Las crueles

Carlos (Andre Argaud), a well-do-do publisher and family man, receives a severed hand in the mail at work and buries it before going home but once there, his beautiful wife (Theresa Gimpera) reads him a telegram asking if he'd like a forearm. Carlos makes up a lame, work-related explanation but now suspicious, she follows her husband and spots a mysterious woman in black following him as well. That woman is Parker (Capucine), whose lesbian lover, Esther (Judy Matheson), was once Carlos' mistress who never got over being cast aside. Esther committed suicide but Parker kept the body and, holding Carlos responsible, devises a complicated plan to have him framed for Esther's murder...

THE EXQUISITE CADAVER is a slick, stylish, and very strange Spanish soap-opera with a decidedly Feminist agenda. Some unusual directorial touches, lyrical cinematography, and a somber jazz score by Marco Rossi give the film an Art House air that blends easily with the glossy grisliness of a few grind-house plot elements. The beautiful Capucine is coolly elegant as the enigmatic avenging angel and the secret bond all women share can turn the tables on a "common, ordinary Romeo not worth the pain he caused". A very unusual but not uninteresting film if one goes in with no expectations but it's usually marketed and sold as either a Giallo or horror film, so there's bound to be disappointment in some quarters.

A grumpy publisher receives a mysterious yellow package in the post while at work and discovers to his alarm that it contains a human hand. He convinces his secretary that it's a wax hand but doesn't seem so convinced himself when he buries the package and doesn't tell his wife, who is already suspicious as there is another package waiting for him when he gets home from work, and this one contains a torn dress and a picture of a mysterious woman. Subterfuge, chin stroking, pretension - it's one of 'those' Gialli.

The grumpy man is being stalked by a woman with a fake hand (who is being stalked by the man's wife) and the questions start to arise - Does he know this woman? Does his wife? Who's parts is he receiving in the post? Why does his body turn yellow for no reason halfway through the film? Why does the woman with a fake hand have two normal hands for the duration of the film?

Flashback aplenty (it's up to you to decide what's real and what is not I guess) and loads and loads of very arty shots make up the bulk of this film, as well as a lot of mumbling, bad poetry, LSD taking and staring off into space. It seems to have equal amounts of good and bad and even though the premise starts of well enough, the last half hour (which tries to explain things) drags on a bit.

There's also a feminist slant about it that I thought was kind of unique to The Laughing Woman, so I was wrong again I guess.

It's an uneven story in suspense style and brief elements of terror , it revolves around a novel editor (Carlos Estrada) who receives a macabre gift containing a woman hand . A forgotten relationship between the publisher and a young ( Judy Matheson) returns when is sent the rare box . He discovers it has been sent by a mysterious woman nicknamed Parker (Capucine) . Then , the happenings get worse when his jealous wife (Teresa Gimpera) to be aware of the treason his husband .

Along the sixties four strange pictures were shot with scripts written by Gonzalo Suarez : ¨De Cuerpo Presente¨(65) , ¨Diritambo¨(67) by Gonzalo Suarez , ¨Fata Morgana¨(66) by Vivente Aranda and this one ; all of them blend reality and fantasy . Being a passable yarn middlingly filmed with several strange scenes and weird situations with no much sense . This ¨Las Crueles¨ is based on a tale titled ¨Bailando con Parker¨ or ¨El cadaver exquisto¨, it had a certain success at Spanish boxoffice . This is a peculiar suspense film concerning about a twisted love affair with strong psychological charge and fine interpretations . Hard-edge mystery /drama centers around strange happenings and a past love story who suddenly ensues again . The picture is acceptable but uneven and slow-moving . Because the story needs a vibration more real than the one offered in this sometimes tiring flick , though also contains exciting scenes , thrilling images and sensitive moments . Well starred by International actors as the Argentina-born Carlos Estrada , the French Capucine , the Spanish Teresa Gimpera , and the British Judy Matheson . And brief interpretations of notorious Spanish secondaries as Victor Israel , Luis Induni , Alicia Tomas and Luis Cigues .

It packs an atmospheric and suspenseful score by Marco Rossi . Evocative and colorful cinematography by Juán Amoros and Fernando Arribas . The motion picture was professional though regularly directed in his particular style by veteran filmmaker Vicente Aranda , being hard to follow . He directed a series of award-winning movies firmly establishing him as one of the best Spanish filmmakers . His usual film editor is own wife , also producer , Teresa Font . Vicente is an expert on literary adaptations , as he has adapted four novels written by Juan Marsé as Canciones Amor en Lolita's Club (2007), El Amante Bilingüe (1993), Si Te Dicen Que Caí (1989) and La Muchacha De Las Bragas De Oro (1980). Vicente often shoots strong erotic scenes , being ¨jealousy¨, a customary issue in his films . Vicente has been working from the 60s with ¨Fata Morgana¨ , ¨Las Crueles¨ , ¨Novia Ensangrentada¨ , ¨Clara es el Precio¨ , among others . His greatest successes were intense dramas with plenty of sex such as ¨Pasion Turca¨ , ¨Intruso¨ , ¨Jealousy¨, ¨Tiempo De Silencio¨ , ¨Carmen¨ , along with a delinquency tale : ¨El Lute¨ I and II starred by Imanol Arias , his fetish actor along with Victoria Abril (They have worked together 12 times) . And directed a terror movie ¨The blood spattered bride¨ . His biggest hit was ¨Amantes¨ : Lovers : a true story , although originally intended to be produced as an episode of the TV crime anthology series 'La Huella Del Crimen 2' (1991), before producer Pedro Costa decided to rewrite the script as a theatrical film . And specially the historical story titled ¨Juana La Loca¨or ¨Mad love¨ .

If a beautiful and mysterious woman, dressed in black, invites you, without words, only with her eyes, to follow her, are you going without asking anything in her car and you'll let yourself be taken in an unknown direction? If yes, you'll find out later that she has an artificial arm. Would you step with her then in her house, although it is night, is raining and the owl is singing? If you'll do that, after a drink, you'll find the corpse of another woman, young and beautiful, hidden in the refrigerator. That woman tried to commit suicide many times, putting her head on the rail, trying to throw herself from a tall bank into the sea, shooting herself with a pistol in the mouth, everything from obsessive love for you. Eventually, she managed to kill herself with some pills. And the woman with the artificial arm, who loved that woman, severed her head and a hand, and she sent them to you by post. And finally, after you supposedly gone all mad, she stuck with your wife, with whom you have two children. Basically, that's what you'll see in this film. You think it worth? It remains to discover for yourself...

A real surprise, this Vincent Aranda movie that plays more like a French movie. Uneasy narrative flow, many arty moments, different versions of the story unfold and reality not always something certain and a surreal edge. Indeed the main guy in this reminded me of Gaston Modot who starred in L'Age D'Or - he seemed to hold his jaw the same way and move with that slightly awkward motion akin to a lurch. Everyone performs well and helps this sometimes demanding movie always compelling and memorable. The English actress, Judy Matherson is excellent as the mysterious girl with a death wish who only appears in flashbacks. Strange to think that the same year she made this she also appeared in an episode of Coronation Street. Indeed after this and a few Hammer movies she returned to TV. Aranda made the equally compelling, Blood Spattered Bride after this and I recall that too having a similar dream like quality. There is an amazing scene involving a fridge but as I've resisted this long, I won't give it away now.