Fascination - Franca Mai

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

directed by Jean Rollin
France 1979

In 1905 France, a group of aristocratic women have taken the fad of drinking cow's blood to cure anemia to a new level. Gentleman thief Marc (Jean-Marie Lemaire) cheats his uncouth partners for some stolen loot and escapes with the only female in the band as a hostage. When he wants to part ways with her, she wounds him and he takes shelter in a chateau surrounded by a moat and finds himself surrounded by the vengeful thieves. His hostages - attendants to a marquise expected to arrive the next day - Elisabeth (Franca Mai) and Isabelle (Brigitte Lahaie, JOY & JOAN) respectively want him to go and to stay. Isabelle seduces him and the two women together dazzle him with their bisexual wiles. Isabelle ventures out to seduce and dispatch the thieves not for Marc's benefit but for that of the sinister gathering that night for which Marc is the unsuspecting guest of honor.

Eric Cotenas

Posters

Theatrical Release:

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DVD Comparison:

Image Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Redemption Films - Region 2 - PAL

Big thanks to Eric Cotenas for all the Screen Caps!

(Image Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT vs. Redemption Films - Region 2 - PAL - RIGHT)

DVD Box Covers
Distribution	Image Entertainment Region 0 - NTSC	Redemption Films Region 2 - PAL
Runtime	1:21:48	1:17:09 (4% PAL speedup)
Video	1.67:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.69 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1.68:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 5.75 mb/s PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: Image Entertainment
Bitrate: Redemption Films
Audio	French Dolby Digital 2.0 mono	French Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
Subtitles	English, none	English, none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Image Entertainment Aspect Ratio: Widescreen letterboxed - 1.67:1 Edition Details: • Theatrical Trailer (4:3; 2:26) • Photo Gallery • Director Filmography • Liner Notes by Marc Morris DVD Release Date: September 21, 1999 Snapper Case Chapters 13	Release Information: Studio: Redemption Films Aspect Ratio: Widescreen letterboxed - 1.68:1 Edition Details: • Theatrical Trailer (4:3; 2:26) • Trailers for Requiem for a Vampire (4:3; 3:00) and Demonaics (4:3; 3:04) • Music Video Spell's by Cadaveria (5:59) • Picture Gallery • Video Art • Publicity • Jean Rollin Filmography DVD Release Date: Amaray Chapters 9

Comments

One of the early Image/Redemption R1 releases, this release featured a progressive, non-anamorphic widescreen transfer running at the correct projection speed. Contrast slightly differs between the two editions with the ever so slightly darker Image edition looking more natural.

The UK disc is missing the opening titles sequence which appears over a shot of actress Lahaie and Mai dancing outside to music playing from a Victrola; rather, the UK disc cuts from the pre-credits shot of a hand leafing through a book to the scene at the slaughterhouse and features no credits at all other than the distributor presentation credit at the start (the lack of credits on the UK disc explains the larger than usual difference in NTSC and PAL speedup runtimes between the two discs; the US disc's runtime has had the awful Redemption 1:09 intro subtracted from it). Both discs sport the film's trailer as the only substantial extra (the UK disc has trailers for LES DEMONIAQUES and REQUIEM FOR A VAMPIRE). Redemption USA's new transfer - according to reviews - is interlaced and appears to be a PAL-NTSC conversion.

- Eric Cotenas

DVD Menus
(Image Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT vs. Redemption Films - Region 2 - PAL - RIGHT)