Dagmar Lassander Movies
Lead, onscreen from the '70s. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1987
- PG
A family history is recalled by the venerable patriarch Carlo (Vittorio Gassman) as he prepares to celebrate his 80th birthday. Young Carlo (Andrea Massimo) marries Beatrice (Stefania Sandrelli) in 1926 but later has an illicit affair with her bohemian artist sister Adriana (Fanny Ardant). Fascism, World War II, and the raising of children and grandchildren mark the passing of a lifetime. Old Carlo lives with his grandson where his recollections are interrupted by the gentle nagging of his beloved Beatrice. This feature received an Oscar nomination in 1987 for "Best Foreign Film." ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vittorio Gassman, Fanny Ardant, (more)
Intervista has been termed a semi-documentary: This is in fact the filmed autobiography of Italian director Federico Fellini, framed in the form of an interview conducted by a Japanese film crew. As the interview progresses Fellini's mind wanders to his earliest days (the reenacted events conflict with several of the "official" stories of his life). His fascination with filmmaking is manifested in the "wonderland" atmosphere of the old Cinecitta studios. With the cooperation of Fellini's loyal co-workers, we are permitted to see tantalizingly brief excerpts (some self-mocking) of Fellini's modus operandi. A visit by Fellini and guest-star Marcello Mastroianni to Anita Ekberg's home leads to a lavish (and poignant) "reliving" of the 1961 Fellini/Mastroianni/Ekberg effort La Dolce Vita. The climax of Intervista scene invokes Fellini's previous inward-looking classic 8 1/2, with a novel twist calculated to send the director's disciples home with a knowing smile. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Federico Fellini, Marcello Mastroianni, (more)
- 1984
In this moronic genre hybrid, at least seven credited writers -- including Luigi Cozzi, Sergio Martino, and Dardano Sacchetti -- throw Jaws, Piranha, and anything else they can find into a hopeless amalgam of hackneyed story, dull subplots, and terrible effects. Michael Sopkiw and Valentine Monnier are the typically dedicated scientists who try to avert ecological disaster while pawing each other like overheated teenagers. The monster, which is supposed to be a genetically-created hybrid of an octopus and a prehistoric proto-shark (instead resembling a toothy starfish with leprosy), spends most of its time just floating through the water. To compensate for this lack of movement, the victims flail about frantically while pulling the creature's inert tentacles over their bodies. Dr. Davis, the mad scientist behind the "Seakiller Project," gets to babble endlessly while his henchmen run around killing everyone in sight, including a woman who is beaten, stripped naked, and thrown in a bathtub before being electrocuted with a hair dryer. The filmmakers seem to enjoy the sight of women getting beaten up, because all of the female cast members get pummeled at one point or another while wearing very little clothing. Most viewers will find that even the appearance of such Euro-film favorites as Gianni Garko, William Berger, and Dagmar Lassander aren't enough to make this awful mess worth enduring. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Sopkiw, Valentine Monnier, (more)
- 1984
In this undistinguished film, His Supreme Highness Malko Linge (Miles O'Keeffe) is an Austrian count with a need for extra cash and so he works part-time for the CIA. His most recent assignment has him going to San Salvador where he is required to eliminate a mercilessly brutal right-wing terrorist. Along the way, H.S.H. finds an enchanting woman and a little dalliance that will not ultimately detract from his murderous mission. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Miles O'Keeffe, Raimund Harmstorf, (more)
Italian goremeister Lucio Fulci applies his characteristic touch to the Edgar Allan Poe tale (of which very little remains intact) to tell the story of a deranged, wheelchair-bound English psychic (Patrick Magee) who can record the voices of the dead on tape, and apparently possesses the ability to channel evil spirits into the body of his cat -- which he then commands to take vengeance on his enemies. When a freelance crime photographer (Mimsy Farmer) notices traces of feline claw-marks on the bodies of accident victims, her own investigations eventually lead her to Magee's naughty kitty... leading to a confusing climax wherein it is learned (sort of) who's really in charge. Remarkably restrained horror from the man behind such flesh-rending epics as Zombie and The Gates of Hell, this is also nearly incomprehensible, possessing a nightmarish lack of cohesion that is more irritating than frightening. In fact, the most horrifying thing about this film is Fulci's aggressive tendency to shoot super-tight widescreen close-ups of Magee's eyes and nose. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Magee, Mimsy Farmer, (more)
This cult horror film from director Lucio Fulci lurches along with a certain amount of disjunction due to cutting, perhaps, if not to an innate Fulci disposition. When the Boyle family temporarily moves into a mansion near Boston so the father can do some research, the son Bob (Giovanni Frezza) starts seeing the ghost of a young girl motioning to him, and eventually he discovers the basement's terrible secret. A certain Dr. Freudstein (Giovanni de Nari) has been hanging out there since 1879 when he was banned from the medical profession, and he has kept himself alive although in miserable physical shape, by murdering the various inhabitants of the house and using their cells to keep his body going. An oversize bat attacks the father, floors come apart and crush unsuspecting victims, and at one point little Bob's blond head is held to the basement door by the evil doctor while the father is wildly swinging his axe through the door to save his son. Scenes like these and others are the real objective of the movie -- the strange and irresolute ending, and leaps and gaps in the plot, are indications that all else is dispensible pretext - gore is the goal and it is delivered in sickening doses. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Catriona MacColl, Paolo Malco, (more)
