Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Vampyros Lesbos Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 16, 2015

Jess Franco's "Vampyros Lesbos" (1971) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films. The supplemental features on the disc include the alternative Spanish language version of the film, "Las Vampiras"; original German trailer for the film; archival interview with Jess Franco, video interview with author Stephen Thrower; and more. In German, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Countess Nadine Carody

In a busy nightclub somewhere in Istanbul, a dark-haired beauty performs an exotic dance that captivates the imagination of the sexually frustrated blonde Linda Westinghouse (Ewa Strömberg, The Devil Came from Akasava). Later on, Linda confesses to her psychiatrist that the dancer has frequently appeared in her dreams and he suggests that she finds herself a better lover.

Soon after, Linda is sent to the Kadidados Islands to assist Countess Nadine Carody (Soledad Miranda, She Killed in Ecstasy), who has recently received an inheritance from Count Dracula. Before she gets there, Linda spends a night in a shady hotel where a weird looking attendant (played by Jess Franco) warns her not to go to the Kadidados Islands because “death lives there”.

But the blonde ignores the warning and on the following day meets the Countess. She is shocked to discover that she looks exactly like the exotic dancer from the night club in Istanbul. After a casual lunch, Linda’s world spins out of control.

Jess Franco’s Vampyros Lesbos is a film with multiple identities. A good portion of it is developed around key elements from Bram Stoker’s famous Gothic novel about Count Dracula, but the entire film is intended to be one very colorful and seductive psychedelic trip. As a result, the unconventional overlapping of the horror and psychedelic material could create the impression that the narrative is actually awfully incoherent.

The dreamy environment in which Linda meets the elegant Countess, however, is arguably the film’s biggest strength. It allows Franco to avoid various genre clichés and unleash his imagination without having to worry about accuracy. In other words, Stoker’s novel is nothing more than a point of departure for Franco and his exotic film.

There are plenty of naked bodies, but the sexual content is modest at best (and certainly by Franco standards). The majority of it is actually surprisingly well lit and shot, creating the impression that Franco and cinematographer Manuel Merino (99 Women, Justine de Sade) actually had a much bigger budget to work with. (The stage dances are wonderful).

Two versions of Vampyros Lesbos have been available on the home video market: German and Spanish. The German language version of the film is the one Franco preferred. It is complimented by a truly phenomenal soundtrack courtesy of the German duo Manfred Hubler and Sigi Schwab. “Droge CX 9", “The Lions and the Cucumber”, and “Shindai Lovers”, for instance, are widely regarded as classic psychedelic tunes. The Spanish language version was distributed under the alternative title Las Vampiras. It uses alternative opening titles and it is edited slightly differently.

Severin Films’ Blu-ray release of Vampyros Lesbos includes the newly restored German version of the film as well as the unrestored Spanish version.

Vampyros Lesbos Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.66:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jess Franco's Vampyros Lesbos arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films.

If you have seen any of Ascot Elite's Golden Goya Collection releases (Jack the Ripper, Ilsa - The Mad Butcher, Downtown), then you should have a pretty good idea what type of work has been done for Vampyros Lesbos. Generally speaking, detail and clarity range from satisfying to decent to occasionally good. Depth fluctuates as well -- either because of production limitations or because there is footage from an inferior source -- but the fluctuations never become distracting. Grain is visible, but there are traces of extremely light denoising corrections. As a result, select sequences could look a bit flat (see screencaptures #5, 18, 19), while some sequences could even convey borderline smearing effects (see screencapture #16). Because the encoding has not been optimized, it appears that some of the high-frequencies are also partially clipped. This further exacerbates the softness and also introduces some light artifacts (see screencapture #2). Colors are stable and natural, but saturation could be better. Finally, there are a few uneven transitions, but overall image stability is good. All in all, despite the issues mentioned above this is a decent presentation of Vampyros Lesbos. However, more often than not it is very easy to see that there is plenty of room for substantial improvements. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your Blu-ray player regardless of your geographical location).

Vampyros Lesbos Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: German LPCM 2.0. Optional English subtitles have been provided for the main feature.

The fantastic psychedelic soundtrack benefits the most from the lossless treatment. And with the music having such an important role in the film, there really are some quite dramatic improvements (listen to "The Lions & The Cucumber" and you will know exactly what I mean). The dialog is stable and easy to follow, but occasionally some extremely light background hiss sneaks in. Interestingly enough, however, during the music themes it almost completely disappears. There are no audio dropouts or digital distortions to report in this review. The English translation is very good.

Vampyros Lesbos Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Blu-ray

• Interlude in Lesbos: Interview with writer/director Jess Franco - in this archival video interview, the late Spanish director discusses his relationship with German producer Artur Brauner and the films he did with Soledad Miranda, as well as the production history of Vampyros Lesbos. In English, with optional English subtitles. (21 min, 1080p).

• Stephen Thrower on Vampyros Lesbos - in this video interview, Stephen Thrower, author of Murderous Passions - The Delirious Cinema of Jess Franco, discusses Jess Franco's work with producer Artur Brauner during the 70s (both Vampyros Lesbos and She Killed in Ecstasy were produced by Artur Brauner), the unusual style and atmosphere of Vampyros Lesbos (with some specific comments about the character the director plays himself), the soundtrack used on the German version of the film, some of the key differences between the German version (which is the preferred by Jess Franco version) and the Spanish version of the film, etc. In English, with optional English subtitles. (12 min, 1080p).

• Sublime Soledad - in this new video interview, Amy Brown (soledadmiranda.com) discusses the life and legacy of actress Soledad Miranda and her professional relationship with Jess Franco. In English, not subtitled. (21 min, 1080i).

• Jess Is Yoda Clip - a hilarious interview with Jess Franco in which he reveals that apparently he was the inspiration for the popular Star Wars character. In English, with optional English subtitles. (3 min, 1080p).

• German Opening Title Sequence - in German, with optional English subtitles. (2 min, 1080p).

• German Trailer - original German trailer for Vampyros Lesbos. In German, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080i).

DVD

• Las Vampiras - the alternative Spanish language version of the film. In Spanish, with optional English subtitles. (Dolby Digital 2.0/1.33:1).

• Poster - mini poster for Vampyros Lesbos.

Vampyros Lesbos Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Vampyros Lesbos is certainly one of cult Spanish director Jess Franco's very best films. It is very atmospheric, unusually well lensed, and complimented by what many consider to be one of the top psychedelic soundtracks from the '70s. The preferred by Franco German language version of the film has been recently remastered. It looks fine in high-definition, but it should have looked more convincing. RECOMMENDED.