Le Bel Étalon

Artistically this film probably deserves its average 2-3 out of 10 rating on IMDb, but to watch it for artistic reasons is a mistake. This is a film that simply went out to make as much money as possible and in that respect it was a big (and rare UK) success. So while the much mocked health spa/ swimming pool orgy scene is unarguably pure hokum, its purpose was simply to get film goers talking about all the raunchy scenes, as was the sex in the lift scene. Other great word of mouth devices are using the hugely popular (among men of a certain age) Pans People/ Legs & Co in the dancing scenes and cashing in on the disco craze. Simply as a fan of cinema these devices are of great interest. To top it all there is a surprisingly good film poster for a film supposedly of no artistic merit. After watching it after all these years (too young at the time) I am impressed that the rather pathetic British film industry of this time was capable of making such a venal and direct money spinner.

although the movie was not as explicit as the book, it had it's moments.

joan collins plays the part of the bitchy hedonistic adultering wife( a role she embodied in Dynasty as Alexis for almost 9 years!!) to the tee. she has all the moves, the look and the body language. she plays the part of the manipulative, dominating and captivating 40 yr old woman in her prime to such perfection,that it leaves oliver tobias, to play his role as the "stud" with all the enthusiam one could muster for such a role(not much to do but perform on call and bonk the remaining women in the cast).

walter gotell ( the head of the kgb in bond flicks) is wasted in what could have been a meaty role.

emma jacobs does her best as she transcends from an innocent girl who beds the "stud"(after she meets him the first time and finds out he is "doing" her step mom)to one who uses sex as revenge(when she rejects his amorous advances during his visit to her mother's house) and is then promptly not shown until the end of the movie. sad, because it could have been penned into a longer and more interesting role.

the rest of the movie is pretty slow as it follows the tacky night life of the 70's in london, especially the end where after a new year's party, tony blake is happy to be out of the night ife( i would have thought it would be from too much sex)

A part not to be missed is the "orgy scene" in the swimming pool...that was quite a scene!!!!

only worth a watch for joan collins fans who want to catch a glimpse of the early shades of Alexis Carrington Colby..

The R2 double-feature DVD of this film, along with its sequel THE BITCH (1979; see below), had been available for rental through my local DVD outlet for quite some time - and, though I had been tempted to check it out time and again, I finally took the plunge after having watched star Joan Collins in another sexy role in ...CAN HEIRONYMUS MERKIN EVER FORGET MERCY HUMPPE AND FIND TRUE HAPPINESS? (1969).

Based on the lurid novel by Joan's own sister, Jackie Collins, the film isn't for anyone looking for quality cinema; cheesy, sleazy trash - set in London and accompanied by a dated disco soundtrack - that's filled with copious but unerotic nudity. Collins, at least, is clearly having fun with her bitchy role; Oliver Tobias is the would-be stud who finds himself to be merely a pawn in her game (and who, predictably, finds real love in the arms of Collins' teenage step-daughter); while Walter Gotell (a regular in the James Bond extravaganzas) is her betrayed but vengeful diplomat husband.

I enjoyed this movie, Joan Collins is the only actress that could pull it off. She has the ability to play these roles without letting it become silly, or needlessly pornographic. She has the charisma of a true golden era movie star, but her roles are daring, unique and push the envelope. She brings an energy that is so youthful to her roles; which is great in these movies and Dynasty where she is at an age where most women are no longer seen at all, never the less sexy and beautiful. She shows that there is life after you are mature, and she makes it look fun. The messages in the film are interesting; both the men and the women have their own angles on each other and what is happening, neither is really a victim. Infidelity and promiscuity are seen in all socioeconomic levels in society. From peasants to kings sex is happening and has happened. There are also consequences for each character but they happen and life goes on. Some people are put off by the sexuality of the film but Fontaine is a jets disco owner in the seventies, it fits the character.

Like most seventies softcore the film that put Joan Collins back on the map contains far more talk than rutting; and like anything thinking it's being really with-it it now looks far more dated than anything made in the fifties; compounded by the constant pounding disco music on the soundtrack.

As it meanders along it's garrulous way you also have plenty of time to marvel at the fact such a sorry collection of fashion disasters got so much more sex than any other generation before or since.