lazarillo
If you wonder why 1970's Italian movies have such a cult appeal today, consider this: where else or when else in cinema history would anyone have produced almost an entire cycle of Frankenstein sexploitation movies? Some credit this bizarro cycle to Americans Andy Warhol and Paul Morrisey's "Flesh for Frankenstein" (which was itself an Italian co-production), but it actually started several years earlier with "Lady Frankenstein" and would also include "Frankenstein '80", "Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks" and this film. This is probably the most obscure of these films (and is currently unavailable in English). It doesn't have Andy Warhol's name attached to it, or feature a legendary Italian exploitation starlet like Rosalba Neri/Sarah Bay a la "Lady Frankenstein". It is not as deranged and unintentionally hilarious as "Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks" or as tasteless and politically incorrect as "Frankenstein '80" (with its infamous Frankenstein-rape angle). This is actually a straight-out comedy, no doubt greatly inspired by Mel Brook's "Young Frankenstein", but of course with a lot more sex and gratuitous nudity.And speaking of gratuitous nudity, the most recognizable star in this movie is the late Italian actress Jenny Tamburi who brightened up a number of 1970's Italian exploitation films, including an appearance with Rosalba "Tanya Frankenstein" Neri in the incredibly sexy giallo "Smile Before Death". I would definitely recommend this for Jenny Tamburi completists (she has a nice long topless scene, and pretty funny sex scene with the monster), but I may be the only one of those out there. I would also recommend this for Frankenstein sexploitation completists and for Italian sex comedy completists (that might put me up to about half dozen people). As for anybody else--well, if you just want to see something COMPLETELY different. . .
