The Seven Secrets of Sumuru (1969)

User Rating:

5.1/10   

Director:

Jesus Franco

Writers:

Franz Eichhorn (uncredited in German credits)
Bruno Leder (uncredited in Spanish credits)

Release Date:

14 March 1969 (West Germany)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi

Plot:

Sumuru, the beautiful leader of the all-female kingdom of Femina, plans to use her women to take over the world. |

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | Female Nudity | Sequel | Shower Scene | Number In Title

Cast

Shirley Eaton	...	Sumuru
Richard Wyler	...	Jeff Sutton
George Sanders	...	Sir Masius
Maria Rohm	...	Leslye
Herbert Fleischmann	...	Carl
Marta Reves	...	Ulla Rossini (as Martha Reves)
Elisa Montés	...	Irene (as Eliza Montes)
Walter Rilla	...	Ennio Rossini
Beni Cardoso	...	Yana Yuma (as Beny Cardoso)
Valentina Godoy	...	Amazon
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Geraldo José Torres Camargo
Maria de Lourdes
Yuma Duarte
Cornélio dos Santos Farias
Alberto Land
Paulo Leitão
Elídio Nunes
Brunildes Fernandes Queiroz
Edson Freitas Silva

Also Known As:

The Girl from Rio (UK) (USA)
Die sieben Männer der Sumuru (West Germany)
Future Woman (USA) (bootleg title)
Future Women (USA)
La ciudad sin hombres (Spain)
Mothers of America (USA) (poster title)
Rio 70 (USA)
River 70

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

West Germany | Spain | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Barcelona, Cataluña, Spain

Company:

Ada Films

Goofs:

Continuity: After the assault helicopters land, three women guards are shot dead and drop onto the pavement outside of a building, as the invaders go inside of the building. When the invaders come back out out of the building, the bodies of the women are gone.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Operation: Secret Agents, Spies & Thighs (2007) (V)

Big Battle in Rio de Janeiro!

As I live in Rio de Janeiro I was curious to see this film. The other reason I picked up this film was that it was directed by Jess Franco (I had already seen "Vampyros Lesbos", "She killed in ecstasy" and "Sadomania"). These films are what I would call porn trash - they tell stories that offer us luscious images of female flesh, lesbianism, mild violence and really entertain us. "Vampyros Lesbos", in particular, is a psychedelic sound and visual trip, featuring the gorgeous Soledad Miranda, present also in "She killed in ecstasy". Jess Franco has a sophisticated visual style of his own.

But "The Girl from Rio"(called also "The Seven Secrets of Sumuru) is absolutely amateurish. It tells no story at all. Its plot is a mixture of science-fiction, spy-thriller and soft porn trash. There is the detective, a mixture of James Bond and Flint (the main character?) always wearing flashy suits and carrying a suitcase containing 10 million dollars, there are the girls from Femina, a city located somewhere near Rio that intend to conquer the world and enslave the men, and there is a gang run by George Sanders. The 10 million dollars is what they are all fighting for. There are of course lots of girls.

Many fights, so badly done that people fall before they are hit. Femina was filmed inside and around the Museu de Arte Moderna in Rio. The gang run by George Sanders is composed by 5 people! There's a scene in which they run after the hero(?) wearing fantasy masks and after a ridiculous fist fight, he knocks them out and runs away. Incredible! Not to mention the "apocalyptic final battle" among the hero, the female warriors of Femina and the Gang of Five.

"The Girl from Rio" belongs to the category "so bad that it's good". I had my fun all right! By todays standards this film can't even be considered porn and the violence is mild.

If you see this film, do it the same way you would watch an Ed Wood movie and you'll have your fun. This film was made in such an easy-going way that if you let yourself flow with it, you will have a smile on your face when it ends.