Rote Lippen, Sadisterotica (1969)

User Rating:

5.1/10   

Director:

Jesus Franco

Writers:

Jesus Franco (writer)
Luis Revenga (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

28 March 1969 (West Germany)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery

Plot:

"Red Lips" are two female detectives trying to find missing models and dancers. A pop artist called Klaus Thriller and his werewolf-like assistant...

Plot Keywords:

Artist | Female Detective | Female Nudity | Sculpture | Beautiful Woman

Cast

Janine Reynaud	...	Diana
Rosanna Yanni	...	Regina
Adrian Hoven	...	Mr. Radeck
Chris Howland	...	Francis McClune
Alexander Engel	...	Albert Carimbuli
Marcelo Arroita-Jáuregui	...	Insp. Tanner
Manolo Otero	...	Vittorio Freda
Dorit Dom	...	Dancer (as Maria Dom)
Ana Casares	...	Thiller's Assistant
Michel Lemoine	...	Morpho
María Antonia Redondo	...	Lida Regnier
Vicente Roca	...	Gallery manager
Jesus Franco	...	Napoleon Bolivard
Elsa Zabala	...	Fashion store owner
Marta Reves	...	Girl in Hotel lobby
Ana Puértolas
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Pilar Clemens	...	(uncredited)
Gert Günther Hoffmann	...	Mr. Radeck (voice) (uncredited)
Karl Heinz Mannchen	...	Critic in Gallery (uncredited)
Julio Pérez Tabernero	...	(uncredited)
Manuel Velasco	...	Receptionist (uncredited)

Directed by
Jesus Franco

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jesus Franco		writer
Karl Heinz Mannchen		story (uncredited)
Luis Revenga		writer

Produced by
Pier A. Caminnecci	....	associate producer
Adrian Hoven	....	producer
José López Moreno	....	producer

Original Music by
Jerry van Rooyen

Cinematography by
Jorge Herrero
Franz Hofer		(uncredited in Spanish version)

Film Editing by
Francisco García Velázquez
María Luisa Soriano

Art Direction by
Graf Pilati
Carlos Viudes

Makeup Department
Manolita Ponte	....	makeup artist (as Manolita G. de Ponte)

Production Management
Jesús García Gárgoles	....	production supervisor
Karl Heinz Mannchen	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Luis Revenga	....	assistant director

Production Companies

• Aquila Film Enterprises
• Films Montana

Distributors

• Cinépix Film Properties (CFP) (1973) (Canada) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Joseph Green Pictures (1972) (USA) (theatrical)
• Alpha (West Germany)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Blue Underground (2006) (USA) (DVD) (on "Red Lips Double Feature")
• Ismael González Díaz (Spain)
• Rosa Films S.A.

Also Known As:

Der Wolf - Horror pervers (West Germany)
El caso de las dos bellezas (Spain)
Red Lips (literal title)
Sadist Erotica (USA)
The Case of the Two Beauties
Two Undercover Angels (USA)

Runtime:

92 min | West Germany:81 min | Germany:75 min (video release)

Country:

West Germany | Spain

Language:

German

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Spain:18 | West Germany:18

Company:

Aquila Film Enterprises

Movie Connections:

Followed by Küß mich, Monster (1969)

TWO UNDERCOVER ANGELS {U.S. And Spanish Versions} (Jesus Franco, 1967) **

Made immediately after SUCCUBUS (1967) - one of Franco's most serious and dense efforts - with three of its lead actors (husband and wife team Janine Reynaud and Michel Lemoine and producer Adrian Hoven) and much the same crew, this film and its sequel KISS ME, MONSTER (1967) retained its colorful look and pop-art backdrop but they were its exact opposites in mood and intent (which, ultimately, reflected on their overall quality and significance in the director's vast canon).

That's not to say that the individual films are totally worthless: TWO UNDERCOVER ANGELS is a goofy combination of various genres then at their zenith - espionage, comic strips and low-grade horror (Lemoine is made-up as villain Hoven's werewolf assistant!); fun, therefore, but decidedly lightweight...despite the artistic Hoven's modus operandi - painting the fear on the faces of dying women from photographs he takes himself and then hiding the bodies inside sculptures - having probably been inspired by PEEPING TOM (1960) and HOUSE OF WAX (1953) respectively!

Typical of such spy fare, the mystery at the centre of the plot emerges as pretty trivial - to say nothing of obvious with respect to Hoven's dual identity; Franco handles the proceedings with some gusto and the film moves at a fairly brisk pace - but, even after two viewings in one day, there's precious little to remember about it (certainly not the unspeakable dubbing of the English-language version featured on the Blue Underground DVD)...apart, that is, from the lovely leading ladies themselves - Reynaud and Rosanna Yanni - who, given their contrasting personalities, make a rather delightful team (and their scanty wardrobe, ranging from the fashionable to the fetishistic, certainly helps!).

Knowing that these films were toned-down and altered for the Spanish market, I managed to acquire an unsubtitled copy on DVD-R of those particular versions: in the case of TWO UNDERCOVER ANGELS, it was called EL CASO DE LAS DOS BELLEZAS (THE CASE OF THE TWO BEAUTIES). My friend (and Jess Franco authority) Francesco Cesari who, unlike me, is fluent in the language has said that the film is greatly improved in this variant - and even funnier; well, given the language obstruction, I couldn't really testify to the latter - but I'm glad I watched the English version first, because otherwise the plot would have been impossible to follow! Still, while the differences are considerable, to my eyes they're not really night and day as Francesco suggested and the overall effect was pretty much the same (save, of course, for the more natural-sounding Spanish dubbing!). To begin with, the scores were different - the English version by Jerry Van Rooyen (who also did SUCCUBUS) and the Spanish by Fernando Garcia Morcillo; I personally enjoyed the Van Rooyen one more, while Francesco preferred Morcillo's accompaniment.

Some scenes ran longer in the Spanish print, while others have been changed around - but, again, I like the editing of the shorter U.S. version better. For instance, the first three scenes from the English-language print are absurdly jumbled in the Spanish cut: instead of introducing the two leads immediately and then show the museum robbery, followed by Reynaud's presentation of the stolen painting to Adrian Hoven (while still in the "Red Lips" costume from the previous scene), we begin with the robbery, then cut to the apartment scene (where Reynaud is casually dressed) and then she steps in costume again for her meeting with Hoven! In view of the oppressive censorship conditions in Spain during this time, the U.S. version obviously comes across as sexier (notably the writhing of a 'caged' naked girl in a nightclub scene, which was re-shot in the dark for the Spanish market). On the other hand, the soundtrack for the Spanish version is significantly 'cleaner': the U.S. print features a lot of useless background noise which makes dubbing job seem even more fake than it already is!

The DVD transfer is pretty nice, and I must say that the quality of the Spanish copy far exceeded my expectations - apart from a couple of brief instances where it froze and skipped. Besides TWO UNDERCOVER ANGELS' theatrical trailer, the Blue Underground disc for this title features yet another informative interview with the prolific and outspoken film-maker in which he discusses the making of the two "Red Lips" films; among other things, he notes that this was the first instance in his career where he shot two films back-to-back while confessing to have taken a liking to the practice immediately!