Vampire Killer Barbys (1996)

Not watched many films over the last few days; got a Wii at the weekend, need I say more!

So Vampire Killer Barbys - no mistype, Mattel wouldbn't let it be called 'Barbies'. Ajess Franco film. For those not familiar with the name of Franco, he is an incredibly prolific Spanish director of mainly low budget Eurotrash. Some of his films are very difficult to watch due to lack of plot, budget, acting abilities,pacing and just about everything you need to make a successful film. But some of his films are quite wonderful in a very strange way. However, you do need to leave some of your more normal sensibilities behind to enjoy most of them. He has made some 'mainstream films, such as two of the Christopher Lee Fu Manchu films(and quite a few others starring Mr Lee) and his films range from violent horror, western, crime drama, literary adaptions and hard and soft porn. In fact most of films contain a high amount of nudity. Some of his fans proclaim you need to see all his films to appreciate his vision, but that's just rubbish. For one, most of his films appear in multiple versions and I doubt anyone has seen all his films, even Franco himself. You do, though, need an open mind.

VKB is, I believe, one of his more accessible movies. A rock band - the Killer Barbies, a real Spanish band, are on their way to a gig when their van gets stuck and an ominous stranger offers them shelter in the castle of his mistress, the mysterious Countess who needs the blood of the young to remain looking young. So far so good - a Countess Bathory-type flick. Bad points include the horrendous dubbing, on the copy I saw, which never helps and is always an obstacle andthe villains sidekicks, a backward man and his two midgets who seem to be there to add a little comedy - they don't. However Franco includes some artful shots and keeps the atmosphere on the weird side as the action takes place in a strange world where the time is never not 12 noon and daylight and night merge with each other wildly. The castle is a wonderful backdrop filled with macabre curios and statuettes, all with their eyes covered, presumably so they don't ever get a peek of the crumbl;ing Countess. The Countess, of course, rejuvenates to an attractive, secualk fiend (played alluringly, and because of that worryingly, by the 59 year old stalwart of Eurotras, Mariangela Giordano. The film will hold no surprises, or indeed shocks, but has plenty in it to keep your interest up. There was actually a sequel to this, The Killer Barbys v Dracula, which I feel duty bound to track down.

But then, I like Franco and this is one of the main reasons that I am dropping rating the films - it's impossible to rate Franco alongside, say, Hitchcock and render any rating meaningless. Franco is no Jean Rollin, who you are occasioally reminded of through this film, but he can make interesting films.