Valentina' was the basis for this movie. The comics themselves were not very plot-driven so the screenplay here was more inspired by them rather than being a straight adaption. Perhaps because of this, plot is not a strong point in this one. A fashion photographer called Valentina encounters a mysterious witch called Baba Yaga. The latter puts a hex on Valentina's camera meaning that anyone she photographs experiences some trauma. It's a fairly basic narrative but it has been used as a framework here for all manner of stylish madness.

Isabelle De Funès plays Valentina and she looks suitably chic in the part, regular Italian genre actress Carroll Baker is the enigmatic Baba Yaga, while George Eastman gets to appear in a role that unusually does not call for him to be a psychopath but instead is a romantic lead of sorts who works as a director of commercials (his effort for a soap powder advert really has to be seen to be believed!). The director here is Corrado Farina who had previously helmed another strange art-horror film called They Have Changed Their Faces (1971). While both films are in the horror bracket, it would be fair to say that their arty leanings are at least as strong as any horror angle. Baba Yaga is very dreamlike in tone with a deliberate pace. It is highly stylish in its visual approach with its sensibilities being divided between pop art and surrealism. Of the latter there are several dream sequences involving Nazis. Odd moments happen in the dead of night such as Valentina discovering a puppy lying within a circle of candles. There are strange items such as an S&M doll which has the power to transform into a woman. So, there is a great deal of oddness to this one, resulting in a film with a strange tone. Farina executes this kind of stuff with a bold visual style which is the movie's main strength. Particularly nice were the sequences in which the action suddenly becomes visually formatted like one of the fumetti comics from which it was inspired. Piero Umiliani provides a pretty varied musical score which splits itself into three styles - upbeat easy-pop for the fashion shoot scenes, slower orchestral stuff for scenes involving Baba Yaga and jazzy compositions to accompany the more surreal episodes.

On the whole, this is quite a strange movie which will not have widespread appeal. It's quite restrained as a horror movie and is not visceral in any way. While it does have some erotic elements, they aren't very exploitative. This is very much an art-house/horror hybrid in a lot of ways. It's not necessarily entirely successful in execution but it definitely does a lot of things very well and has some admirable ambition. It's one that is mainly aimed at those who have an affinity with style-heavy early 70's Italian movies. A very intriguing oddity that's for sure.

In Milan, the professional photographer Valentina Rosselli (Isabelle De Funès) takes a ride close to her home with two friends in a party and decides to walk alone in the middle of the night. She saves a dog from a fancy car driver by Baba Yaga (Carroll Baker), a mysterious older woman that insists to drive her home. From this moment on, the life of Valentina changes and she has nightmares and her camera seem to be cursed. She believes Baba Yaga is a witch and that she is under a spell to possess her but her skeptical friend and filmmaker Arno Treves (George Eastman) does not believe. Until the day Valentina visits Baba Yaga´s house.

"Baba Yaga" is a film with stylish cinematography, beautiful music score that becomes tiresome after many repetitions, and a storyline typical from the Italian films from the 70´s (especially from Jesse Franco) with eroticism and cult elements such as references to Goddard and "The Golem". The conclusion is a plus in this interesting witch movie. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Baba Yaga - A Bruxa Maldita" ("Baba Yaga - The Coursed Witch")

Apparently inspired by a comic book, "Baba Yaga" is an unusually compelling, surreal nightmare of movie that also is vibrant with the essence of the late 1960s. The story follows pretty young fashion photographer Valentina (Isabelle De Funes) who runs afoul of seductive sorceress Baba Yaga (Carroll Baker) who proceeds to meddle in her life via a tiny doll in an S&M getup. Baba is not one to take rejection lightly, and subjects Valentina to physical and psychological torments. Well-made, hard-to-pigeonhole film, director Corrado Farina succeeds in creating moody atmosphere and a warped logic in which anything can and will happen. Funes in particular does a superb job of convincing the audience of the vacuum that's engulfing her; a young George Eastman ("Anthropophagous") fares well in the role of her disbelieving commercial-director boyfriend. The direction, which intercuts comic-book imagery with hallucinogenic dream sequences (which all seem to possess a Nazi angle), is skillful and unpretentious.

I saw this in my local video store for a while, and only rented it after finally reading the reviews here, and I must say, it was quite bizaare.

Valentina is a photographer who, one night, has a run-in with a mysterious woman named Baba Yaga. Baba Yaga asks to borrow something from Valentina, promising to give it back the next morning. (I have no idea what the thing was--I decided to just forget it.) Valentina agrees, and after a very odd photoshoot with one model the next morning, she finds Baba Yaga at her door, with the item as promised. The woman also inspects Valentina's camera, and then everything Valentina photographs is plagued by something horrible. Things continue, including a creepy photoshoot at Baba Yaga's home, the gift of a strange leather-clad doll named Annette, all leading up to an extremely bizaare ending.

Definitely not for everyone, but still an okay movie. Fans of giallo thrillers will like this very offbeat, trippy movie. I didn't really understand the meaning behind Valentina's SS-influenced dreams, and in fact, they were quite disturbing. The bottomless pit in Baba Yaga's house was a nice touch, and actually, the house in total was quite creepy. Annette was very weird, the living doll. And the ending--that was the oddest part of the whole movie! As I said, not for everyone, but still entertaining. And am I the only one who thought the music was nothing special? Sorry, I didn't get what all the hype was about from the other reviewers. Oh well. Still, check this movie out if you can find it.