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In the lost space of an opulent Ostend hotel, eerily deserted in the off season, a young but hardly innocent couple on their honeymoon encounter the apparently ageless, sunlight-fearing, lesbian Countess Bathory. Kumel imaginatively balances the erotic malaise and violence of vampire folklore and a European (specifically Belgian) surrealist tradition with thirties Hollywood camp and comic strip tableaux. Perverse sexuality is located in a setting of decadent highlife which seems to immobilise the “victims”. Originally titled “La Rogue aux Levres” (Lips of Blood). Cast includes John Karlen, Delphine Seyrig, Danielle Ouimet and Andrea Rau.
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Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
316913
Language
English
Audience classification
R (18+)
Subject categories
Advertising, Film, Journalism, Mass Media & TV → Foreign language films
Family, Gender Identity, Relationships & Sexuality → Gay and lesbian studies
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
VHS; Access Print (Section 1)