Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Eugenie (Blue Underground) UHD/Blu-ray Review

Collapse
X
Collapse
  •  
    Ian Jane
    Administrator

  • Eugenie (Blue Underground) UHD/Blu-ray Review

    Click image for larger version  Name:	cover.jpg Views:	1 Size:	34.2 KB ID:	408999

    Released by: Blue Underground
    Released on: February 21st, 2022.
    Director: Jess Franco
    Cast: Christopher Lee, Maria Rohm, Jack Taylor, Marie Liljedahl, Paul Muller
    Year: 1970
    Purchase From Amazon

    Eugenie – Movie Review:

    Jess Franco's adaptation of the Marquis de Sade's Philosophy In The Boudoir was 1970's Eugenie: The Story Of Her Journey Into Perversion, a film that cast the gorgeous Marie Liljedahl in the title role, a beautiful but chaste young woman named Eugenie. Her father, Mistival (Paul Muller), clearly has a thing for a woman named Marianne Saint-Ange (Maria Rohm) but she resists his advances until they make a deal - Marianne will give herself to Mistival should he allow his daughter to accompany her to her family's estate on a remote tropical island for a few days. He agrees, and gets what he wants from the woman, and from there the two young women head to the mansion with Marianne's half-brother, Mirvel (Jack Taylor), along for the ride.

    Once they arrive at the home, it becomes quite clear quite quickly that Marianne and Mirvel have less than the purest of intentions for Eugenie. From here, they indoctrinate her into their world of kink and shape young Eugenie into a plaything of sorts before it's time for Dolmance (Christopher Lee) to make his appearance....

    Also known as De Sade '70 and written by producer Harry Alan Towers, this (at the time) modern day take on de Sade's work pretty impressive. While obviously the location dressing and costumes are of the film's period, the entirely decadent atmosphere of de Sade's writing really shines through as we watch the more dominant factors at play essentially 'break' this teenaged girl (Liljedahl was definitely of age here, but she looks younger than she was when the film was made). As such, you need to be prepared for some rather taboo subject material when voyaging down a cinematic rabbit hole such as this, but that's par for the course with most of Franco's films made during and after this period.

    Featuring plenty of exotic locations and fancy costumes to dress up the orgiastic proceedings in a veneer of class, the film moves at a good pace and features some pretty impressive set pieces, one of the most memorable being the scene in which Lee himself reads from de Sade's writings while a gaggle of participants indulge their carnal cravings all about him. It's odd seeing Lee in a film like this but he does a great job in the part, using his fairly regel screen presence well and really turning in a memorable performance. Jack Taylor and the beautiful Maria Rohm are also very good here, their on-screen relationship clearly alluding that their relations extend past simply sharing a parent while Paul Muller as Eugenie's lecherous father is also quite good. Really though, as good as the main cast members are it's Marie Liljedahl who is the most memorable here. She's gorgeous to be sure but you feel for her as she's put through a sexual ringer of sorts. The physical side of her performance is completely convincing and she really makes quite an impression here. It's also amusing to see Franco himself pop up in the movie as one of the men who appears in a scene best described as ritualistic.

    In terms of the film's production values, Franco and Towers are firing on all cylinders here. The cinematography is top notch (aside from the occasional focus issue) and the use of color is frequently stunning. The locations secured for the shoot suit the story perfectly and the wardrobe choices are both elegant and, in certain cases, quite alluring. Add to that a truly excellent score from composer Bruno Nicolai and it's easy to see why this film is as well regarded by both Franco fans and Euro-cult aficionados alike.

    Eugenie – UHD/Blu-ray Review:

    Eugenie arrives on UHD from Blue Underground in an HVEC encoded 2160p transfer taken from a new 4k remastered framed at 2.40.1 widescreen with HDR10 and Dolby Vision enhancement. The improvements over the previous Blu-ray are evident from the start as we notice much stronger depth and detail right from the start. Granted, the shots that are in soft focus or sometimes just seemingly out of focus all together are still very soft looking, but that’s just part of the Franco experience and the way that the movie has always looked. Close up shots frequently impressive and there’s noticeably more texture evident in the picture as well.

