The present installment of your favorite dirty column was inspired by The Films of Jess Franco, a collective
book edited by Antonio Lazaro-Reboll and Ian Olney, which although it adds no
new information or trivia, it does analyze the shit out what we already know; a
great academic work that should be purchased by all connoisseurs of erotic
cinema. But without further ado, on with the reviews!
The Image (1975)
Jean [Carl Parker from The Score
(1974), which was reviewed in this column’s previous installment] and Claire
(Marilyn Roberts) seduce Anne [Rebecca Brooke from Confessions of a Young American Housewife (1974)] into the world of
BDSM and indulge into a series of erotic games that include everything, from
whipping to chaining, and from feet licking to pissing.
Also known as The Punishment of
Anne and The Mistress and the Slave
this was directed by adult film auteur Radley Metzger (who also penned the
screenplay, based upon the same-titled novel by Catherine Robbe-Grillet) and it
aims high. Featuring the gorgeous cinematography of Robert Lefebvre (this was
his last credit) and an impressive soundtrack, it rarely disappoints.
Sure, it may not be as good as, say, the similar The Story of O (1975) and the neo-noir approach of the voiceover is
quite heavy-handed, but this is still a masterpiece and it must be seen by all
connoisseurs of classic adult cinema.