Fascination

Plot synopsis:
1905. April in Paris. All the fashionable Parisian ladies partake of the current cure for anemia by stopping at the abattoir [slaughterhouse] for their therapeutic glass of ox blood. Some ladies, however, have taken the cure to a higher level. Somewhere near Paris, Mark [Jean-Marie Lemaire] (a thief trying to escape from four other thieves who want the gold coins he is carrying to London) takes refuge in a castle currently inhabited by two lesbian chambermaids, Elisabeth [Franka Mai] and Eva [Brigitte Lahaie], who are awaiting the arrival of the marchioness and her servants. Elisabeth feels an immediate attraction to Mark but, while the gang of thieves lay outside the castle awaiting the chance to kill him, Mark is seduced by Eva, much to Elisabeth's chagrin. When the marchioness and her servants arrive, they hold a party in which Mark (the only male) is showered with attention. When midnight comes, however, everything changes. The women are revealed as "vampires" who want Mark's blood. Elisabeth helps Mark to escape, while the four servants sate their bloodlust on Eva. When Mark confesses to Elisabeth that he is also in love with her, Elisabeth changes her mind, decides that she never really loved Mark, and shoots him. It is Elisabeth and the marchioness who go into the sunrise together.

Tags: pornographic, murder

Review:
Beautiful French countrysides, gorgeous (frequently nude) women, old castles and erotic horror are what to expect from this exploitation film with aspirations of art.
His plan to stay until nightfall seems to be easily achievable when he finds out the home owners have no desire for him to leave.From this simple premise Rollin creates his most engrossing work with the thief coming to realize that his greatest threat may not be the crooks outside the house but the ladies within.
Though slow moving this film ratchets up the tension as midnight approaches and a mysterious ceremony is soon to begin.Strong performances abound with special mention to frequent Rollin star Brigitte Lahaie who has never looked (or acted) better.
Once again Rollin indulges in his fondness for lesbian sex scenes but they don't overpower the film like they do in some of his other works.For anyone who has not yet seen a Rollin film, either this one or 'Grapes of death' would make excellent starters although, obviously, keep the kids away..
Yup, it's another lesbian vampire movie (from a decade that produced quite a few!) but Rollin, like Jess Franco, puts his own original touches to it which make it truly unforgettable.
This is the seventh Rollin film I've watched, after THE IRON ROSE (1973; still his finest work), THE DEMONIACS (1974; the least among his vintage efforts), LIPS OF BLOOD (1975; another good one), THE GRAPES OF DEATH (1978; not bad), THE LIVING DEAD GIRL (1982; one of his most compelling) and Fiancée' OF Dracula (2002; an unsatisfactory hodgepodge of ideas).
This unusual 'lesbian vampires' film  of which the director made quite a few, though the only other such title I'm familiar with is the above-mentioned (and slightly superior) LIPS OF BLOOD  evokes much of the same atmosphere, not only of Rollin's work but of that of Jess Franco as well.
In fact, the scenes depicting a scantily-clad Brigitte Lahaie walking the castle grounds (albeit armed with a scythe!) in search of victims brings to mind Lina Romay in the Spaniard's own (rather dismal) FEMALE VAMPIRE (1973)!
Having the jaded aristocracy of another era indulge in odd rites (such as drinking ox's blood to treat anaemia!) is an intriguing notion  a group of depraved female members, then, decide to take the cure one step further and periodically resort to the intake of human blood (the revelation isn't all that surprising, but nicely handled just the same).An 'unexpected' development results when it's time to do in with the young man (his criminal associates, who were actually pursuing him after he ran away with the stash of gold, had already been swiftly dealt with by Lahaie's scythe).
The thief pleads with his savior to flee the cursed place together  but, on relating to him their back-story, she realizes that the 'call of blood' is too strong for her to ignore Inevitably, the film has all the trademarks of Rollin's style (and, by extension, the whole "Euro-Cult" vibe): lethargic pace, an effective score and  it goes without saying  plenty of naked women (even if, save for Lahaie's unmistakable looks, most prove interchangeable due to the film's essential dearth of characterization!).
