Red-Barracuda
Fanny Hill proved to be something of a one-off for famed sexploitation director Russ Meyer. For one thing, it was a film he made in West Germany and it was also a period film based on a literary source. It was hardly, therefore, the kind of material that Meyer was used to tackling. As such, it is definitely one of the less personal films he ever made, where he truly seemed like no more than a director-for-hire. The story follows a young woman who falls on hard times but is welcomed in a house populated by women; which the wide eyed innocent doesn't recognise as a brothel.Whenever Meyer veers too far out of his comfort zone it often ends in trouble and Fanny Hill is unfortunately no exception. It is a film which will be unlikely to satisfy many Meyer fans nor those who liked the novel I should imagine. It's neither erotic nor funny and also commits one of the worse cinematic sins in being over-long too. Definitely a film which Meyer completists should at least see but it is something of a slog to get through though, so be warned. The most interesting aspect of it for me was the appearance of Laetitia Roman in the lead role. I had hitherto only known her from her starring performance in Mario Bava's highly influential year-zero giallo The Girl Who Knew Too Much (1963), which needless to say was a considerably better film than this one. But it was nice to see her in something else at the very least.
melvelvit-1
FANNY HILL's yet another Albert Zugsmith "extravaganza", this one filmed in Germany, and originally meant for Douglas Sirk (!). Closer to Playboy magazine's "Little Orphan Fannie" than the knowing wench of eighteenth- century porn, Russ Meyer's opus aspires to rollicking comedy but only manages to achieve mildly amusing ...and that's being kind. Leticia Roman's woefully miscast as a poor lass who's taken under the wing of a brothel madam (Miriam Hopkins, who doesn't look too bad and even has a little decolleté going' on) and finds her virginity in peril at every turn. It's still intact (I think) at the happy ending much to Miriam's exasperation and if it had a more risqué script, a bigger budget, color photography, and Stella Stevens as "Little Orphan Fannie", Louella Parsons would have been right in proclaiming the film, "A female TOM JONES!"
Woodyanders
Sweet and naive young lass Fanny Hill (a charming and spirited performance by the busty and lovely Leticia Roman) gets taken in by cunning and conniving Madam Maude Brown (a delightfully vibrant portrayal by Miriam Hopkins) at an elite brothel in pre-Victorian London. Unbeknownst to Fanny, Brown plans to sell her to the first client who will pay top dollar for her.Director Russ Meyer, working from a breezy script by Robert Hill, relates the entertaining story at a steady pace, maintains an engagingly dippy and farcical tone throughout, milks the amusing sense of blithely broad humor for plenty of belly laughs, offers a flavorsome evocation of the period setting, and stages the uproarious slapstick gags with considerable gusto. Moreover, it's acted with great zest by a game cast: Alex D'Arcy as a dashing admiral, Ulli Lommel as gentleman suitor Charles, Walter Giller as decadent aristocrat Hemmingway, Helmut Weiss as jolly old lecher Dinkelspieler, and Chris Howland as the painfully shy and bumbling Mr. Norbert. The presence of a bevy of beautiful ladies helps a whole lot, with Christianne Schmidtmer as the ditsy Fiona and Cara Garnett as the worldly Phoebe rating as the definite sexy stand-outs. Heinz Holscher's crisp black and white cinematography boasts plenty of snazzy animated scene transitions. Erwin Halletz's jaunty score further adds to the infectiously bubbly merriment. A fun'n'frothy affair.
ksf-2
Inane dialogue in this Russ Meyer burlesque farce/love story....but the naughty subject matter and low cut dresses were probably enough to keep the viewing public interested. Our innocent little Italian-born star, Leticia Roman plays Fanny Hill, who is looking for work, and ends up boarding in a house full of "female cousins". Roman had made GI Blues, along with 8 other films prior to this one. The fast carnival-type music, the hair-dos, and the costumes tip us off that this will be an odd period piece. Mrs. Brown (Miriam Hopkins) takes Fanny in, and claims that the residents and the visitors are all related, which adds another weird dimension to the plot. Try to catch the new lyrics to "London Bridge is Falling Down" as they frolic at the king's palace....Later, Fanny meets the dashing sailor "Charles", and when separated, Fanny is devastated. This 1964 version is one hour 45 minutes, and goes on way too long. The 1968 subtitled Swedish version remake is actually easier to watch, since it's in color, only 91 minutes, and has a more cohesive script.
AD
