Girl Slaves of Morgana Le Fay (1971)

Roger Ebert often used to talk about "wrong gas-station movies", ie. low-grade horror or thriller flicks which start with the protagonists stopping at a seedy gas-station/diner where the air-conditioning is broken, the food is rotten and the attendant is a repulsive individual wearing coveralls and slime.A similar case could be made for the "wrong pub movie", a sub-genre of European horror that begins with young, female tourists stopping in the sole meeting place in a tiny, forgotten hamlet somewhere deep in the central European country side. Whereas the "wrong gas station" employees are always seedy and revolting, the "wrong pub" diners always fall completely silent, and perhaps even seem to freeze upon the young travellers' entrance into their domains, in much the same way the decor of the establishment is invariably frozen in the past.They will often be warned by the custodian of the establishment to leave the village, or more particularly, to stay away from the castle on the hill - a warning they obviously never heed.I've seen this set-up in some Hammer movies, at least one of the "Tombs of the Blind Dead" movies, and variations of it in some of the films of Euro-horror legend Paul Naschy, and, as you will have guessed, have also just seen it in "Girl Slaves of Morgana le Fay", a curious French sort of horror-fantasy from 1971. You see, with this not atypical beginning underway, I expected the kind of violent, exploitative grindhouse horror hijinks you get from virtually any other b-grade Eurohorror flick of the '70s. I was surprised to find, however, that "Girl Slaves of Morgana le Fay" deviates from the pack in a number of underwhelming ways:Firstly, I don't remember any violence in the movie at all. Hardly a common statement to make regarding this particular genre, shot in this particular place, in this particular time;Secondly, there is a surprisingly lack of nudity and sex for MOST of the movie's run-time. There is little, if any, of what I would call full-frontal nudity, and what nudity there is is usually not the camera's focal point. The movie does have a climax - no pun intended - however, that features more nudity and lesbian sex. Overall, "Girl Slaves of Morgana le Fay" stands out for its quite unexploitative and tasteful treatment of nudity and sex.Lastly, and this may be a plus or a minus depending on your point of view, the movie has a go at the whole "dreamlike" atmosphere sort of thing, that so many other low-budget horror/fantasy movies also attempted, and failed at, miserably. "Morgana le Fay", however, largely succeeds at this, which is surprising.This brings me to my main problem with the movie, though. This atmosphere isn't really used to the service of any effect, other than eventual boredom. "Morgana le Fay" isn't really a horror movie; it's spooky, sure, but it never really tries to scare you. Such a typical set-up for a horror flick, and a superior atmosphere, leaves you wanting more.Hence, "Girl Slaves of Morgana le Fay" is like an hour-and-a-half joke without the punchline.

The girlfriends Françoise (Mireille Saunin) and Anna (Michèle Perello) are traveling through the countryside of France by car. They stop at a roadhouse to drink wine and buy coffee, and the owner advises them to return. However they proceed their trip but they get lost on the road.They decide to spend the night in an abandoned barn. In the morning, Françoise does not find Anna and she seeks her out. Out of the blue, the dwarf Gurth (Alfred Baillou) asks her to follow him and he shows a castle in an island where Anna would be.Françoise takes a boat that sails alone and brings her to the castle. Sooner she learns that she has reached the lesbian realm of the witch Morgane (Dominique Delpierre) that proposes Françoise to stay in her kingdom living in eternal youth and beauty with her favorites Yael (Régine Motte), Sylviane (Ursule Pauly) and Sarah (Nathalie Chaine). Otherwise she would be doomed to get older and older in the dungeons of the castle. Further, Françoise learns that Anna has given her soul to Morgane and will stay in the place forever. But Françoise does not want to stay and plots a plan to escape."Morgane et ses Nymphes" is an erotic tale about a woman that is trapped in an oneiric castle of lesbians mastered by the evil witch Morgane. The director Bruno Gantillon succeeds in the atmosphere of dream, supported by gorgeous actresses and wonderful music score. But the film is disappointing since I was expecting much more from the synopsis. My vote is six.Title (Brazil): "Morgana e as Ninfas" ("Morgane and the Nymphs")

One of the things that makes the 70's a superior era over the 80's for film is the soundtrack. Morgane et Ses Nymphes is no exception to this. The music is charming, without being tacky. Melodic without being intrusive and turning the mood sappy. In the 80's you could have a good film and then when the dischordant synth chords come through, it just always seems to detract rather than enhance. I felt like the composer was very familiar and must have been a very prolific contributor to many films of this genre/era, but I noticed that only one other film has been credited to him. The 3rd Man kept coming to mind... Not that this movie is a masterpiece, but the subject matter is interesting, in the Jean Rollin vein, and it's always an immense pleasure to see women in their au naturel state, pre-silicone. It's easy to see how it could have been perceived as borderline pornographic in 1971. The extras on this DVD are highly recommended. The short film made by the same director is worth a look for sure.

Inspired by the exploits of the famous witch found in Arthurian legends, this film has an appropriately medieval feel to it - not least because of its authentic castle setting and the evocative score by Francois de Roubaix (using the pseudonym Cisco El Rubio!). While it was sold as exploitation on the strength of its copious nudity (the mostly female cast also entailing lesbianism), the script - where characterization is given its due, which is more than can be said for most "Euro-Cult" titles! - is surprisingly literate. In this respect - not to mention having the titular character's dungeon crammed with a bevy of mostly willing slaves! - the film anticipated the "Elizabeth Bathory" segment in Walerian Borowczyk's IMMORAL TALES (1974). Speaking of Bathory, Dominique Delpierre's Morgana here actually reminded me of that character as incarnated by Delphine Seyrig in DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS (1971) - which, incidentally, was also scored by De Roubaix!The sustained dream-like mood here results in a languorous pace, which is actually typical of low-budget fantasy films made in France during this time: its main purveyors were Jean Rollin and Jess Franco, but Gantillon's effort is ample proof that others (whose career wasn't as prolific and, consequently, faded into obscurity) were, at least, equally adept at this sort of thing; though it often descended into camp - which the title under review here, thankfully, doesn't! - Michel Lemoine's SEVEN WOMEN FOR Satan (1974), incidentally also a Mondo Macabro release, is another one of its kind I enjoyed a good deal.Besides, the film's production values (primarily - and economically - utilizing natural resources), accentuated by Jean Monsigny's odd framing, impart the film with an effortless classiness not usually found in lowbrow "Euro-Cult" ventures. That said, the lengthy feast/lesbian orgy towards the end stops the film dead in its tracks and the unresolved ending may seem like a cop-out (though I took it as merely another bizarre touch in a movie filled with unconventional detail).With respect to casting, this too appears to have received some uncommon consideration: the sinister-looking Alfred Baillou is memorable as Morgana's love-struck (yet jealous) dwarf henchman!; Delpierre (who is able to materialize wherever she pleases, as is demonstrated in the final moments of the film) and Regine Motte (as one of her three favored nymphs endowed with psychic powers: in fact, one of the most striking scenes in the film is when they relate to Morgana the movements of the fleeing heroine beyond the castle walls - which is shown in a form of stylized choreography) are the loveliest of the six leading ladies, but also the most able performers.