Red Lips Double Feature-
Two Undercover Angels/Kiss Me Monster
(Blue Underground Region 0 NTSC DVD)
(1969)
review by Blackgloves

Both Jess Franco films in this two-disc set from Blue Underground were originally released on DVD many moons ago by Anchor Bay, then re-released just last year by Anchor Bay UK (a pre-emptive strike in anticipation of BU's lush re-mastering of both films?) along with the classic "Succubus" -- which also gets a pleasant face-lift from the U.S's premier purveyor of cult curiosities. Perhaps one of the most controversial and misunderstood figures in European cult cinema, Spanish director Jess Franco has a pure love of the medium and takes joy in the very act of movie making itself. His obsessive film making has resulted in many of the more fragmentary, hallucinogenic, esoteric, genre-defying erotic nightmares in his huge filmography becoming minor classics with contemporary fans of European fantasy cinema; while his self-conscious rejection of established norms of "correct" film-making technique and his unashamed appreciation of every form of popular movie (from slapstick comedy to hard core pornography!) has also alienated just as many. But one thing that some enthusiasts for his work -- let alone the doubters -- often neglect to consider, is Franco's mischievous sense of humour: even at his most avant-garde, the director finds space to poke fun at himself and the genres he emulates, distorts or mimics in his cheaply made features. Both films in this set, although being a long way from representing the best in Franco's oeuvre, illustrate this principle more cogently than many of his more radical works.

"Two Undercover Angels" is the first of the two films (which were made back-to-back) and was conceived as a further vehicle for the lovely Janine Reynaud, who was also Lorna: the doomed centrepiece of Franco's surrealistic voyage into the subterranean, sadomasochistic never-world of his erotic imagination, "Succubus". Both of these follow-up films couldn't be more different from the elegiac, fatalistic dreamscape conjured in that masterpiece of the avant-guard: they see Franco at his most relaxed and playful, while Reynaud & the other key players from "Succubus" (Reynaud's husband, Michel Lemoine and producer Adrian Hoven) demonstrate their versatility, entering fully into the tongue-in-cheek spirit of these psychedelic spy-spoofs with some beautifully judged comedic performances. The half-formed plots of these two Spanish/German co-productions are discussed more fully in my reviews of the Anchor Bay UK discs, present elsewhere in the Reviews Archive; but, needless to say, they are both composed of the usual b-movie clichés rendered in low-rent, primary coloured, cheap, Sixties gloss.

"Two Undercover Angels" introduces us to the Red Lips Detective Agency, which comprises two beautiful models turned private investigators, Diana and Regina (Reynaud and gorgeous blonde bombshell, Rosanna Yanni). The two women are hip, cool and somewhat scatterbrained, yet manage to trapeze through a succession of dangerous episodes, often oblivious to the extreme danger they put themselves in. The first film has them tracking down a one-eyed Pop Artist whose art involves an unhealthy dose of murder; his modus operandi pitched somewhere between "House of Wax" and "Peeping Tom", the killer utilises the services of a hairy werewolf man (Michel Lemoine) to kidnap models, actresses and go-go dancers, and embodies their final fear-filled moments in artistic works which often constitute the bodies of his victims encased in plaster! "Kiss Me Monster", meanwhile, offers an incoherent storyline that involves mad scientists creating a super-race of clones, secret musical codes, a society of lesbian warriors, a secret order of Satanists, and Diana and Regina undercover as nightclub strippers! This second film offers slightly more skin than its predecessor but lacks its whacked out energy and zest.        

The Sixties television spoof of "Batman" or the cool fantasy spy world of "The Avengers" are suitable blueprints to keep in mind when considering what Franco may have been aiming for with both of these films: the bright colours and the self-mocking wit; the arch performances and simplistic, yet knowing, plot mechanics -- all are present, and presented with more accuracy than ever on Blue Underground's bright and colourful new transfers. Both of these films are good examples of how radically the reception of a film can be altered by its aesthetic presentation: on the murky, blurry prints we saw on the Anchor Bay discs, they fell flat ("Kiss Me Monster" [the weaker of the two] being a particularly desultory viewing experience) here, given vibrant widescreen anamorphic transfers, both are considerably enhanced and make for rather more tolerable viewing. Both films now have a consistent colour scheme and now look like instalments of a series, whereas the previous Anchor Bay prints were sourced from various inferior elements that rendered "Kiss Me Monster" in an ugly, dingy, blue-tinted transfer that seemed to bleach the happy-go-lucky quality intended for both these comic-strip spoofs from the very celluloid.

Franco appears in two featuretts spread over both discs. In the first, "The Case of the Red Lips" featured on "Two Undercover Angels", he talks about Reynaud, his love for the work of director George Marshall (his inspiration when making these two films), his appreciation of comic-strips, and why the first movie in the series came to be misleadingly marketed under the title "Sadisterotica". Both films are dealt with in this first featurette, leaving the second, "Jess' Tangents" to be composed of twenty-two minutes of miscellaneous subject matter touched upon by the loquacious director during the filming of the first featurette. Franco talks at length about pornography, drugs, his relationship with Orsen Wells and his work on Wells' "Chimes at Midnight", as well as his philosophy of Cinema and the strange turn of events that have seen him -- a marginal director -- develop a committed audience for his unusual, offbeat form of movie making. Even if one is -- like myself -- not terribly enthused by these particular two films, fans of Jess Franco will enjoy watching and listing to the man talk and reminisce with as much enthusiasm and commitment as ever on both of these featurettes. Blue Underground have given these second division Francos an extensive sprucing up and brought a new lease of life to them; some of their original lustre and period charm is now restored and, even if they aren't the most exciting pieces of work, at least they are now available to be seen in their intended form.