Categorizing the films of Jean Rollin are a true waste of time. He is one of the most unique filmmakers working in horror, doing his own artistic way and being different from what the genre expects, whether you like him or not. He mostly dealt in the erotic vampire genre, although he did deviate once in a while, in some cases good (Grapes of Death, Night of the Hunted) and in some cases bad (that awful, awful nazi zombie film Jess Franco had to complete). This is one of his best films, and it’s not hard to see why.
The movie begins with three robbers, one man and two women, who are being chased by the cops after what we believe to be is a botched robbery. The two girls, dressed as clowns, escape and roam around the countryside, stealing food, avoiding getting raped and escaping being buried alive, until they find an abandoned castle. After a night of lesbian sex (of course), they find that the castle is inhabited by vampires. The vampires turn the young girls into the living dead, but soon their vampirism starts getting in the way of their friendship, and it’s up to them, with the help of an elder vampire, to be able to keep that lesbian friendship while at the same time not getting eaten alive by the older female vampires.
As you can see, the erotic and horror angles are well balanced. There is also a lot of great production design. The castle looks gothic as all hell, mirroring anything that Hammer could have made, while at the same time looking less fantastic and more down-to-earth. We know this is mostly because of budget restrains, but still. The actors here are very natural, particularly the two leading girls, who act as if they were real lovers. There is a lot of sex appeal between the two and it transfers well outside the screen. That’s actually as far as I can say when it comes to a Jean Rollin film. It’s like junkfood: it can’t be recommended, you have to taste it yourself and tell me what you think. But if you like the mix of the erotic, the surreal, and the gothic horror, I doubt this will disappoint.
Categorizing the films of Jean Rollin are a true waste of time. He is one of the most unique filmmakers working in horror, doing his own artistic way and being different from what the genre expects, whether you like him or not. He mostly dealt in the erotic vampire genre, although he did deviate once in a while, in some cases good (Grapes of Death, Night of the Hunted) and in some cases bad (that awful, awful nazi zombie film Jess Franco had to complete). This is one of his best films, and it’s not hard to see why. 
The movie begins with three robbers, one man and two women, who are being chased by the cops after what we believe to be is a botched robbery. The two girls, dressed as clowns, escape and roam around the countryside, stealing food, avoiding getting raped and escaping being buried alive, until they find an abandoned castle. After a night of lesbian sex (of course), they find that the castle is inhabited by vampires. The vampires turn the young girls into the living dead, but soon their vampirism starts getting in the way of their friendship, and it’s up to them, with the help of an elder vampire, to be able to keep that lesbian friendship while at the same time not getting eaten alive by the older female vampires. 
As you can see, the erotic and horror angles are well balanced. There is also a lot of great production design. The castle looks gothic as all hell, mirroring anything that Hammer could have made, while at the same time looking less fantastic and more down-to-earth. We know this is mostly because of budget restrains, but still. The actors here are very natural, particularly the two leading girls, who act as if they were real lovers. There is a lot of sex appeal between the two and it transfers well outside the screen. That’s actually as far as I can say when it comes to a Jean Rollin film. It’s like junkfood: it can’t be recommended, you have to taste it yourself and tell me what you think. But if you like the mix of the erotic, the surreal, and the gothic horror, I doubt this will disappoint. 
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