Les maîtresses du Docteur Jekyll

The second "Orloff" movie is apparently unrelated to the first (a re-acquaintance with which will follow): in fact, this name is omnipresent throughout Franco's filmography; anyway, it is more or less on the same level of THE SADISTIC BARON VON KLAUS (1962) – even if I watched ORLOFF in English rather than French (or, for that matter, the original Spanish language). Again, Franco shows to be fairly adept with genre conventions and even manages to blend them relatively easily with a modern-day setting – still, he cannot help being himself and resist incorporating nightclub performances (in fact, this rather lazily makes the artistes themselves the victims so that we get a song every 20 minutes or so!) and, inevitably, erotic overtones.

Incidentally, Howard Vernon (the actor most associated with the Orloff role) is sorely missed here – the character himself is only of secondary importance and appears very briefly – but the memorable Morpho figure, a disfigured zombie-like creature obeying its master's will (not unlike Cesare from the German Expressionist landmark THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI {1920}), is now assumed by Andros. The latter – played by Hugo Blanco, the villainous latest member of the Von Klaus family and whose brooding good looks suit his mute stalker here – is perversely turned into a monster (hence the title, though the print actually bears the absurd moniker DR. JEKYLL'S MISTRESSES - which would, in any case, have better suited Walerian Borowczyk's masterful 1981 film, DOCTEUR JEKYLL ET LES FEMMES!) by his own scientist brother (Vernon's bearded, rather gruff replacement and saddled with the peculiar surname of Fisherman) when he catches him in bed with his own wife (she, of course, also pays for her infidelity by being driven to the bottle).

However, the plot this time around is decidedly contrived: we never learn why Andros (who sleeps upright in a class cage, as Cesare himself did albeit in a wooden-box) is sent on a murderous rampage – after being revived, and subsequently controlled, by sound-waves – every once in a while (most effectively when he nonchalantly moves through a crowded nightspot following yet another attack). The "Digitally Obsessed" website review suggests the reason for the various killings is because Fisherman wanted to get even with his spouse…but this is hardly EYES WIDE SHUT (1999), is it?! Similarly, the heroine – the monster's daughter, whom she believed was dead and buried (at one point, he even visits his own grave!) – turns up to stay with the central family only so that we get the obligatory damsel-in-distress and add an admittedly refreshing touch of pathos to Andros' condition; Agnes Spaak, sister of the more famous Catherine(!), appears in this part. On the other hand, the girl's bland male counterpart is extremely annoying, and the presence of the Police basically only serves to keep the audience abreast of the villains' eventual apprehension.

1964's "Dr. Orloff's Monster" (El Secreto del Dr. Orloff or Les Maitresses du Docteur Jekyll), a Spanish-French-Austrian coproduction and sequel (the first in a lengthy series) to Jesus Franco's 1961 "The Awful Dr. Orlof," basically a continuation of the same outline, murderous undead assassin stalking pretty showgirls in various stages of undress. A similar castle setting finds Marcelo Arroita-Jauregui's evil Dr. Conrad Jekyll (no Hyde in evidence, his name changed to Fisherman in other territories) ruling his beaten down wife, who has been grieving for her lost love over the decades, in fact the doctor's own beloved brother Andros (Hugo White), now his robotic pawn drawn to each victim by a radio transmitting necklace that police prove slow to pick up on (a lost necklace was also a catalyst in the original ORLOF). Only when he tries to murder his visiting niece Melissa (Agnes Spaak) does he meet his fate at the hands of her protective father, though one wonders how Andros would recognize his now adult daughter after being, well, dead for so many years! Andros isn't as fearful as the original film's Morpho (Ricardo Valle), but he does prove more sympathetic and has the benefit of sight where his predecessor was blind. This doctor is a real cold fish, addicted to opium, lacking even the menacing qualities of Howard Vernon, who would reprise the Orloff role on many occasions into the 80s, plus a well meaning surgeon in Claude Mulot's unrelated French title "The Blood Rose." A perfunctory love interest for Melissa helps flesh out her character, Agnes Spaak the elder sister of Catherine Spaak, who would soon retire from the screen to work as a photographer. This early Franco shows that he was capable of good work with a decent budget, and without the dizzying zoom lens that would become his trademark.

Dr. Orloff's Monster (1964)

** (out of 4)

Jess Franco's sequel to The Awful Dr. Orloff is more of a remake than anything else. I watched the French version under the title The Mistress of Dr. Jekyll and this version features more nudity than the versions released in Spain and America. In the film. Dr. Fisherman (Marcelo Arroita Jauregui) kills his brother (Hugo Blanco) when he learns that he is having an affair with his wife. The doctor eventually brings his brother back as a zombie like creature to kill various women for him. I've never really been a fan of Franco's earlier period of Gothic horror films but you can certainly see that he has talent with these films. While I prefer his 70s work he does give this film a lot of style, which is something missing from those later films. The performance Blanco is pretty good but Jauregui comes off very boring and certainly can't fill the shoes of Howard Vernon from the previous film. The film is beautiful to look at and features a very nice score from Daniel White but in the end the film left me looking at my watch too much. The movie's pace is quite slow and all the stuff dealing with the police comes off boring. You can spot Franco during one scene. The DVD features some of the alternate scenes from the American and Spanish version of the film. I think I prefer the French scenes with the nudity as it makes the film stand out from countless other Gothic films of this period.

Although made on a shoestring budget and as a sequel to The Awfull Dr. Orloff, this is a very enjoyable flick and a fine example of early Southern European horror. It's actually better than it's predecessor.

The plot is not real important (it contains a zombie-like creature, a castle and a mad scientist). What makes this movie is the mood, the often beautiful camera-angles, the art direction and the hints of later Franco movies.

For example, there's several scenes with women performing, often in erotic scenes, with men watching - which is exactly the kind of voyeuristic cinema Franco would turn to in later years (Vampyros Lesbos, Demoniac).

There's - of course - quite some nudity, which must have been considered quite risque in 1964. And there's a small cameo for the director himself, as a pianist who seems to be blind.....

Also of interest is the use of electronic devices used to make the zombie a murderous weapon, they give a strange effect to the movie and reminded me of early 50's sci-fi B-movies.

All in all, recommended for Franco fans and b/w horrormovie fans. If you've never seen a Franco I suggest starting with Vampyros Lesbos or Female Vampire.

In THE MISTRESSES OF DR. JEKYLL (aka: DR. ORLOFF'S MONSTER), the demented title character kills, then turns his cheating wife's lover into a remote control zombie robot. He then sends his new zombot out to slaughter various ladies of the night.

Enter the Doctor's niece, who arrives for a visit. Unbeknownst to her, it's her dad that's now a reanimated murderer!

Director Jesus Franco has really made a great horror film here. It's dark and bizarre, and the method used to facilitate the killings is ingenious! There's a macabre atmosphere and many genuinely creepy moments. The finale is also quite satisfying...