A thief(Jean Marie Lemaire),on the run from fellow gang members,takes refuge in a château populated only by two young women—Eva (Brigitte Lahaie)and Elisabeth (Franka Mai).The man is seduced and lured to stay for a forthcoming soirée,while the young ladies-themselves indulging in lesbian encounters—turn out to be initiates in a cult of bourgeois women addicted to drinking human blood.Jean Rollin's "Fascination" is simply an awesome lesbian vampire flick.The pace is pretty slow,but there is plenty of sleaze and beauty to enjoy.The film is loaded with stunning visuals for example the image of a nude Brigitte Lahaie with nothing but her impossibly statuesque figure,cape and scythe moving down the bridge and over the moat to the castle or truly surreal scene of Eva and Elizabeth dancing on the bridge in matching white gowns while an old-style phonograph plays classical music.Overall,I deeply enjoyed this one and you should too,if you liked "The Living Dead Girl" or "Lips Of Blood"..
Sooner or later anyone doing the rounds of horror is confronted with Rollin; the sensually paced, purely ephemeral wanderings around mansions or cemeteries, at least in his better films, pale naked skin dripping with blood, almost always.
It is relatively easy to deal with them, with none of the hard anchors in story or characters one either concedes to dream with him or not.So yes, largely nonsense in conventional terms, here about a man who is stranded in a secluded château with a host of beautiful women who are waiting for midnight to perform a mysterious ritual, but attached to a poetry of images.The frequent comparison is to Jess Franco; but whereas Franco at his best intuited feverish images that always seemed to zoom at the verge of cacophony, Rollin exhibits painterly control over his.
When a band of criminals arrive from London and attempt to take them hostage, though, the men get more than they bargained for.Like many of the European vampire films of this era, "Fascination" is richly atmospheric and loaded with bizarre and haunting visuals.
Plot-wise, the film does run a bit thin, but the goal here was ostensibly to craft a mood piece, and with that in mind, the film works very well.The performances are decent, if not a bit kitschy, but the female leads Franca Maï and Brigitte Lahaie make a formidable duo here, as Rollin has them seducing and slashing with equal measure.
Though the pacing is leisurely, the last act offers some phenomenally eerie murder sequences and an unexpected conclusion.All in all, this is one of the better European vampire films of its era, and is much more an exercise in atmospheric horror than it is an outright sapphic erotica like many of its counterparts.
He ends up taking shelter in a castle where he soon meets Eva (Brigitte Lahaie) and Elisabeth (Franca Mai).
The two women come off as incredibly strange but they keep referring to a party later that evening that Marc can't see.Jean Rollin's FASCINATION is without question one of the director's better films, although the final act does take a bit too long to get where it's going.
If you're not a fan of Rollin's work then I'd probably recommend that you start with THE LIVING DEAD GIRL or one of his vampire films but once you're used to his work this film will have so many of the director's touches.As you'd expect, there's all sorts of sexuality between both the two women as well as their seduction scenes with Marc.
This entire sequence is perfectly directed and contains both the sexuality and violence that you've come to expect from Rollin.Speaking of Lahaie, she easily steals the film with her raging beauty that just leaps off the screen.
Jean Rollin is famous for his 'erotic' vampire movies, and for me Fascination is the fifth that I've seen.
The surreal atmosphere is well felt, however, and the director does a good job of ensuring that his film always feels like it is taking place in a dream world, which helps the erotic side of the movie.
However, for a film about vampire lesbians; Fascination isn't very erotic at all, as Rollin films the sex with little or no feeling.
Overall, this movie is bound to delight fans of Rollin's other vampire films, as it's essentially more of the same; but personally, I don't think I'll see any more vampire films from the sleazy French director..
Oh yes, I have said some bad things about Jean Rollin in the past but with this movie he shows he's also capable of creating an actual good movie!
