Female Animal (1970)

Director:

Jerry Gross

Writers:

Marcelo Lazarino
Octavio Bellini

Release Date:

3 May 1972 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Totally female! Totally animal!

Plot:

A sultry Latin peasant woman, who has overstayed her welcome in her relatives' home, is run off the road while bicycling by a wealthy aristocrat...

Plot Keywords:

Female Nudity | Erotica | Erotic 70s | Sexploitation | Grindhouse

Cast

Arlene Farber	...	Angelique (as Arlene Tiger)
Vassili Lambrinos	...	Count Orestes Medici
Andre Landzaat	...	Alain
Jeanne Avery	...	Francesca (as Jean Avery)
Robert D'Arcy	...	Rafael (as Robert Darchi)
Richard Fusco	...	Juan
Harold Keith	...	Marcus
Joanne Sopko	...	Carla
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Iris Avener
Tito Bonilla
Nico Hartos
Camille Monte
Belen Rios
Pudgy Roberts
Mary Rysz
Jerry Gross	...	Pimp (uncredited)
Alex Mann	...	Nightclub Patron (uncredited)

Directed by
Jerry Gross		(as Juan Carlo Grinella)

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Octavio Bellini
Marcelo Lazarino

Produced by
Jerry Gross	....	producer (as Antonio Benvenuti)

Original Music by
Clay Pitts		(US version)

Cinematography by
George Zimmermann

Film Editing by
William Gaddis
Sidney Katz

Production Management
Edward Glickman	....	assistant production manager (as Ed Glickman)
Alex E. Goitein	....	production manager

Camera and Electrical Department
Michael Konkos	....	camera operator (as Michael Konkus)

Production Companies

• Appia Industria Cinematografica (credit only)
• Cinemation Industries
• Estrellus (credit only)

Distributors

• Cinemation Industries (1970) (USA) (theatrical)
• Independent International Pictures (I-I) (1978) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• Retro-Seduction Cinema (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Secret Key Motion Pictures (2009) (USA) (DVD)
• IndieFlix (2010) (worldwide) (DVD)
• Prima Film (????) (Canada) (theatrical)

Also Known As:

"La mujer del gato" - USA (promotional title)
"Teenagers for Sale" - USA (reissue title)

Runtime:

USA:92 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:X (self applied) | USA:X (1970 release)

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Appia Industria Cinematografica

Trivia:

Spanish language credits and names of foreign production companies on this film are bogus. Film was shot in Puerto Rico but entirely produced by American producer/distributor Jerry Gross. The film's pseudo-European trappings were a promotional device to convince audiences they were watching a "foreign film" at a time in U. S. cinema history when "foreign" suggested greater sexual content.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Bite Me! (2004) (V)

Counterfeit Eurotrash

On the surface, this looks like one of those erotic 60s art-house flicks which were imported by American entrepreneurs solely for their sex content. It even possesses the de rigueur subtext exposing the moneyed class for its decadence and its exploitation of the naive masses. However, it's all a scam -- it was intentionally made in Puerto Rico by these self-same American entrepreneurs to resemble a European flick -- and quite successfully so.

The film is well enough constructed and filmed to be watchable, with plenty of nudity, though it's overly melodramatic and dully predictable for long stretches. As well, there are a couple of psychedelic sequences for Swinging Sixties buffs. The star Angelique is quite a dish and is not averse to shedding her threads at the least provocation. At the same time, the filmmakers strive to offend conservative viewers (in true pseudo-Euro style) by including a lascivious hypocritical priest among the sordid proceedings, by using a soda bottle as an erotic device, and by being a bit unsubtle about Angelique's relationship with her housecat.