Die teuflischen Schwestern

Well here we go again. Sexy Sisters is yet another sleazy flick from the ludicrously prolific exploitation director Jess Franco. In this one, a woman imprisons her nymphomaniac sister by chaining her to a bed. This unfortunate lady's psychological state is a result of sexual abuse as a child and unbeknownst to her, her evil sister is going to exploit her condition even further in order to claim a huge family inheritance.

I know that I have just recounted the synopsis for this one but I'm not really too sure if I should really have bothered because like the vast majority of Franco movies, the story-line is at best not much more than an afterthought. This is very squarely a soft-core sex film whose extremely limited plot is no more than a way of stringing together a succession of sex scenes. They aren't in all honesty very erotic at all but are nevertheless pretty explicit. About as hard as a soft-core movie gets really. Franco directs events in the same manner than he seemed to direct most of his features by this point in his career, i.e. fast, to the point and with little concern for any finesse. So this one is consequently another of his films that is what it is, and if you've seen a few of his late 70's efforts you'll know what you're gonna get. Essentially you will have to have at least a passing interest in watching naked women cavorting about for extended periods as a basic prerequisite for getting anything out of this one. On a side note, regular Franco actor Jack Taylor pitches up in this one and immediately sticks a thermometer up a woman's butt. With that in mind, it's not so surprising that the story line wasn't such a strong point in this one.

Enticing brunette Pamela Stanford plays a countess named Edna von Stein, who prowls after hours clubs for guys she can take home. She frequently picks up guys specifically for the purpose of getting it on with her disturbed younger sister, Millicent (Karine Gambier), who is kept chained to a bed. Among these men is a well meaning dude named Joe (Kurt Meinicke), who finds himself taken with Millicent. Edna actually has an ulterior motive for treating Millicent the way that she does, however.

There actually *is* something of a story here, for those who wait for it. But to explain it more would also be to spoil it too much. Still, good old Jess Franco doesn't let story get in the way of lots and lots of sex. People hoping for plenty of full frontal female nudity will get exactly what they wish for. Therefore, this serves its purpose as erotica, and the ladies present are all sufficiently sexy (also including Esther Moser as Sarah, and Marianne Graf as Maria). The story that eventually emerges is an entertaining one, but also a familiar one; we've all heard tales like it before. "Sexy Sisters" is additionally noteworthy for being well shot by Peter Baumgartner and for its appealing jazzy music score by Walter Baumgartner.

The performances are acceptable right down the line. Franco regular Jack Taylor is amusing as a slimy doctor, Gambier is rather endearing, and Eric Falk has fun with a small role as a stud hired to pleasure Millicent.

Overall, a typical 70s Franco outing, combining pure trash with an artistic sensibility.

Six out of 10.

I don't think the other reviewers are being fair. How can someone who fast forwarded through most of the movie believe he can give a fair review of it? I'm also getting a little tired of the childish jabs other reviewers give these types of movies. It gets old when every review is coming out with them and is like what I would expect from schoolchildren, not in any way clever.

There is lots of sex in this movie and yes you could justify calling it a porn movie. However there are interesting scenes in it also, the characters and situations are often spectacular and really striking. Direction, acting and characters are all great. True, the plot is very simple, but it's more an artsy type of movie. There are all kinds of themes running through it which anyone can see.

These beautiful and elegant scenes doesn't just come about by chance or by having beautiful girls, which are dime a dozen. If you think that then you need to watch some bad adult movies and you will appreciate the huge difference.

I watched this in fast forward mode to the sex scenes, which were, although not explicit, lenghty and frequent. Lots of boobs on show etc. The women look quite sexy although they aren't drop dead gorgeous. Acting was OK, dubbing was so-so too. Plenty of cheesy music, nice locations & 70's style. You could find a worse way to pass the time. The film is well shot and better than some other Franco efforts. It is available in a box set from Anchor Bay with a lot of other Franco films; Love Letters of a Portuguese Nun etc at a good price although some of the films are cut (BBFC) in UK. Not as good as Lulu's Talking Ass.

The most positive thing you can say about this movie is that it's looking fine. There's LOTS of sex and most of it manages to find the line between trashy and too clean; those are some good scenes and nearly nothing embarassing. Well done! Sadly, the movie is lacking in all other departments. The plot is paper-thin and the final resolution completely without any tension. The music - while not bad - pales in comparison to some other Jess Franco movies. And the camerawork, while excellent doing the sex scenes, stays boring and pedestrian during all other ones. (Man, what you could do on screen with a beautiful car like the Alpine ... no, doesn't happen).

Also, there is no levity ... it's much too serious for a movie with so much carnal lust; the only obvious "joke" is that the "hero", sporting a James Hunt hairdo, is wearing a Niki Lauda jacket ...

Not recommended save for Jess Franco completists.