The Daughter: I, a Woman Part III Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

The Daughter: I, a Woman Part III Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 17, 2018

Mac Ahlberg's "The Daughter: I, a Woman Part III" (1970) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Film Media. The supplemental features on the disc include a vintage trailer; new audio commentary by critic Tim Lucas; outtakes; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated booklet featuring Tim Lucas' essay "The I, a Woman Phenomenon". In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The daughter

The final entry in Mac Ahlberg’s I, a Woman trilogy again carries a message about female sexuality but is delivered in a slightly different context. This film actually plays a lot more like a conventional erotic melodrama that is already fully aware of the expectations of its audience.

The prologue, however, is seriously misleading because it creates the impression that Ahlberg has crafted a psychedelic mind-bender that will be full of lush and erotically charged visuals. It has that airy quality that only a year after Ahlberg’s film Lucio Fulci will use as the foundation for his cult thriller A Lizard in a Woman's Skin. But the misdirection is brief and then the main protagonist, Birthe (Swedish beauty Inger Sundh), is abruptly pulled out of a trance-like sexual experience and given a large dose of some powerful drug. From here the film jumps back in time where Dr. Leo Smith (Klaus Pagh) has an affair with Birthe’s mother, Siv (Gunbritt Öhrström ), and it is clear that the two are not at all shy about their sexual needs and desires. But Birthie has absolutely no clue that her mother is so ‘open-minded’, so when she unexpectedly returns home from Switzerland and catches the two lovers in bed, she suffers a very serious emotional shock. As the guilty mother attempts to quickly rebuild her ‘proper’ image, the daughter switches in rebellious mode and embarks on a wild journey through the city’s most popular night clubs. In one of them Birthie then meets Stephen (Tm Scott), an American medical student who works with her mother in a nearby hospital, and through him befriends his sister Lisa (Ellen Faison), a go-go girl who is just having a good time. For awhile the friendship restores balance in Birthie’s life, but then gradually she is forced to reevaluate her feelings about her mother as well as her good friends.

Ahlberg’s intent was probably to shoot a ‘serious’ erotic melodrama that presents a few realistic scenarios in which a young woman experiments with different partners and then the type of romantic relationship that is best for her. In these scenarios, what she says and does to justify her decisions is basically where all the messaging occurs. But it is all very straightforward material and when Birthie eventually discovers her dream partner one is left with the impression that it was only a matter of time, which is not what is suggested in the beginning of the film.

Oddly, the most effective messaging occurs with the experiences of Birthie’s mother, Siv, who emerges as a modern woman that isn’t at all uncomfortable with her sexual needs. Unfortunately, Ahlberg very quickly relegates her to being a secondary character that only reacts to her rebellious daughter’s silly adventures. The decision to do so is where the film basically eliminates all genuine opportunities to produce some thought-provoking contrasts that would have put the spotlight on key stereotypes about female sexuality during the ‘70s. (In all fairness, however, the early segment where Siv and Leo are seen joking and having a good time was probably a good enough reason to tag the film ‘bold’ or even ‘risky’. Even in the Scandinavian countries during the early ‘70s this film was almost certainly not considered mainstream).

The colorful footage with the rowdy bikers and the big melee in the night club will likely remind some older viewers of another American film from the late ‘60s considered a camp classic, Hot Rods to Hell, which after going loose for awhile much like Ahnberg’s film at the end evolves into a straightforward melodrama.

The Daughter: I, a Woman Part III Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Mac Ahlberg's The Daughter: I, a Woman Part III arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Film Media.

This film also appears to have been recently transferred in high-definition because there are no limitations of the kind that are typically associated with older DVD masters. ON the other hand, there is a small number of tiny white flecks, some scratches, and occasionally small stains that are left in, so this isn't a proper restoration job. The best news here is that no efforts were made to digitally repolish the film either, so while it could have been cleaned up it also retains a nice organic appearance which is certainly preferable. My main criticism pertains to the decision not to place the film on a separate disc. Indeed, there is quite a bit of content on this single-layer disc and occasionally it is easy to see that with a stronger encoding the film would have looked really nice in high-definition. The color grading is convincing, though I see that some nuances could be expanded. Image stability is very good. My score is 3.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

The Daughter: I, a Woman Part III Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English Dolby Digital 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are not provided for the main feature.

The English audio is stable and clean. However, as it was the case with the other film that is included on this release, 2 - I, a Woman, Part II, it is very easy to tell that a lot of the actors were overdubbed. So, dynamic movement is a bit inconsistent and from time to time the music splits the dialog in a somewhat artificial fashion. But, this is how the official track was recorded.

The Daughter: I, a Woman Part III Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary - in this new audio commentary, critic Tim Lucas discusses the production and distribution history of the original I, a Woman film, the sequel's history, some of the key themes in the film, Mac Ahlberg's work (as a director and cinematographer), etc.

• Trailer - vintage trailer for the film. (2 min, 1080p).

• I, a Woman Outtake Reel - additional content. In English. (8 min).

• Promo Reels - promotional trailers for Film Media's Racy Reels Collection.

• Booklet - 8-page illustrated booklet featuring Tim Lucas' essay "The I, a Woman Phenomenon".

The Daughter: I, a Woman Part III Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

All I can say now is that I hope that Film Media can also release Mac Ahlberg's directorial debut, I, a Woman, on Blu-ray because while not perfect the two sequels that are included in this release turned out to be very nice films. I am actually convinced that Radley Metzger incorporated quite a bit of what Ahlberg was doing at the time into his films and it was then that he began refining his own style. So, as a fan of Metzger's work, I am glad to have these films in my collection. Very nice release. RECOMMENDED.