THINGS TO COME and LA FEMME OBJET now on BluRay

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Corey Fantoccini
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THINGS TO COME and LA FEMME OBJET now on BluRay

Post by Corey Fantoccini » Sat Dec 26, 2020 2:41 pm

The reliable exploitation BluRay and preservation label Vinegar Syndrome recently partnered with two other companies to release some long-desired 70s movies with robot content. I picked them both up during their recent Black Friday sale and they came in this week. Thought I would give you a heads up on them as to whether they're worth getting.

From American Genre Film Archive, a unit of Alamo Drafthouse, THINGS TO COME is a 1976 San Antonio, Texas-lensed sci-fi drama about a female reporter who visits a luxury compound along the lines of WESTWORLD where a fleet of robots are available both to pleasure the guests and be hunted down for sport DEATH RACE 2000 style. The outfits are the usual skin-tight 70s affairs we've known and loved, and there's a particularly nice scene when, after the reporter goes rogue at the colony, the fleet is shut down and then restarted as they pursue her.

However, if you want to get technical (ENDING SPOILER)...
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the reporter discovers to her horror that the staff are not in fact robots, but actual people who have been medically altered to be controllable like robots, which means that real humans are being killed in the games. And befitting most Depressing Sci-Fi Dystopias with a Guy in a Black Turtleneck, she is converted and becomes one of the '"robot" fleet herself. So if that's an issue for some in the fantasy department, you have been warned.
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Mastered from what is likely the single surviving print of the film, it looks very nice, and as a bit of fun, is viewable either in its full version or in what they call "Smut Without Smut," where all the sex scenes are removed. That version features a commentary track from the AGFA team; I have not yet listened to it, but they are a knowledgeable and fun bunch when it comes to odd forgotten films. There is also a bonus film, THE DIRTY DOLLS, which unfortunately for our demographic, is not about human-size dolls come to life, but should still be entertaining.

The other is a very gorgeous restoration by Pulse Films in France of Claude Mulot's 1981 LA FEMME OBJET aka PROGRAMMED FOR PLEASURE, clips of which have circulated around these parts for years. A sexually selfish writer, who is seen blithely proceeding through several women who ultimately leave him, hits upon creating a robot who will satisfy him whenever he wishes. But after a while, the robot starts exhibiting a will of her own. Be advised, the robot plot doesn't come into play until 40 minutes in, so if you're impatient for that, you'll be doing some chapter skipping. But overall, it's quite a captivating work for a porn, with an awesome electronica soundtrack. Mulot was an otherwise mainstream director who moonlighted in porn under the name Frédéric Lansac, so he knows how to create shots and build emotional interest.

This disc has some super extras, beginning with an hour-long docco about the making of the film, including an interview with the actress playing the robot, Marilyn Jess. It's not often you get any actress who plays a robot to talk about the experience, especially for this kind of deep cut movie, so it's great to have her describe the experience and how it lined up with her real-life relationship at the time where her then-partner was a submissive personality. The lead actor and the surviving crew also are interviewed. There's also a short about the restoration work put in to make the film look good for BluRay, and a gallery of trailers for movies either starring Jess or directed by Mulot.

Bottom line, I would recommend both, though if you're a cut-to-the-chase personality you may get restless. Right now Vinegar Syndrome's website is down as they are fulfilling a large backlog of orders, but they'll be open again soon and you can order from them. They have a lot of great horror and exploitation films in their catalog as well worth checking out. IRL I've done a commentary track for one of their releases, so I'm a little biased to be sure.

Svengli
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Re: THINGS TO COME and LA FEMME OBJET now on BluRay

Post by Svengli » Sat Jan 02, 2021 2:54 pm

Maybe put on the FTP?

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