Erotic Symphony (1980)

A nobleman and his two lovers - a teenage boy and a runaway nun - plan to kill his mentally fragile wife.

Director:

Jesús Franco (as Jess Franco)

Writers:

Marquis de Sade (based on the writings of), Jesús Franco (as Jess Franco)

Stars:

Lina Romay, Susan Hemingway, Armando Borges

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lina Romay	...	Martine de Bressac (as Candice Coster)
Susan Hemingway	...	Norma
Armando Borges	...	Marqués Armando de Bressac
Mel Rodrigo	...	Flor
Aida Gouveia	...	Wanda
George Santos	...	George
Albino Graziani	...	Doctor Louys

Storyline

The marriage of countess Martine is a farce, Martine seems to be only an obstacle on the way to her fortune, which her husband, Armando wants to seize. She is repeatedly warned by maid Wanda about her husband's sinister plans after returning from an institution. When one day the attractive nun Norma is found wounded in front of the entrance to the common property, Armando decides to subject her sexually and to submit to her as a "toy". After Martine increasingly desperate about her husband's affair with the bisexual teenager Flor she finally seduces the nun. Flor and Norma fall in love and want to flee. Both are caught by Armando in passion and, while making love, pierced with a sword at the same time. As a result, Armando increasingly despairs of his deed. After repeatedly refusing to give in to his wife's sexual advances, he finally falls on her so violently that it appears that she is dying of the consequences.

---

Plot Keywords:

flashback | foil | male full back nudity | topless woman | man strangling a woman | 

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

---

Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in Stephen Thrower on 'Sinfonia Erotica' (2018)

---

Soundtracks

Piano Concerto No. 4 Op. 58
Written by Ludwig van Beethoven (uncredited)
Arrangement by Franz Liszt (as F. Liszt)

User Reviews

Underrated Gem from Franco

Sinfonía erótica (1980) *** (out of 4)

Martine de Bressac (Lina Romay) is returning home after a stay in a mental hospital. Once there she is told that her husband is having an affair with a young man. Soon the two men are out walking in the woods when they come across a young nun (Susan Hemingway) who has been raped. Before long Martine is slipping more into a mental state while the other three are planning her murder.

I've seen over a hundred and fifty films from Spanish director Jess Franco and he's made some great ones and some truly awful ones. Out of all of the films I've seen I'd say that SINFORNIA EROTICA takes the number one spot for his most underrated. If you're expecting sleaze, nudity, sex and violence then you're really not going to get that from this film. While the movie does contain some of that there's no question that this here is an art film and a well-made on at that.

Slightly based on a Marquis de Sade story, the film manages to really come across as a nightmare. Franco's direction is certianly among the best of his career as he does a great job at really painting a woman's mental breakdown and the craziness that surrounds her. The film's cinematography really does a great job with its soft focus to show what a nightmare the lead character is going through. I thought the cinematography really managed to build up a bizarre fever-dream like vision that helped draw you into the picture.

The film also benefits from some nice performances as well. This includes Romay who doesn't get a lot of dialogue and instead must act just with her eyes. I really thought this was one of her best roles and one of her finest performances. She's basically got to just act with her eyes and what's going on in her troubled mind and I thought the actress was quite believable. Hemingway, who appeared in a handful of films for Franco, has always been one of my favorite actresses of his and she too is extremely good in her role. Both Armando Borges and Mel Rodrigo are good as well.

As I said, the film contains some nudity and sex as well as some violence but it's off the screen. The film really doesn't go for any sort of sleaze and that's why some people might be bored by it. That's really too bad because it's certainly a well-made movie and one of the better ones that Franco made.

Details

Country:

Spain Portugal

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

2018 (USA)

Also Known As:

Erotic Symphony

Filming Locations:

Hotel Palácio, Sintra, Portugal

Company Credits

Production Co:

Tritón P.C., Estudio 8

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min 85 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1