Baba Yaga

I saw this in my local video store for a while, and only rented it after finally reading the reviews here, and I must say, it was quite bizaare.

Valentina is a photographer who, one night, has a run-in with a mysterious woman named Baba Yaga. Baba Yaga asks to borrow something from Valentina, promising to give it back the next morning. (I have no idea what the thing was--I decided to just forget it.) Valentina agrees, and after a very odd photoshoot with one model the next morning, she finds Baba Yaga at her door, with the item as promised. The woman also inspects Valentina's camera, and then everything Valentina photographs is plagued by something horrible. Things continue, including a creepy photoshoot at Baba Yaga's home, the gift of a strange leather-clad doll named Annette, all leading up to an extremely bizaare ending.

Definitely not for everyone, but still an okay movie. Fans of giallo thrillers will like this very offbeat, trippy movie. I didn't really understand the meaning behind Valentina's SS-influenced dreams, and in fact, they were quite disturbing. The bottomless pit in Baba Yaga's house was a nice touch, and actually, the house in total was quite creepy. Annette was very weird, the living doll. And the ending--that was the oddest part of the whole movie! As I said, not for everyone, but still entertaining. And am I the only one who thought the music was nothing special? Sorry, I didn't get what all the hype was about from the other reviewers. Oh well. Still, check this movie out if you can find it.

Baba Yaga is the story of Valentine, a photographer who photographs women(just one is model is used throughout the movie however), usually in various states of undress. She meets the mystical Carroll Baker and becomes entranced with Baker(Mystically not sexually at first). Carroll Baker puts some sort of hex on Valentine's camera and ,everytime Valentine shoots a picture of an individual, she metaphorically, at least I think, injures them as well. Slowly, The attraction pulling Valentine to Baker's character evolves into a sexual one. Valenntine is lured to Baker's home, molested and whipped and saved in the end by her boyfriend. It is a fascinating movie. I will not say that it is a great movie cause there are a few things that the viewer is left wanting. Partly, It is, in my opinion at least, based on an adult comic book that was probably relevant more in 70's Italy, and partly because of censor's scissors that chopped a bit of the movie. Farina, the director, creates wonderful atmosphere and lures you in. Isabelle De Funes, as Valentine, is absolutely gorgeous and intriguing. The Blue Underground version of this film has the censored scenes that were cut out in the extra section of the DVD. Of note in that is a full frontal nude scene from Carroll Baker. Also, A twenty two minute interview with Corrado Farina who, though no great surprise, says Jean-Luc Goddard was an inspiration of his.

If you answered "Yes" you should not bother seeing this movie. However, if you can view a haunted house dark ride style movie as a satisfying cinematic viewing experience, then strap yourself in and enjoy the view as creepy weird unexplained visions flash in front of you. Pouty-lipped Valentina is smack-dab in the middle of the art house European revolution crowd of the time - photographing nude woman by day and walking the lonely city streets at night alone, which is how she meets up with "Baba Yaga" a mysterious woman who dresses in black (played by the always lovely Carroll Baker). She instantly weaves a spell over Valentina haunting her thoughts, her dreams and her camera. She also does a pretty decent job of weaving her magic spell over the viewer. "Baba Yaga" takes Gothic Horror, stylish pop art, comic books and bondage sex, whirls them in a blender and spews the concoction forth. Although very often defined as a "Giallo" film this certainly belongs more to the "Art Horror" genre. Those who are fans of the trippy stylish body-baring Giallo/Horror output from Italy circa 1970 should put "Baba Yaga" on their "must-watch" list.

Apparently inspired by a comic book, "Baba Yaga" is an unusually compelling, surreal nightmare of movie that also is vibrant with the essence of the late 1960s. The story follows pretty young fashion photographer Valentina (Isabelle De Funes) who runs afoul of seductive sorceress Baba Yaga (Carroll Baker) who proceeds to meddle in her life via a tiny doll in an S&M getup. Baba is not one to take rejection lightly, and subjects Valentina to physical and psychological torments. Well-made, hard-to-pigeonhole film, director Corrado Farina succeeds in creating moody atmosphere and a warped logic in which anything can and will happen. Funes in particular does a superb job of convincing the audience of the vacuum that's engulfing her; a young George Eastman ("Anthropophagous") fares well in the role of her disbelieving commercial-director boyfriend. The direction, which intercuts comic-book imagery with hallucinogenic dream sequences (which all seem to possess a Nazi angle), is skillful and unpretentious.

Until relatively recently comic books in the US were mostly aimed at kids (and thanks to a self-censorship body called the Comics Code Authority--which made sure little Johnny didn't get hold of a copy of "The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers" or "Cherry Poptart" and be scarred for life--adult comics were often unavailable even for adults). But things were different in Europe, especially in France and Italy in the 60's and 70's where "fumetti" were very popular with adults, exploring adult themes and experimenting with narrative structure in ways that the American "graphic novels" are only just getting around to today. Fumetti were also pretty hip in Europe at the time (again in contrast to America where the coolest guy who publicly admits to reading comics even today is "Clerks" director Kevin Smith).

There have been a handful of movies based on fumetti. The most famous is "Barbarella" because it featured Jane Fonda, but this has also made it an easy target for people like idiot critic/right-wing ben-wah ball Michael Medved. "Diabolik" has become highly respected today because of director Mario Bava and the two incredibly attractive leads, but it was reputedly not a well-regarded fumetti. I've heard "Satanik" is pretty bad period. Some years later there was also "Cemetery Man" based on a novel by the author of the famous fumetti "Dylan Dog". It was this movie though that has just confused the hell out of everybody since it's based on a comic strip "Valentina" few outside of Italy have read and few in Italy probably understood. Valentina is a photographer who through the agency of a magic camera falls under the spell of a strange lesbian witch, Baba Yaga. That's the basic plot, but it goes off on so many bizarre and surreal tangents that the movie itself is almost impossible to describe. At one point, for instance, Baba Yaga gives Valentina a doll which suddenly turns into a real-life dominatrix who strips her naked, ties her up, and whips her while the witch looks on approvingly. In another scene, Valentina's suddenly part of a firing squad shooting a naked woman on a Jean Rollinesque deserted beach.

Carol Baker is the witch and although she is woefully miscast (too young and voluptuous)she acquits herself well (and even did a full-frontal nude scene which was censored out). The actress that plays Valentina, Isabella de Funes couldn't act her way out of an 8mm porno loop with a German shepherd co-star, but she really doesn't have to in this very visual, non-linear movie. Ditto with Ely Galeani, who apparently auditioned for Valentina role but was (hard as it is too imagine) even worse than de Funes,so she took the living doll role. It's also interesting to see George "The Grim Reaper" Eastman in a romantic role as Valentina's lover (maybe they got him confused with George Hilton?) Rounding out the cast is Angela Covello ("So Sweet/So Dead", "Torso") one my favorite obscure Italian actresses. This movie definitely isn't for everybody, but if you're on this site reading this review (and you've heard of any of these people) I expect you'll probably like it.