Lips of Blood (1975) Lèvres de sang (original title)

Director:

Jean Rollin

Writers:

Jean Rollin
Jean-Loup Philippe

Release Date:

18 May 1975 (France)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery

Plot:

Frederick sees a photograph of a ruined seaside castle, which triggers a strange childhood memory. He then goes on a strange quest, aided by four female vampires, to find the castle and the beautiful woman who lives there.

Plot Keywords:

Castle | Vampire | Secret | Gothic | Female Full Frontal Nudity

Cast

Jean-Loup Philippe	...	Frédéric
Annie Belle	...	Jennifer (as Annie Briand)
Natalie Perrey	...	La mère de Frédéric
Martine Grimaud
Catherine Castel	...	Jumelle vampire
Marie-Pierre Castel	...	Jumelle vampire
Hélène Maguin
Anita Berglund
Claudine Beccarie	...	Claudine
Béatrice Harnois
Sylvia Bourdon
Mireille Dargent
Paul Bisciglia	...	Le psychiatre
Willy Braque	...	Le tueur
Julien Etchevery
Serge Rollin	...	Frédéric enfant
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jean Rollin	...	Le gardien du cimetière (uncredited)

Directed by
Jean Rollin

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jean-Loup Philippe
Jean Rollin

Produced by
Jean-Marie Ghanassia	....	co-producer (as Jean-Marc Ghanassia)
Lionel Wallmann	....	producer

Original Music by
Didier William Lepauw

Cinematography by
Jean-François Robin

Film Editing by
Olivier Grégoire

Production Design by
Alain Pitrel

Makeup Department
Eric Pierre	....	makeup artist

Sound Department
Gérard Tilly	....	sound

Other crew
Philippe Caza	....	poster designer

Production Companies

• Nordia Films
• Off Production
• Scorpion V

Distributors

• Another World Entertainment (2008) (Denmark) (DVD)
• Cinéthèque (????) (France) (VHS)
• Encore/Redemption Europe (2006) (UK) (DVD) (Special Edition)
• Image Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Redemption Films (2012) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-Ray)
• Salvation Films (2006) (UK) (DVD) (as Redemption)

Also Known As:

"Lèvres de sang" - France (original title)
"Suck Me, Vampire" - USA (X-rated version)

Runtime:

USA:88 min | France:71 min (X rated version)

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-18 | France:-16 | UK:15

Company:

Nordia Films

Trivia:

Director cameo: [Jean Rollin] Cemetery caretaker killed by the female vampires.

Movie Connections:

References The Phantom of Liberty (1974)

Not a masterpiece but far more compelling than many Euro horror films of the period

Jean Rollin is often thought of as a second-rate Jess Franco, but to be honest I can't really see as many similarities between the two's work judging from this film. Sure, there's a lot of naked female vampires running around (which as we all know Franco was also a fan of showing), but thats about it. Rollin, while a serviceable enough director himself, lacks Franco's flamboyant visual flair, nor does he seem to be emulating it. And even though I enjoy Franco's output more, I'll readily admit that Rollin is a much better storyteller. As much as I love both "Vampyros Lesbos" and "Venus In Furs", linear and coherent narratives they're not. "Lips of Blood" tells a reasonably engrossing story.

The story of this film is both a plus and a detraction somewhat. You really get intrigued by the sense of surreal mystery that the protagonist goes through. I also found the film to move at a much quicker pace than many others did. Still, the film presents us with a protagonist thats not remotely interesting and some supporting characters that become annoying quick (particularly the mother). It doesn't make the film any less interesting, but it prevents it from being as strong as it could've been.

The direction by Rollin is quite accomplished. He certainly manages to create a dreamlike atmosphere that makes even the real life settings such as Paris seem oddly alien and otherworldly. There's some rather pretentious moments that fumble, but overall this film evokes an unique atmosphere. The film is never tense or really creepy, but that didn't really matter to me because it looked so beautiful at times. The ending for the film was an absolutely perfect and ambiguous (not to mention completely unpredicted) way to finish it. "Lips of Blood" isn't perfect, but is unique enough and much stronger than most European horror films of the period. (7/10)