La rose écorchée (1970)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Claude Mulot

Writers:

Jean Larriaga (writer)
Claude Mulot (writer)

Release Date:

October 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

The First Sex-Horror Film Ever Made!

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | Female Nudity | Sex | Breasts | Lesbianism

Cast

Philippe Lemaire	...	Frédéric
Anny Duperey	...	Anne (as Anny Duperey)
Elizabeth Teissier	...	Moira (as Elisabeth Teissier)
Olivia Robin	...	Barbara
Michèle Perello	...	Agnès (as Michelle Perello)
Valérie Boisgel	...	Catherine
Jean-Pierre Honoré	...	Paul Bertin (as J.P. Honoré)
Gérard-Antoine Huart	...	Wilfried (as Gérard Huart)
Jacques Seiler	...	Le policier
Michel Charrel	...	L'homme louche
Roberto	...	Igor
Johnny Cacao	...	Olaf
Howard Vernon	...	Professeur Römer

Also Known As:

Devil's Maniac (France) (video box title)
H comme horreur (France)
Ravaged (UK)
The Blood Rose (USA)
The Burnt Rose (International: English title) (informal alternative title)
The Flayed Rose (International: English title) (literal title)

Runtime:

France:92 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:R

Company:

Transatlantic Production

The first "Sex-Horror" film? Well, not really, but still interesting

Blood Rose is sort of a remake of "Yeux Sans Visage" (Eyes Without a Face). The story is that of a man who has married the woman of his dreams only to have her horribly burned and scarred and then finds a former doctor to restore her. Howard Vernon plays the part of the former doctor who went to prison for his attempts to operate on a child many years previous, and who is actually quite reluctant to participate in this new venture. This begins almost like a fairy tale, with voice-over narration. Of course, lots of potential donors are required for this particular operation and young ladies are lured to the château for this purpose. The burn victim is never shown entirely, just her eyes in some scenes, or filmed from the back, which is just as well, thanks. This has a good atmosphere & is fairly interesting but seems to lack some focus, and there's really not much sex to go with the horror. There are two strange little men, Igor & Olaf, that are the servants of Frederic, the tortured artist, that lend some extra weirdness to the film. This isn't particularly scary but it does have some creepy moments and is not at all bad. And what exactly is the Blood Rose? Well, I thought it was a plant that was introduced early in the story that has thorns that secrete poison & is responsible for the death of one person in the film, but that's just dropped and never heard from again. ?? Overall though, not bad, if kind of derivative. Now available on DVD from Mondo Macabro. 7 out of 10.