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Welcome to 1968, and a burst of creative direction from one of the greatest film artists of the 20th century, Jack Cardiff. An attempt to make pop star Marianne Faithful into a cinematic sex symbol is an uphill struggle, even with Alain Delon playing opposite. Psychedelic effects are poured over a tale of desire that plays out in tony surroundings and out on the open road. Cardiff had a hand in the script, working for erotic effects. The American release recognized it as exploitation, and slapped on the more direct title ‘Naked Under Leather.’

The Girl on a Motorcycle

Blu-ray

Kl Studio Classics

1968 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 91 min. / Naked Under Leather / Street Date December 13, 2022 / Available from Kino Lorber / 29.95

Starring: Alain Delon, Marianne Faithfull, Roger Mutton, Marius Goring, Jacques Marin.

Cinematography: Jack Cardiff, René Guissart Jr.

Art Directors: Jean d’Eaubonne, Russell Hagg

Film Editor: Peter Musgrave

Leather Catsuit designer: John Sutcliffe

Original Music:...

My favourite short film of 2015, Isabella Morra is a 22-minute epic by French newcomer Isabel Pagliai. It world-premiered—amid minimal-to-zero fanfare—at the gigantic International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (Idfa) in November, as part of the 'Paradocs' sidebar devoted to edgy/experimental material, mainly shorts. "Cinema verité portrait of a French suburb that demonstrates how the threat of deadly adult violence lurks below the surface of child’s play," the Idfa website drily noted. "Isabella Morra", wrote Paradocs programmer Joost Daamen, "was the daughter of an early-16th-century Italian baron. When he left his wife and eight children to amuse himself at the French court, Isabella fell under the authority of her two narrow-minded, jealous brothers. They decided she was getting too familiar with their neighbour and punished her by death. Six years later, Isabella’s sonnets and songs were published, which made her into a well-known Renaissance poet. "Twentieth-century novelist...