SusannahSpirits of the Dead
March 16th 2008 08:43
Spirits of the Dead (French - 1968)
(aka: Tales of Mystery and Imagination; Histoires extraordinaires)
“Metzengerstein:”
Starring: Jane Fonda, Peter Fonda.
Directed By: Roger Vadim
“William Wilson:”
Starring: Alain Deon, Brigitte Bardot.
Directed By: Louis Malle
“Toby Dammit:”
Starring: Terence Stamp
Directed By: Federico Fellini
Loosely based on three short stories by Edgar Allan Poe, Spirits of the Dead is more about showcasing the styles of three very distinct directors, than exploring the ideas of Poe.
The first story, “Metzengerstein,” stars Jane Fonda (acting for then husband Vadim) as Contessa Frederica, the ruler of a fourteenth century style hamlet, where all the place names are in German, but all the actors speak French. She has absolute rule over her domain, thus her castle is filled with excessive consumption of food, alcohol, wine and sex. Vadim uses this opportunity to put his wife into as many skimpy, Barbarella style, period outfits as possible.
No one is brave enough to contradict the Contessa, until she meets her cousin, Baron Wilhelm. Previously content with shouting taunts at him from afar, she finally meets him when he frees her from an animal trap. Fascinated by his defiance, she falls in love with him. Oddly, Baron Wilhelm is played by Fonda’s real life brother, Peter Fonda.
Accidentally killing him, when she meant only to spite him, the Contessa is tormented and only finds solace in riding a mysterious black stallion that appears at the castle on the day of Wilhelm’s death. And what about the tapestry in her room with the mysterious rip? What will happen when the Contessa has it repaired?
This is an intriguing, if indulgent segment. Quite a lot of time is spent by Vadim dwelling on the excesses of the Contessa’s court, so you feel a little like you are watching a missing scene from Vadim’s other film starring Jane Fonda, Barbarella, but once the mystery with the horse is introduced the story becomes quite fascinating.
Whereas “William Wilson” is an intriguing story from the outset. Directed by Louis Malle, it begins with a man, William Wilson (Alain Delon) entering a church where he claims he has just killed a man, and insists on confessing his sins to a priest. As he recounts his tale we meet William Wilson as a rather malevolent boy who delights in tormenting other school children at his boarding school (where they are all dressed in rather fascistic uniforms). One day a new boy arrives at the school. He is also called William Wilson.
As the first William Wilson is tormenting a boy by having him lowered into a vat containing rats, the other William Wilson shows up, and the first William Wilson loses his nerve. He is so perturbed that someone shares his name that he attempts to kill the other William Wilson later that night. They are both expelled from the school. This pattern continues to happen throughout William Wilson’s life, with the other William Wilson showing up to prevent him from doing bad deeds. It ultimately climaxes in an intense card game with Brigitte Bardot (in a black wig) as Giuseppina.
Storywise, this is the most satisfying of the three tales. Malle weaves an intriguing story which reaches a satisfying and metaphysical conclusion. The shots are well composed, with fluid, modern camera-work.
The third and final story, “Toby Dammit,” is basically pure Fellini. Terence Stamp plays Toby Dammit, a decadent, drunk, and washed-up once great actor. Exactly why his life is in such a shambles is never clear. The segment begins with him arriving in Rome (again the film is in French) to attend an Italian awards ceremony where he will be given a lifetime achievement award, a She-Wolf, for his work in film. Dammit is tormented by visions of the devil as a little blonde girl, who plays with a balloon. She is the scariest young woman I have seen on screen since Ringu.
As Toby Dammit, Terence Stamp looks like hell. He is all wasted, with a pallid, nutrient-free pallor and stringy blonde hair on top. Fellini is in fine form, emphasising the decadence and ridiculousness of the awards ceremony, and making the filmic style become more and more disoriented as Dammit becomes drunker and drunker.
Eventually the awards ceremony organisers gift Dammit with a car. He rides off into the night, determined to escape Rome, but finds that there is no way out of the devil’s game, unless you give in…
Altogether Spirits of the Dead is a satisfying and fascinating collection of horror stories with the essence of Poe, filtered through the individual styles of some of the most interesting directors of cinema in the 1960’s.