    Audio options are provided in a 16-bit English language DTS-HD Mono track and a 24-bit French language DTS-HD Mono track, which comes with optional subtitles available in English SDH, French and Spanish. Both tracks sound quite good. The jazzy score has nice depth and range to it while the dialogue is clean, clear, nicely balanced and easy to follow. There are no problems with any hiss or distortion.

    Extras on the UHD include a trailer for the feature and a commentary track from Nathanial Thompson and Troy Howarth. There's lots of talk here about the quality of the score, Harry Alan Towers' work on the movie and use of an alias in the credits, the impressive visuals that are on display consistently throughout the picture, Lee's claims that he didn't know what was going on behind him in some scenes, the prominence of red lighting in the movie, the use of out of focus shots and if it was on purpose or not, details on the cast and crew affiliated with the movie, the English dubbing in the movie, reflections on a period where it was extremely difficult to see some of these Franco movies before the DVD boom twenty years ago, the rushed production schedule and how it sometimes leads to unpolished aspects in the film, some of the themes that the movie explores and the director's tendency to wind people up and toy around with taboos in his movies and lots more. It’s a good track, very informal and conversational in nature but offering up a good mix of opinion and facts about the film.

    That same commentary is also found on the included Blu-ray disc, which also contains a new featurette called Jack Taylor In The Francoverse in which the actor speaks for just under twenty-five minutes regarding how me met Franco in 1967 and how they came to work together, here he got the screen name Jack Taylor from, working together for the first time on Necronomicon and doing it without a screenplay, some of the other people he worked with and befriended from his time spent in Franco's orbit, how Franco loved to trick people, specific memories of shooting Eugenie and why he remains fond of that movie, getting along with his fellow actors during the shoot, Franco's tendency to "film everything and figure out where to use it later," memories of shooting other movies with Franco over the years to come and how much he appreciates having been able to make these movies and having a fan base these many years later.

    Carried over from that DVD release is the Perversion Stories featurette that runs seventeen minutes in length. Here we get some interesting interviews with Jess Franco, producer Harry Alan Towers and cast members Marie Liljedahl and Christopher Lee, though the latter two are featured here only briefly. Franco is his typical 'tell it like it is' self as he shares his thoughts on the film and the cast, Towers quickly offers some thoughts on how Liljedahl and Lee wound up in the film while Lee himself notes his surprise at being top billed in a film like this. Liljedahl is quite charming here as she talks about her appreciation for this particular film and how much she enjoyed working with some of her fellow cast members.

    Carried over from the past Blu-ray edition is an eighteen minute piece called Stephen Thrower On Eugenie, which is what it sounds like - an interview with the man who wrote Murderous Passions: The Delirious Cinema of Jesus Franco about his thoughts on the film, how it compares to some of Franco's other films, the effectiveness of certain scenes and performances and quite a bit more. The disc also includes a theatrical trailer for the feature, a still gallery, menus and chapter selection.

    Note that the booklet and CD soundtrack that were included on the previous limited edition Blu-ray are not included with this UHD/Blu-ray combo pack, but we do get a slipcover that uses that alternate Philosophy In The Boudoir title on it.

    Eugenie - The Final Word:

    Eugenie: The Story Of Her Journey Into Perversion is widely, and rightfully, regarded as one of Jess Franco's most polished pictures and it's hard to deny just what a great looking film this is. On top of that the cast all deliver fine work and the story is both alluring and intriguing. Blue Underground’s UHD/Blu-ray release presents the film in an excellent presentation and it not only carries over all of the previous extra features but it adds a few new ones to the mix as well. Highly recommended!


    Click on the images below, or right click and open in a new window, for full sized Eugenie Blu-ray screen caps!

