Eugenie - Marquis De Sade's Philosophy In The Boudoir [DVD]

Good production

Well received, but not the movie remembered, must try to find out which it was we saw

Oh dear , what a waste of 1hr 30mins or so, Christopher Lee must have needed some desparate cash, oh dear

Soft porn poor quality

De Sade may make images of debauchery & chains, whips & canoodling come to mind. This is a delightful modernised Franco flick that takes the Sadean elements & perhaps the zeitgeist of the period, & emphasizes the canoodling elements of Sade against a colourful island backdrop. Camera will as usual pan, tilt and zoom & perhaps impress and frustrate as Franco's mood takes him over the body of the lush grounds and then ground itself in the lush flesh.Alluding to the original philosophical themes of Sade it may be, but for didactic oratory of the texts of Sade we have Christopher Lee delivering the framing verbal flavour. He was only employed for a very short stint, but his presence is telling. His voice and carriage sell the idea rather than outright canoodling. This might be seen as a bombastic attempt at selling an otherwise less than Sade quick flick, or preferably, seen as a device for reminding us at what these degenerates are aiming at through the film...which is the corruption of a youth. Christopher Lee then as ominous bookends.Is there flesh on display, yes. Does it writhe, get attacked & played with in a form other than is usually friendly or sanitary, yes. Does it all seem to be some form of debasing dream that the older, corrupted gathering of degenerates use as an 'explanation' as to why a young girl alone is getting hot and bothered, oh yes. Franco paces it all rather evenly and clearly enjoys the scenario, popping up for a modest quick cameo as a, slightly sweaty heavy-breather at the ritual. Overall it feels less heavy than 'Justine', less hard work than 'Jack the Ripper' or others of its ilk. Thoroughly Franco, with a slight whiff permeating the plot (such as it is) similar to Succubus or Venus in Furs but not quite as trippy as either. Hints of Franco's other flick 'Eugenie De Sade' with Soledad Miranda are always likely on the corruption theme, but generally an excellent place to relax the morals, taste a bit of the Franco fluff-zoom & his local-colour sweep, if that floats your boat. Oh, and there is a boat in it too for added production value.

We start with a naked woman on an alter. She is stabbed and her heart is non-graphically removed by Maria Rohm's character, Marianne. Christopher Lee narrates the scene. But this is only a depiction of what Marianne is reading about in a seethrough blouse.Marianne exchanges sexual favours with Eugenie's father for permission to take Eugenie to her island. There, Eugenie and Marianne seem to be getting on very well, with naked washing, sunbathing and lesbianism, but at lunch Marianne and her brother/boyfriend drug Eugenie's drink, and subject her to rape, which she believes to be a dream.The de Sade Appreciation Society, featuring Christopher Lee, arrive on the island, dressed in 18th/19th century costume in honour of de Sade. Shenanigans follow, involving more seethrough clothing, murder, sadism (of course), and Eugenie running about on the island naked. The brief scene in which Marianne, dressed only in a belt and extremely high boots, whips Eugenie, is a joy to see.This film, "Eugenie, the Story of her Journey into Perversion", also known as "Marquis de Sade's Philosophy in the Boudoir", is not to be confused with "Eugenie de Sade", which is a different film, also directed by Jess Franco, about a father and daughter murdering people for a laugh.Extras include a trailer, a slideshow and a short film showing interviews with Jess Franco, Christopher Lee, and Marie Liljedahl (Eugenie), with clips from the main film.Picture quality is very good and the dubbed soundtrack is good enough. It was made in 1969, so the sex and violence are not graphic by modern standards, and female pubic beards are on display.

not that good wasn't impressed

Excellent