But what do I know, right!And you could say it's an erotic movie but more one that becomes one through its sexual tension and atmosphere, that is constantly in the air, rather than with its actual nudity or sex scenes.
It's a beautiful shot movie, that is slowly being told by French genre expert Jean Rollin.
"Fascination" is the second Jean Rollin film I watched in one week (the other being "Night of the Hunted"), and the second time that I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome!
"Fascination" superficially appears to be just another umpteenth and uninspired lesbian vampire flick – like Rollin already made too many of – but there actually are a couple of welcome assets in the screenplay, like an homage to the legendary Countess Bathory and passionate liaison between the female lead characters.
In a strange and inexplicable way, the sight of Brigitte Lahaie rampaging around with a scythe whilst dressed in only a black cape is one of the sexiest things I ever beheld Still, regardless of these isolated moments of sheer beauty, you still have to endure a whole lot of tedious footage, wooden acting performances, imbecilic dialogs and the completely lack of coherence.
Eva(Brigitte Lahaie) and Elisabeth(Franca Mai) are living in a castle on the water, complete with a mote and stone bridge providing beautiful background scenery.A man escaping fellow thieves is on the run and winds up at the castle to hide.
It's an ok gore scene with the scythe, although what's really special is how erotic Lahaie looks, naked underneath that cloakThen night falls and Lahaie and Mai's blood-drinking female pals arrive and the fun really starts.There are a couple of plot twists to the ending which I won't reveal but suffice it to say that this isn't one of my favorite Rollin films, although it does have it's erotic moments.
It seems the French trailer has even more nudity and pubic hair being shown than the actual film does, especially when they're chomping down on Lahaie's blood in the nighttime scene from the bridge.
He's warned to get away before other guests come.It's slow, but there's a fair amount of blood and boobs, and that's pretty much what one expects from a Jean Rollin film, in a sort of colorful fantasy world.The title's a bit odd.
I am no expert on Jean Rollin but I have seen a number of his horror movies, all of which I have enjoyed, and this one is probably the best.
It is also beautifully filmed, great use is made of it's main location, giving a nice dream-like gothic look.
It's also a tribute to a French magazine that explored eroticism in art.In 1905, a group of wealthy women wait for bulls to be slaughtered so that they can drink their supposedly curative blood.A gang of thieves pursues Mark, who is trying to leave France for London with a bag of gold coins.
This erotic horror film, set in 1905, tells the story of a thief who seeks refuge in a castle owned by two women, Eva (Brigitte Lahaie) and Elizabeth (Franca Mai).
good stuff.The style is all Rollin, and the plot is surprisingly better than some of his other work, not just relying on pointless lesbian vampire sex scenes.
I cannot (yet) claim to be an expert on Jean Rollin's films, and, so far, neither can I claim to be a big fan of what I've seen.
While "Fascination" of 1979 has its qualities, I do not quite understand the enthusiasm that of some of my fellow Eurohorror / cult-cinema fans seem to have about Rollin in general and this film in particular.
One of Rollin's many erotic vampire films, "Fascination" certainly is a nice exercise in elegantly delirious style, and furthermore profits from an incredibly sexy female cast (above all cult-siren/pornstar Brigitte Lahaie), and yet it is undeniable that it is overall a confused and virtually plot-less film that has its lengths in spite of a running time of only 80 minutes.Sometime in the early 20th century, the robber Marc (Jean-Marie Lemaire) seeks refuge in an eerie mansion in rural France.
He meets two seductive beauties, Eva (Brigitte Lahaie) and Elisabeth (Franca Mai), who are as fascinating and erotic as they are mysterious.
The film is also enjoyably bizarre, and, as mentioned above, Brigitte Lahaie and her fellow female cast members are nice to look at.
In regard of that, again, it is amazing that the film never really gets boring.Overall "Fascination" is watchable for my fellow Eurohorror / Cult-cinema fans, though I cannot share some people's enthusiasm.
