Ilsa: She Wolf of the SS (1975)

Director:

Don Edmonds

Writers:

Jonah Royston
John C.W. Saxton

Release Date:

October 1975 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | War

Tagline:

The most dreaded Nazi of them all!

Plot:

Ilsa is an evil Nazi warden at a death camp that conducts "medical experiments". Ilsa's goal is to prove...

Plot Keywords:

Nazi | Death Camp | Death | Medical Experiment | Evil

Cast

Dyanne Thorne	...	Ilsa
Gregory Knoph	...	Wolfe
Tony Mumolo	...	Mario
Maria Marx	...	Anna
Nicolle Riddell	...	Kata
Jo Jo Deville	...	Ingrid
Sandy Richman	...	Maigret
George 'Buck' Flower	...	Binz (as C.D. Lafleuer)
Rodina Keeler	...	Gretchen
Richard Kennedy	...	General (as Wolfgang Roehm)
Lance Marshall	...	Richter
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Wayne Beauchamp	...	Prisoner (uncredited)
Colleen Brennan	...	Redheaded Prisoner (uncredited)
Sandy Dempsey	...	Prisoner (uncredited)
Uschi Digard	...	Prisoner in Pressurized Chamber (uncredited)
Jacqueline Giroux	...	Rosette (uncredited)
John F. Goff	...	Nazi Guard with Mustache (uncredited)
Meri McDonald	...	Nazi Guard (uncredited)
Janet Newell	...	Blonde Prisoner (uncredited)
Eve Orlon	...	Nude Prisoner in Bed (uncredited)
Gary Schneider	...	First Prisoner Beside Wolfe (uncredited)
Peggy Sipots	...	Prisoner on Ice Block (uncredited)
Donna Young	...	Prisoner with White Scarf (uncredited)

Directed by
Don Edmonds

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jonah Royston
John C.W. Saxton		(as Jonah Royston)

Produced by
David F. Friedman	....	producer (as Herman Traeger)

Cinematography by
Glenn Roland		(director of photography) (as Glen Rowland)

Film Editing by
Kurt Schnit

Production Design by
Jackson De Govia		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Joe Blasco	....	special makeup artist

Production Management
Karl Bergen	....	production manager

Sound Department
Bill Henderson	....	sound re-recording engineer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Wayne Beauchamp	....	special effects technician (uncredited)

Other crew
Irena Latina	....	production secretary

Production Companies

• Aeteas Filmproduktions

Distributors

• Cambist Films (1975) (USA) (theatrical)
• Cinépix Film Properties (CFP) (1975) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• SBP (2003) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• DMEG (2004) (Sweden) (VHS)
• Manga Films (2005) (Spain) (DVD)
• Primetime (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• American Videotape (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Maxam (2007) (Japan) (DVD)
• Scanbox Entertainment (2004) (Finland) (DVD) (3-disc Ilsa Collection)
• Scanbox Entertainment (2006) (Finland) (DVD) (1-disc edition)
• Tokuma Communications Company (TCC) (????) (Japan) (VHS)
• Videatrics (????) (UK) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA | West Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:18 | Australia:(Banned) | Denmark:16 | Finland:K-18 (2001) | Norway:(Banned) | UK:R | USA:R (cut) (1976) | USA:X (self applied) | Spain:18 | Netherlands:16 | Italy:VM18 (video rating) (cut) | Norway:18 (re-rating) (2007) | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Cinema General Studios - 846 N. Cahuenga, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Aeteas Filmproduktions

Trivia:

Filmed on the set of "Hogan's Heroes" (1965).

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Ilsa is referred to as holding the rank of major, but her collar insignia is that of a Lieutenant Colonel or SS Obersturmbannführer.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Haunted World of El Superbeasto (2009)

Soundtrack:

Die Fahne hoch

A superior exploitation flick

"Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS" is a superior exploitation film from director Don Edmonds. Despite being over 30 years old, the movie still has the ability to shock with its unblinking scenes of torture.

Dyanne Thorne is excellent in the title role as the mature SS officer, Ilsa. Thorne is chillingly ruthless and believable in the movie. In the ageist Hollywood scheme of things, it's refreshing to see an older lady cast in a lead role, particularly one involving some candid scenes.

"Ilsa", despite scenes of gratuitous violence and torture, is a fun and entertaining movie. The score is effective and the production, despite its limited budget, has a polished feel to it.

Gorehounds should find the scenes of bloodshed satisfactory but the violence may appear tame in the age of "August Underground" and "Guinea Pig" excesses. In terms of wartime experimentation, those desiring an insight into history would be best checking out Tun Fei Mou's excellent "Men Behind the Sun".

Leaner and meaner than "Salon Kitty", this is a fast-moving exploitation film that genre fans should enjoy. 9 out of 10.