Interno di un convento

Borowsky's artistic, distinctively edgy pseudo-art erotic movie will appeal to all familiar with his work. The over-exposed light pours in through the windows and light up the stark, angular corridors, perfectly off-setting the naked female bodies on display. The plot is pretty mundane stuff - a mother superior has trouble keeping her naughty nuns from sins of the flesh (that's pretty much it). Although the weird subplots about stigmata and a nun who seems to believe Jesus slept with her in her sleep will please art-house fans like me. The film is set against a loud organ score (reminiscent of the art-house classic Last Year at Marienbad) and of course it all ends pretty tragically. This is a great little art-house film, although the acting is at times a little hokey (not helped by terrible dubbing) and it isn't exactly the biggest budget in the world. Ironically, given the film's exploitionist title, there isn't much here for softcore porn fans (a little female masterbation and 2 or 3 short (heterosexual) sex scenes) but fans of this kind of european arthouse should be more than happy.

This is one of the more notable nunsploitation films (shot in Italy), which was rushed into production after a proposed project starring Monica Vitti fell through. Being the Borowczyk fan that I am (even if about a third of his work that I've watched has proved disappointing to a degree!), I had wanted to purchase the R2 DVD ever since it was released but kept postponing it for a couple of reasons - one, because it's only available in an English-dubbed version (though it's not too bad as these things go) and, two, the somewhat prohibitive price (in fact, it's only while in London recently that I managed to find the most affordable copy, albeit still not cheap at $25!).

As is to be expected from this Polish film-maker, we're treated to an artier kind of erotica (some of the sex surprisingly involving Ligia Branice, Mrs. Borowczyk herself!) - with lush soft-focus cinematography by the renowned Luciano Tovoli. However, despite being a Stendhal adaptation, Borowczyk here pays little regard for the usual necessities of plot and characterization (in fact, apart from Branice and future muse Marina Pierro, the nuns are virtually indistinguishable from one another): this semi-improvised approach does render the whole somewhat inconsequential (especially in comparison to some of his other work), to say nothing of aloof - which eventually detracts from the impact the tragedy at the end ought to have (despite involving murder, a couple of suicides and a determined effort by the higher echelons of the church to hush up the affair altogether)!

Even so, the director's hand is unmistakable throughout, inevitably reaping the occasional reward - not only his customary fetishizing of props (such as the controversial and oft-censored scene in which the face of Christ is carved on a piece of wood, then utilized by one of the nuns as a dildo!) but also his fervent attack on figures of authority, class structure and especially the repressiveness of Catholicism (linking the film with, among others, such earlier Borowczyk fare as BLANCHE [1971], IMMORAL TALES [1974] and THE BEAST [1975]).

A stern Mother Superior tries to maintain order in the convent, and to protect the nuns from evil temptation in this beautifully wrought 'nunsploitation' film from cult director Walerian Borowczyk. While the plot here is standard fare, it is the breathtaking imagery that takes center stage, and makes this film so special. One of the most 'fluid' films I have ever seen, the characters and the images are constantly moving, an effect helped to some degree by the hand-held camera technique. White is the predominant color here, as sunlight streams through the windows of the convent, illuminating the naturally beautiful nuns as they go about their days, gathering roses, preparing food, masturbating and copulating (!). All this while the mother superior races around, spying and searching the bed chambers of the nuns, forever looking for evidence of sin. Religious imagery abounds, in the form of bleeding stigmata and a dildo with the face of Jesus etched onto it. Light and comical at times, but turning considerably darker towards the films climax. The cinematographer also worked on Argento's 'Suspiria', which explains this films gorgeous look. It would certainly be a shame and do great injustice to Borowczyk's beautiful film to place it in the same category as the 'nusploit' dreck of Joe D'Amato and some of the others, as 'Interno di un Convento' is on another level entirely. This is my favorite film from Borowczyk next to his "La Marge" with Sylvia Kristel and Joe Dallesandro. And of the 'nunsploit genre, 'Behind Convent Walls' is one of the absolute finest examples, along with "The Nuns of Verona", "Sacrilege", and the dazzling Japanese "Convent of the Holy Beast". I have yet to see Jess Franco's "Love Letters of A Portuguese Nun", but I heard this is quite good as well. For Behind Convent Walls' there is a great new DVD featuring a beautiful widescreen transfer, and including extra information on Borowczyk's work.

