Vampyros Lesbos (1971) – Film Review

Director: Jesús Franco
Cast: Soledad Miranda, Dennis Price, Paul Muller
Certificate: 18

By Sarah Morgan

Cult films are not exactly a rarity, but few have a name quite so notorious as Vampyros Lesbos, director Jesús (Jess) Franco’s 1970 mix of horror and erotica.

But despite its name being famous, I’d wager that the majority of those who have heard of it have never actually seen it – the movie’s soundtrack, however… Well, that’s a different matter.

Written by Manfred Hubler, Siegfried Schwab and David Kuhne (a pseudonym for Franco hmself), the music gained a new lease of life in the 1990s when it appeared on various compilation CDs. That’s certainly when I became aware of it anyway, and it’s only now, roughly 30 (yikes!) years later that I’ve had a chance to see the film for the first time.

“Outlandish”

The Vatican once claimed that Franco was “the most dangerous director in the world,” thanks to his passion for mixing sex and violence. Both feature heavily in Vampyros Lesbos; in fact, if you’re already familiar with his work, then you know the kind of thing to expect – an outlandish tale featuring extraordinary imagery, nudity and some gore.

Soledad Miranda, using the stage name Susann Korda, heads the cast as the mysterious Countess Nadine Carody, a vampire who has been haunting the dreams of lawyer Linda Westinghouse (Ewa Stromberg). When their paths finally cross in reality, Linda is drawn to the Countess, and the pair become lovers.

However, as the Countess’s true nature begins to emerge, Linda tries to fight back.

“Visuals are arresting”

The story is relatively close to that of Dracula, but turns many of its tropes on their heads. For instance, the central characters are female, the Countess is not repelled by sunlight or water, and Dr Seward (played here by the wonderful Dennis Price) isn’t a kindly presence, but rather a grasping one, desperate to know the Countess’s secrets so he can use them for his own devious ends. There’s even a Renfield-style character in the form of Agra, a psychiatric patient who can sense the Countess’s presence.

For fans of Bram Stoker’s novel, it makes for interesting viewing. However, on the whole, it’s neither erotic enough to be truly titillating or scary enough to be a true horror movie. Still, some of the visuals are arresting, and thanks to a bevy of special features, the newly restored UHD/Blu-ray package is well worth a look.

Of particular interest to those who may know little about her is a tribute to star Miranda, who died in a car crash shortly after completing filming on her next Franco project, She Killed in Ecstasy.

Sarah Morgan( Writer )

Sarah Morgan studied film journalism at post-graduate level with the BFI and has been writing about TV and film for PA Media’s newspaper, magazine and new media customers since 1996. She’s also written for a wide range of other publications, both online and in print, including the book Offbeat and Intermission magazine, and is a regular contributor to the Talking Pictures TV podcast. When she isn’t watching movies, she’s collecting and reading vintage crime and horror paperback books or, for her sins, watching her beloved Sheffield Wednesday.

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