    Click image for larger version  Name:	1.jpg Views:	1 Size:	406.9 KB ID:	409005

    Click image for larger version  Name:	2.jpg Views:	1 Size:	182.4 KB ID:	409002

    Click image for larger version  Name:	3.jpg Views:	1 Size:	366.2 KB ID:	409003

    Click image for larger version  Name:	4.jpg Views:	1 Size:	478.9 KB ID:	409011

    Click image for larger version  Name:	5.jpg Views:	1 Size:	488.3 KB ID:	409012

    Click image for larger version  Name:	6.jpg Views:	1 Size:	430.1 KB ID:	409008

    Click image for larger version  Name:	7.jpg Views:	1 Size:	153.7 KB ID:	409000

    Click image for larger version  Name:	8.jpg Views:	1 Size:	395.1 KB ID:	409004

    Click image for larger version  Name:	9.jpg Views:	1 Size:	410.2 KB ID:	409007

    Click image for larger version  Name:	10.jpg Views:	1 Size:	360.5 KB ID:	409009

    Click image for larger version  Name:	11.jpg Views:	1 Size:	411.8 KB ID:	409010

    Click image for larger version  Name:	12.jpg Views:	1 Size:	438.4 KB ID:	409014

    Click image for larger version  Name:	13.jpg Views:	1 Size:	257.5 KB ID:	409006

    Click image for larger version  Name:	14.jpg Views:	1 Size:	143.6 KB ID:	409001

    Click image for larger version  Name:	15.jpg Views:	1 Size:	408.9 KB ID:	409013
      Posting comments is disabled.

    Latest Articles

    Collapse

    • Hot Spur (Severin Films) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Severin Films
      Released on: April 30th, 2024.
      Director: Lee Frost
      Cast: Joseph Mascolo, Virginia Goodman, John Alderman
      Year: 1969
      Purchase From Amazon

      Hot Spur – Movie Review:

      Director Lee Frost and Producer Bob Cresse's film, Hot Spur, opens in Texas in 1869 with a scene where a pair of cowboys wanders into a bar where they call over a pretty Mexican waitress and coerce her into dancing for them. She obliges, but
      ...
      03-22-2024, 11:53 AM
    • Death Squad (Mondo Macabro) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Mondo Macabro
      Released on: April 9th, 2024.
      Director: Max Pecas
      Cast: Thierry de Carbonnières, Jean-Marc Maurel, Denis Karvil, Lillemour Jonsson
      Year: 1985
      Purchase From Amazon

      Death Squad – Movie Review:

      Also known as Brigade Of Death, French sleaze auteur Max Pecas’ 1985 film, Death Squad, opens with a night time scene outside of Paris in the Bois de Boulogne Forest where cars pass by a small gang of transsexual
      ...
      03-22-2024, 11:46 AM
    • Roommates (Quality X) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Quality X
      Released on: February 28th, 2024.
      Director: Chuck Vincent
      Cast: Samantha Fox, Vernoica Hart, Kelly Nichols, Jerry Butler, Jamie Gillis
      Year: 1982
      Purchase From Amazon

      Roommates – Movie Review:

      Directed by Chuck Vincent and released in 1982, Roommates opens with a scene where a young woman named Joan Harmon (Veronica Hart) gets a hotel room with an older man named Ken (Don Peterson, credited as Phil Smith),
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:10 PM
    • Night Of The Blood Monster (Blue Underground) UHD/Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Blue Underground
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Jess Franco
      Cast: Christopher Lee, Maria Rohm, Dennis Price
      Year: 1970
      Purchase From Amazon

      Night Of The Blood Monster – Movie Review:

      Directed by Jess Franco, The Bloody Judge (or, Night Of The Blood Monster, as it is going by on this new release from Blue Underground) isn't quite the salacious exercise in Eurotrash you might expect it to be, and while it
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:07 PM
    • Phase IV (Vinegar Syndrome) UHD/Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Vinegar Syndrome
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Saul Bass
      Cast: Nigel Davenport, Michael Murphy, Lynne Frederick, Alan Gifford, Robert Henderson, Helen Horton
      Year: 1974
      Purchase From Amazon

      Phase IV – Movie Review:

      Saul Bass’ 1974 sci-fi/thriller Phase IV is an interesting blend of nature run amuck stereotypes and Natural Geographic style nature footage mixed into one delicious cocktail of suspense and
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:02 PM
    • The Bounty Hunter Trilogy (Radiance Films) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Radiance Films
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Shigehiro Ozawa, Eiichi Kudo
      Cast: Tomisaburo Wakayama, Minoru Ôki, Arashi Kanjuro, Bin Amatsu, Chiezo Kataoka
      Year: 1969-1972
      Purchase From Amazon

      The Bounty Hunter Trilogy – Movie Review:

      Radiance Films gathers together the three films in Toie Studios’ Bounty Hunter Trilogy, starring the inimitable Tomisaburo Wakayama. Here’s how the three movies in this
      ...
      03-13-2024, 11:30 AM
    Working...
    X