I've watched quite a number of so called "Nunsploitation" or "Convent Erotica" movies and at least eight of Walerian Borowczyk's erotic escapades and I think that "Interno di un Convento" aka "Behind the Convent Walls", truly deserves the term "Art-House Movie". In my opinion, it has to be considered one of the few artistic peaks, among the several dozens stinkers (mainly purely exploitative), which crowded European screens, during the '70 and '80s. The director shows us here more then a glimpse of his cinematic genius, crafting a little movie on a "shoestring budged", full of mesmerizing images and sounds. The cinematography (the movie seems almost entirely shot on a hand-held camera and in natural light) is simply gorgeous. Streams of bright sunlight flow towards the viewers from the background windows of beautiful Renaissance settings, creating dream-like visuals, in which the bodies of the female interpreters, quite often involved in steamy erotic games, appear almost floating weightlessly at mid air. By the way, Marina Pierro as "Sister Veronica" and Ligia Branice as "Sister Clara", are unbelievably beautiful even in (or half out) their rough monastic robes. The Mediaeval harpsichord, violin and organ scores, which underline the most climatic sequences, provide the proper musical frame for this dark tale of forbidden love affairs, sacrilegious erotic rituals, psychological and physical abuse and murder. The movie has a few dull moments where it seems that it is going nowhere, but then it gets back on track with a few pleasant surprises. There are two sequences which, personally, I consider among the most outstanding of the whole picture. The first begins with a flock of nuns busy cleaning up and decorating the chapel using straws of red carnations. Suddenly one of them, practicing on her violin, strikes a few musical notes of what seems to be a very lively tune. This attracts the attention of all the other nuns, who start looking at her in great expectation...Encouraged by her sisters, she strikes another series of notes, which immediately originates giggling of approval from the audience... Another nun joins right in playing the organ and they both start an improvised duet playing a very captivating "pagan" tune. Like stricken by a sudden electric discharge, the nuns immediately forget all about their work duties. The whole Sisterhood improvises a party and start dancing and jumping around happy and thoughtlessly. The camera jumps right in the middle of this improvised party, cavorting around with the nuns, by means of circular dancing movements at the rhythm of the music. It's an amazing apotheosis of flying black veils, black gowns, white undergarment and red carnations... You can almost feel the sense of relieve of the poor nuns, who get carried away in a temporary escape from the frustration of their austere and mortifying living routine. The other sequence is the one everybody who has seen the movie, obviously talks about... It's probably the only really explicit and graphic scene of the whole movie, but I think that the way it has been shot and directed, makes this sequence beautiful and not disturbing. Borowczyk unveils here the deepest roots of his erotic fantasies. He shows us a nun deeply (and desperately) in love with Christ. Spiritual love is not sufficient for her; her repressed senses demand to be also physically possessed by him. She reaches her objective, with the help of a home-made wooden dildo, with a Christ-like face painted on one end and a mirror...and a big deal of imagination. WOW! Definitely eroticism at his peak and definitely... not a movie for everyone! I give this one an (enthusiastic) 8 out of 10.

Let's get the obvious out in the open right away: She'll have nun of that. Never gets old, though if we're talking old nun, she does get old. Also doesn't want the other nuns to have fun. Well she won't become Cyndi Lauper anytime soon then. But the nuns are resourceful and find "wood" in the strangest places ... both literally and metaphorically speaking if you know what I mean.

If you don't let me tell you that this is sleaze at its finest (if that's your cup of tea of course). Still it does drag and it feels very episodic with all the nuns and their different ways to "heaven" (or climax that is). If I make this sound better than the actual experience of you watching this will be, don't blame me. I had to write something and describing penetration scenes or torture (physical or other kind) isn't the way I wanted to go. Suffice to say, this is not for any church goers .. well not the "right" ones