Leidenschaftliche Blümchen

The movie is one of those soft-core European things, and nobody would remember it today if it weren't for the fact that Nastassja Kinski is the star. The film was originally released in West Germany as Leidenschaftliche Blümchen, and has been shown under such titles as Passion Flower Hotel, Pretty School Girls, and Boarding School, which is how it is listed at IMDb and is the title it had when I saw it on late-night Cinemax (or was it Showtime? HBO?) back in the late 80s. Also has Fabiana Udenio who played "Alotta Fagina" in the first Austin Powers movie.

In this movie, a group of students at an exclusive girls' boarding school become prostitutes. Well, sort of. They all want to lose their virginity, and when the new girl (Kinski) shows up and she isn't a virgin, she becomes the ringleader. She doesn't bother to tell them that her vast sexual experience consists of one, count it one time.

There is a boys' school on the other side of the lake. Instead of doing the logical thing, i.e. contacting the boys to let them know that there is a near-by bevy of virgins in desperate need of deflowering, they decide they have to present themselves to the boys as being very experienced indeed, all of them. And who is more sexually experienced than a prostitute? So prostitutes they become, designating the boathouse as their brothel and buying lingerie and lanterns and costumes and such. The only reason they charge any money is because they'd be rather unconvincing prostitutes if they didn't.

It all sounds very naughty, and the fact that the opening shot is of a barely-legal teenage tit doesn't make it seem any less so. But the movie is more sweet and funny than sleazy, and one can't help but chuckle at how difficult it is for anybody to get laid when everybody is so very, very willing. It is available on DVD in a package deal called "Hollywood Hotties," paired with Kill Cruise and Choices, two other movies nobody would remember if not for their soon-to-be-famous stars (Elizabeth Hurley and Demi Moore, respectively). Fabiana Udenio was about fourteen when Boarding School was made, but she stays covered up enough… just enough.

One thing I find interesting is that the girls become prostitutes not because they want the *money,* but because they want the *status.* Not as much nudity as I remember; I guess I was easier to impress at nineteen.

This was one of my favorite late night cable presentations. Beautifully filmed story of a group of girls attending a Swiss Boarding School. They spend their days talking about boys and sex, things they obviously don't really understand. Then one day a new student arrives, an American girl. The others naturally assume that this new girl, played wonderfully by Nastassja Kinski, is experienced in these matters. There is romance, and school girl pranks involving the students at the neighboring boys school across the lake. The cast is gorgeous to look at, and the soft-focus photography reminded me of the films of David Hamilton. In fact the whole theme of beautiful young girls dealing with the first stirrings of sexuality is all quite reminiscent of Hamilton's work, such as "Erste Sehnsucht", and my favorite, "Laura." Also worth mentioning is the music score by composer Francis Lai, who was responsible for the music in many art house and erotic films of this era. I think "Boarding School" is sadly overlooked. I would like to see this one released on DVD with the original German audio, and uncensored, as I am sure this American version must be cut in places. American censors are unkind to films like these, confusing art for exploitation. The presence of Nastassja Kinski, one of the most beautiful women in the world, along with the appearance of Fabiana Udenio, should warrant an official DVD release!

When my friend and I bought this out of sheer curiosity, we weren't really expecting anything other than poorly filmed soft-core porn. Well, it's visually pretty grainy, and the voices are badly dubbed, but it's not really that much different from most other teen films today except for the fact that it doesn't try to be anything other than what it is; a teen comedy with a bit of female nudity. The two leads were nice to look at and, despite the campy feeling, most emotions on screen were realistic and palatable.

It's not a Scorsese but it's worth a look if you're bored or really like teen movies.

Not bad at all.

I love this movie! I love it because it's such an excellent vehicle for Nastassja Kinski, Fabiana Udenio, and several other nubile young women, including Véronique Delbourg! Nastassja and Véronique would have been 19 at the time this movie was produced, Fabiana only 14, which may be why the two former appeared nude, but Fabiana did not.

My favorite sequence in this movie was a striptease contest held in the attic of the boarding school. Nastassja's character, a student and the ring leader of the other girls who had decided to become prostitutes, hosted this event for some of the boys from an all male boarding school.

Several of the girls performed stripteases during this competition. They employed a variety of gimmicks. One girl belly danced. Another performed a swan-like ballet. Fabiana stripped out of an alligator costume (but only down to a bikini) to the tune of "See Ya Later, Alligator!" My favorite, however, was performed by Véronique Delbourg, who did a dance with a banana skirt, similar to Josephine Baker's. She passed out some of these bananas, but not enough to appear bottomless!

Nastassja did not compete, but she did treat one of the boys to a private, nude performance after the show. This is the most erotic footage of her I have ever seen!

If you find Nastassja Kinski or Fabiana Udenio attractive, and would like to see them and other beautiful actresses at their sexiest, this is a "must see"!

Switzerland, 1956. Five teen girls turn the boathouse near their strict boarding school into an amateur brothel, offering paid services of "sexual education"; the boys from another local boarding school immediately sign up as clients. It sounds sleazy, but the sleaze factor is kept pretty low. The film is surprisingly tame, discreet, tender, even charming at times. The premise may be far-fetched, but the way it's played there are many moments that ring true. IMDb lists the original language as "German", but the English dubbing is barely noticeable, because the voice actors who were chosen to dub the film have varied and distinctly European (but still clear-enough) accents. On the negative side, there isn't much of a plot to the film, and the cinematography is excessively "soft-focus". (**1/2)