The Female Executioner

Revenge films were all the rage in the early eighties, and even the French got in on the act with this one, a movie that sadly takes itself too seriously and doesn’t delve into the sleazy part. The story involves a tough and sexually-liberated policewoman named Martine (played by Brigitte Lahaie) who goes after a ring of prostitution, porn, child molestation and even bestiality led by female crime-impresario Madame Wenders. Martine is even able to capture Wenders (Dominique Erlanger) and imprison her, much to the disdain of the Commissioner (Michel Modo) who has something of a crush on her. But her son, who works for her, isn’t too happy with that, and decides to kidnap Martine’s sister and hold her in exchange for her criminal mother. When the sister is killed in a rescue attempt, this is the last straw for Martine, and she goes after Wenders and her gang, vigilante style.
I really wanted to like this movie, after all, I’m a huge fan of revenge flicks, especially those who think they’re serious by going after the ‘porn problem’. But sadly, this movie has a lot of right elements but is never able to take off. For starters, the script is weak, and most of the characters are very underdeveloped with the exception of Martine. The acting from almost everyone is completely terrible, particularly Dominique Erlanger who can’t help but overact and make goofy faces all during the third act. And sadly, this film takes itself too seriously for it’s own good. It seems like it wanted to be something serious, like they really wanted to warn the world about the ‘evils of pornography’, but instead looks like a Christian propaganda film. Don’t get me wrong, there’s nudity, sex and violence in the film, but it’s mostly pretty weak.
The only reason I would recommend you watch this film is for it’s lead, Brigitte Lahaie, one of my favorite actresses. She was a famous porn star and b-movie actress, and still is, and is quite possibly the most beautiful celebrity to come out of France, more so than people like Anna Karina, Catherine Deneuve, Isabelle Huppert, Brigitte Bardot or Emmanuelle Beart. She is more famous for appearing in several Jean Rollin horror films like The Grapes Of Death, Fascination and Night Of The Hunted. Here, she is portrayed in a tough but very sympathetic role, and is able to pull it off. When she is angry and wants to murder Madame Wenders at the third act, you believe it, since she’s been put through a lot. She’s also very beautiful and, as always in her movies, gets naked often. Is there a woman with a more perfect body than Brigitte Lahaie? I don’t think so. So I recommend you see this film, not because it’s a good film, but it involves Brigitte Lahaie, the most beautiful French woman to ever live.