Le foto proibite di una signora per bene
**/**** Image A+ Sound A Extras B+
starring Dagmar Lassander, Pier Paolo Capponi, Simon Andreu, Susan Scott
screenplay by Ernesto Gastaldi
directed by Luciano Ercoli
by Travis Mackenzie Hoover Minou (Dagmar Lassander) is speaking of her beloved spouse Peter (Pier Paolo Capponi): "He's been everything to me," she says, "husband, father…" Yes, it's 1970, and women were still expected in some quarters to be adoring children gazing upward at their supermen companions. To be sure, The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion tries to disabuse its luscious red-haired protag of her habit, but not before preying on her trusting nature in the name of lurid shenanigans and psychological abuse. More than feel the S&M knot tightening, you get the sneaking suspicion that this would be the result if Hugh Hefner had decided to direct Diabolique. Throw in a manipulative sex offender (Simon Andreu) and a racy best friend named Dominique (Susan Scott) with a penchant for porn and you've got a delightfully retrograde giallo that's as childish as it is lurid.
Minou has been in a bit of a pickle ever since that night a nameless perv tackled her on the beach and suggested Peter was capable of murder. That doesn't seem possible, but the attacker produces an incriminating cassette describing the faked suicide of a hated loan shark–and the price of its release is her body. She disgustedly submits to his vile caresses only to discover he's photographed the whole sordid session for blackmail purposes. Of course, once she finally comes clean nobody believes her: the fiend's bachelor pad proves empty when she brings in the authorities, and even normally-dependable sexpot Dominique thinks Minou's reports of various strange goings-on and threatening phone calls are figments of her imagination. Is she crazy? Is she in danger? Should she stop mixing Scotch and tranquilizers?
Without revealing too much, it could be argued that the film is trying to wean our passive heroine off her dependency and trusting nature. And it could just as easily be argued that it exploits that passive and trusting nature to make the exquisite torture that much more sadistically acute. Perhaps the movie is a patronizing compromise between the two, inventing a crisis so as to ride in and capitalize on her plight. Alas, this would be giving The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion too much credit: the whole thing has the mentality of a junior-high kid whose only exposure to the outside world is through telenovelas and glossy magazines. The film is a glorified showcase for a ritzy house and groovy outfits, and the small amount of skin the heroines flash is to keep the men in the audience interested. It isn't designed to take scrutiny–it's just rich people having sexy problems.
A quote from HORRORVIEW breathlessly claims The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion to be full of "fiendish red herrings and mind-warping twists!" The only thing mind-warping about it is a) that it features the kind of funky crash pad a respectable businessman could be expected to have in 1970, and b) that the filmmakers could have expected anyone to take their Scooby-Doo Clouzot of a plot in any way seriously. The mystery is largely bogus, as Minou's descent into self-doubt and madness is clearly designed to be resolved in the final reel. Any thematic resonance is rendered null for reasons discussed above, with girly giggling standing in for the notion of Sisterhood as Power. That the film is dubbed with some hugely inappropriate voice talents seals the deal quite nicely for a colourful but ludicrous romp that requires an undiscerning giallo fan to appreciate.
THE DVD
Blue Underground once again shows up the majors with a scorchingly brilliant transfer of a forgotten title. The astoundingly well-balanced 2.35:1, 16×9-enhanced image is vivid but not oversaturated and sharp but not austere. It's perhaps the finest effort I've seen from people who really know how it's done. The Dolby Digital 2.0 mono incarnation of the film's English dub is almost as good, mostly thanks to what it lacks, i.e., tinniness and soundtrack hiss. Extras include a 9-minute interview with co-writer Ernesto Gastaldi, who sketches an impression of the whirlwind giallo film world that kept him well-fed. Coming off a series of horror movies, The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion was actually a bit of a departure for him: written for his wife, it landed him in the lap of director Luciano Ercoli, with whom he collaborated for some time afterwards. No big surprises in the interview, but Gastaldi is genial enough. Also included: the movie's trailer.
96 minutes; NR; 2.35:1 (16×9-enhanced); English DD 2.0 (Mono); DVD-9; Region-free; Blue Underground