Inside he finds two young attractive women, Eva (Brigitte Lahaie) & Elisabeth (Franca Mai) who just happen to be lesbians.
While I respect other people's opinions that Rollin's films are artistic, dream like & visually stunning I don't think that about Fascination at all.
Don't get me wrong there are some very nice shots & imagery in Fascination, Eva wandering around with a long robe & scythe being a particularly memorable scene, the pigeon loft scene is visually unusual & the Gothic Château setting is impressive & adds a great deal to the film, but overall I just felt it was cheaply filmed with Rollin lingering on shots & keeping his camera rolling for far too long, as a consequence at times this slows Fascination down to a virtual stand still.
The one area that I do agree with the general opinion is that Rollin isn't particularly interested in story telling or a coherent plot which is a shame because if he put some of the effort that he puts in his visuals into a decent entertaining film than he'd have a winner on his hands.
There is a lot of gorgeous looking women in this so the eye candy is great especially Eva. It only has a couple of flaws to it, The plot is at times confusing and the big twist is a little predictable but still it's very creative and refreshing, and a lot of fun to watch.
There isn't a plot as such, just a series of weird visual images directed in Jean Rollin's inimitable style.
But the film works best when concentrating on some truly unique images - the best being the scene where a black-clad Lahaie goes on a killing spree with a scythe, quickly slaying those who stand in her way.
Rollin's obsessive view of lesbian eroticism is perverse in just the right way, his camera loves everything about women, titillating us with glimpses of flesh seen here and there, all juxtaposed amidst the finest fairy tale like setting one could imagine.
Sure, there are a few nice shots in this 80-minute movie, but not nearly enough to justify sitting through the rest of it.Arrogant thief Marc (Jean-Marie Lemaire) double-crosses a few people, takes the lone female as a hostage and runs off with a bag full of gold coins.
Inside, Marc encounters two young women; Elisabeth (Franca Mai) and Eva (Brigitte Lahaie)...
Suave and cocky thief Mark (a solid and charming portrayal by the handsome Jean-Marie Lemaire) seeks refuge in a remote castle inhabited by beautiful and beguiling servant girls Eva (the stunningly gorgeous Brigitte Lahaie) and Elizabeth (the absolutely delectable Franca Mai).
Jean Rollin does his customary masterful job of crafting a supremely eerie and erotic dreamy atmosphere that's both chilling and intoxicating in equal measure: The deliberate pace adds immensely to the film's hypnotic attraction, there's a wealth of striking poetic images (the sight of Lahaie in a flowing open black cape wielding a giant scythe is particularly startling and unforgettable), and Rollin handles the expected nudity, soft-core sex, and lesbianism with admirable class, taste, and restraint.
Moreover, Rollin offers a fresh, interesting, and even believable non-supernatural take on the standard fright film premise of vampirism (the strange cult drinks blood as a means to cure anemia).
Walking around the castle in Rollin's distinctive dresses, Franca Maï and Brigitte Lahaie both give incredibly sensual,chilling performances as the enticing Eva and Elisabeth,which leads to Fascination being a truly fascinating experience..
This film has probably the most striking opening of any from French Director Jean Rollin – two young women dressed in white dancing together on a bridge walkway over a picturesque stretch of water, followed by a well-to-do group entering a cadaver-strewn abattoir for a genteel blood-tasting ceremony.
Blood is a cure for anaemia, apparently – its taste is very 'fashionable'.This is followed by scoundrel Marc (Jean-Pierre Lemaire) who has just double-crossed his band of robbers and takes refuge in an ornate mansion, where he meets Eva and Elisabeth who claim to be preparing the property for when the owners return.
Indeed, Eva seems particularly stricken with him.Although I loved the use of stark black and white in Rollin's 'Rape of the Vampire', the colour and lighting here is beautiful.
This intriguing piece of work from the French cult director Jean Rollin is deliciously erotic, although the uninitiated should be warned that the horror elements on hand only come into play for the final portion of the picture.