Leonor

The combination of "slow," "arthouse," "surreal" and "horror" is very appealing to me, so it was disappointing upon finally seeing this mid-70s flop to find out that it does actually deserve its rep as something of a lifeless slog. The problem isn't the lack of overt "horror" content (at least that's not a problem for me), though if you're expecting more, it will no doubt be disappointing that Ullmann's quasi-vampiric slayings of children are no more explicit than her enfolding them in her cloak. But the film simply lacks style and atmosphere, as well as verve, so the human aspects are as limp as the supernatural ones.

We only meet Leonor on her deathbed, so we get no sense of her (before her revival from the dead), or the Piccoli character's supposed great love for her. It's a bit hard to believe in the latter, as the very day she's buried he demands to marry young Ornella Muti, to the bafflement of her, her father, and the viewer. Nor does he express any notable emotions (beyond eventual impatience and hostility) towards his new bride, either. Ergo we feel nothing about the passion that supposedly leads him to resurrect one wife and neglect, then destroy another. He's a selfish, combative, unappealing character. That element might have provided its own social commentary, but the film doesn't seem to be saying anything in particular with it. The two women are beautiful, but their considerable acting skills are put to little use here. (Nor does it help that both are dubbed by others in the English language version I saw--it's particularly weird to be deprived Ullmann's familiar voice.)

The film is not so much badly as indifferently made, which is odd considering the director's pedigree (and the fact that it was his debut feature). It's watchable, but stubbornly refuses to become hypnotic, frightening, insightful, or any of the other things you might hope for. I saw the longer original cut, presuming it would be better than the shorter (by about 15 minutes) U.S. version, which was very poorly received. But I suspect the shorter edit simply made the story less comprehensible, without making it any livelier, and the long version isn't exactly dull, just very flat. If a director with more visual and atmospheric flair, say anyone from Bava to Herzog, had made this around the same time, it might have turned out brilliantly. But the best you can say about Juan Bunuel's handling is that it is technically competent if uninspired--not what you want from a film about a love that defies death itself.

If anything, LEONOR is a very Grimm fairy tale of love, loss, sorrow, and horror set in the Middle Ages during the time of the black plague but unfortunately, it's also less than the sum of its parts. Feudal lord Richard (Michel Piccoli), mad with grief over the death of his beloved wife Leonor (Liv Ullman), tries to assuage his torment by marrying a village girl (Ornella Muti) who eventually bears him two sons. Ten years pass but the pain doesn't ease and when Richard gets the chance to bring his lost love back, he takes it. His dream comes true but soon animals can't be tamed, crops won't grow, and children begin disappearing from the village...

Filmed among the mountains and crumbling castles of Spain by Luis Buñuel's writer/director son Juan (who worked mostly in TV after this), LEONOR is a vampiric variation on "The Monkey's Paw" and "could have been a contender" since dark romantic horror can be just as potent as erotic horror in the right hands. The sweeping vistas and medieval tableaux by Dario Argento's SUSPIRIA cinematographer Luciano Tovoli and the moody Ennio Morricone score both serve the story well but the Gothic, Poe-like tale (based on a 19th century work by J. Sheridan Le Fanu contemporary Matthew Gregory Lewis) is slow moving and the horror implied rather than explicit. Both factors work against the film but the casting of Liv Ullman in the role of "Leonor" is the final nail in the coffin, so to speak. Ingmar Bergman's muse may be a very good actress but as someone quipped to Katharine Hepburn when she said she wanted the part of Scarlett O'Hara, "I can't see anyone chasing you for ten years" and if Liv and ravishing Ornella Muti had switched places this would have gotten a 8/10 from me. As is, it's a 7.

Michel Piccoli plays Richard, a nobleman whose wife Leonor (Liv Ullmann) dies fairly young. Some years later (although the film doesn't make this clear), he impulsively marries a much younger woman, Catherine (the luscious Ornella Muti). But he simply cannot get over the memory of Leonor, entering into a forbidding bargain with a charismatic stranger whom he meets near a bridge. The ramifications of the resurrected Leonor are chilling, as the local children start perishing. And all of this while The Plague is decimating the populace.

The fact that director Juan Bunuel is the son of the legendary Luis Bunuel will ensure that curiosity is raised among many interested viewers. The result here is one of those slow, stately foreign films that straddles the line between art house cinema and (not so traditional) horror stories. It has plenty of atmosphere and a very melancholy feel, so it's not something that one can just easily dismiss. Its wonderful international cast is very easy to watch, especially the enchanting Ms. Muti, whom many people will likely know best for the 1980 "Flash Gordon" feature film. Antonio Ferrandis is also excellent as the despairing Father Thomas.

"Leonor" is provocatively designed (by Enrique Alarcon), photographed (by Luciano Tovoli), and scored (by the great Ennio Morricone). It makes for rather potent entertainment, but people should be aware that the cheesy poster art does not really indicate the nature of the story. This is something far more serious and portentous. The bottom line is that if one admires the European art / horror films of the 1970s, they will find much to enjoy here. Leonard Maltin may have saddled it with his bottom-of-the-barrel "BOMB" rating, but in no way does it deserve that level of scorn.

Eight out of 10.

Don't expect 70s Eurohorror in the vein of Jess Franco and the like, and don't expect anything ingenious like the efforts of the director's father. It's a loose adaptation of motives by early romanticist Ludwig Tieck, and since there was no vampirism in literature back then, THERE ARE NO VAMPIRES IN THIS MOVIE EITHER! Just Liv Ullman coming back from the dead after 10 years and strangling children. Great locations, good acting, but neither a convincing drama nor a satisfying horror film. But I've seen much worse than that and young Ornella Muti's a treat. And I like the fact that some screenwriters of the seventies got back to classic seldom filmed literature (like Ado Kyrou did in the far superior 'Le Moine') instead of copying plotlines, themes and motives that have been used a thousand times before.

This is probably one of the most underrated, if not, THE most underrated horror film of all time. It has a 4.8 rating on IMDb, yet it deserves at least a 7.8. Never released in theaters in the US, the film eventually showed up on VHS, marketed as a cash-in on The Exorcist, under the title "Mistress of the Devil", and it was a huge disappointment, mainly because the two films have absolutely nothing in common. The story here, which recalls the works of Poe, follows a man who makes a pact with the Devil to have his dead wife, played by Liv Ullmann, back from the grave. She does come back, but as vampire who preys on young children. Stylishly directed by Luis Bunuel's son - Juan Bunuel, the film is a slow-burn, but never really boring, and it is actually pretty scary at times, while being romantic and touching as well, including some of the most heartbreaking scenes in horror cinema. The beautiful cinematography, courtesy of Suspiria's Luciano Tovoli, and the gorgeous locations at the Spanish countryside, add to the film's brooding Gothic atmosphere. Ullman gives an amazing performance as usual, and is one of the most gorgeous vampires out there IMO. Ennio Morricone's fantastic score perfectly captures the gloominess and foreboding atmosphere of this tragic love story. Overall, 10/10 for me.