(aka: Tales of Mystery and Imagination; Histoires extraordinaires)
“Metzengerstein:”
Starring: Jane Fonda, Peter Fonda.
Directed By: Roger Vadim
“William Wilson:”
Starring: Alain Deon, Brigitte Bardot.
Directed By: Louis Malle
“Toby Dammit:”
Starring: Terence Stamp
Directed By: Federico Fellini
Loosely based on three short stories by Edgar Allan Poe, Spirits of the Dead is more about showcasing the styles of three very distinct directors, than exploring the ideas of Poe.
The first story, “Metzengerstein,” stars Jane Fonda (acting for then husband Vadim) as Contessa Frederica, the ruler of a fourteenth century style hamlet, where all the place names are in German, but all the actors speak French. She has absolute rule over her domain, thus her castle is filled with excessive consumption of food, alcohol, wine and sex. Vadim uses this opportunity to put his wife into as many skimpy, Barbarella style, period outfits as possible.
No one is brave enough to contradict the Contessa, until she meets her cousin, Baron Wilhelm. Previously content with shouting taunts at him from afar, she finally meets him when he frees her from an animal trap. Fascinated by his defiance, she falls in love with him. Oddly, Baron Wilhelm is played by Fonda’s real life brother, Peter Fonda.
Accidentally killing him, when she meant only to spite him, the Contessa is tormented and only finds solace in riding a mysterious black stallion that appears at the castle on the day of Wilhelm’s death. And what about the tapestry in her room with the mysterious rip? What will happen when the Contessa has it repaired?
This is an intriguing, if indulgent segment. Quite a lot of time is spent by Vadim dwelling on the excesses of the Contessa’s court, so you feel a little like you are watching a missing scene from Vadim’s other film starring Jane Fonda, Barbarella, but once the mystery with the horse is introduced the story becomes quite fascinating.
Whereas “William Wilson” is an intriguing story from the outset. Directed by Louis Malle, it begins with a man, William Wilson (Alain Delon) entering a church where he claims he has just killed a man, and insists on confessing his sins to a priest. As he recounts his tale we meet William Wilson as a rather malevolent boy who delights in tormenting other school children at his boarding school (where they are all dressed in rather fascistic uniforms). One day a new boy arrives at the school. He is also called William Wilson.
As the first William Wilson is tormenting a boy by having him lowered into a vat containing rats, the other William Wilson shows up, and the first William Wilson loses his nerve. He is so perturbed that someone shares his name that he attempts to kill the other William Wilson later that night. They are both expelled from the school. This pattern continues to happen throughout William Wilson’s life, with the other William Wilson showing up to prevent him from doing bad deeds. It ultimately climaxes in an intense card game with Brigitte Bardot (in a black wig) as Giuseppina.
Storywise, this is the most satisfying of the three tales. Malle weaves an intriguing story which reaches a satisfying and metaphysical conclusion. The shots are well composed, with fluid, modern camera-work.
The third and final story, “Toby Dammit,” is basically pure Fellini. Terence Stamp plays Toby Dammit, a decadent, drunk, and washed-up once great actor. Exactly why his life is in such a shambles is never clear. The segment begins with him arriving in Rome (again the film is in French) to attend an Italian awards ceremony where he will be given a lifetime achievement award, a She-Wolf, for his work in film. Dammit is tormented by visions of the devil as a little blonde girl, who plays with a balloon. She is the scariest young woman I have seen on screen since Ringu.
As Toby Dammit, Terence Stamp looks like hell. He is all wasted, with a pallid, nutrient-free pallor and stringy blonde hair on top. Fellini is in fine form, emphasising the decadence and ridiculousness of the awards ceremony, and making the filmic style become more and more disoriented as Dammit becomes drunker and drunker.
Eventually the awards ceremony organisers gift Dammit with a car. He rides off into the night, determined to escape Rome, but finds that there is no way out of the devil’s game, unless you give in…
Altogether Spirits of the Dead is a satisfying and fascinating collection of horror stories with the essence of Poe, filtered through the individual styles of some of the most interesting directors of cinema in the 1960’s.
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