- 1978
Flatfoot was also released as The Knock-Out Cop. By any name, this Italian crime meller stars Baldwyn Dakile as Bodo, a tough, no-frills police officer. Determined to bring a gang of drug smugglers to justice, Bodo is ordered to lay off by his superiors. It's not likely that he will obey orders, of this one can be sure. The larger-than-life escapades of the "flatfoot" are made palatable by director Stefano Steno's tongue-in-cheek approach to the material. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
- R
The centuries-old spirit of a wolf creature possesses the body of a young woman in this horror effort also known as Werewolf Woman. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- 1976
Il Corsaro Nero (The Black Pirate) stars Cico Verrati in the swashbuckling title role. Set during the Spanish war in Flanders, the story concerns two brothers who have been falsely accused of treason. Condemned to death, the siblings escape; one is recaptured and hanged, while the other, our man Nero (Verrati) vows to avenge his brother by becoming a bloodthirsty buccaneer. In the course of his subsequent adventures, Nero falls in love with Amy (Ada Biaghini), a high-born lady captured during a pirate raid. But when Amy turns out to be the daughter of the evil provincial governor (Nero Bernardi) responsible for her brother's death, he ends their relationship in an astonishingly brutal manner. Eventually triumphing over his enemies, Nero finds lasting happiness in the arms of feisty wench Onorata (Silvana Jachino). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kabir Bedi, Carole Andre, (more)
- 1973
When the godson of San Francisco's crime lord asks permission to leave "the business," Don Antonio (Martin Balsam) agrees, but reluctantly. Such behavior by either one is a violation of the code, and a bloody mob war breaks out. It is only through the strong support of his family connections in Sicily that Don Antonio is able to survive the melee and come out on top. Aghast at the situation he has caused, the godson (Tomas Milian) becomes his leader's "consigliere," or Counselor at Crime. This Italian movie was filmed in English in San Francisco, California and Palermo, Sicily. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1970
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Fetishistic and dark, this early giallo thriller from Italian filmmaker Luciano Ercoli prefigures such sexually-themed gialli as La Ragazza dal Pigiama Giallo and Tenebre in its explicit connection between female sexuality and violence. Dagmar Lassander stars as Minou, who is threatened at the beach by a mysterious figure (Simon Andreu) who caresses her body with a knife and intimates that her businessman husband Pierre (Pier Paolo Capponi) is a murderer. Slowly, she begins to believe him, because Pierre was in debt to a murdered businessman, Jean Dubois. The stranger soon shows up with a tape recording which seems to verify his claim, and forces Minou to perform degrading sexual acts in order to protect her husband. When she later balks, he produces the titular photos to blackmail her into even more depravity. Like many giallo heroines, Minou can get no sympathy from anyone, particularly her kinky bisexual friend Dominique -- played by Ercoli's real-life wife Nieves Navarro (aka "Susan Scott") -- who actually claims to enjoy being forced into sex. The situation begins to take its toll, and Minou slips into a haze of tranquilizers and shame, finally confessing to Peter and leading the stranger to attempt silencing her permanently. Backed by a vibrant Ennio Morricone score and slick photography by Alejandro Ulloa, the film co-stars Osvaldo Genazzani and Salvadore Huguet. Available versions run between 91 and 96 minutes. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
This voyeuristic story finds the wealthy philanthropist Sayer (Philippe Leroy) getting his weekend jollies as a sadist. When his usual street-walking female can't make the scene, he employs his willing secretary Mary (Dagmar Lassander) to take her place. After submitting to his demands, she takes over as the aggressive sexual predator, seemingly curing Sayer of his impotence. Mary dominates the rejuvenated Sayer until he has a massive heart attack in this erotically tinged thriller. This marks the directorial debut for Piero Schivazappa. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Philippe Leroy, Dagmar Lassander, (more)
Rosso Segno Della Folia, an Italian horror film written, directed and photographed by Mario Bava, is the bloody story of an impotent man who turns to murder to vent his frustrations. The designer and owner of a fashion design business (Stephen Forsyth), frustrated with his own sexual failure, murders the new brides who have modelled his fashions. When he decides to murder his wife, she becomes the ghost who will not leave him alone. Director Bava, who began his career as a cinematographer, while directing mostly low-budget horror films, has become a cult figure among some fans and critics who admire his unique and beautiful visual style and his often very amusing exaggeration of the cliches of the genre. Rosso Segno Della Folia, released in the United States as Hatchet for a Honeymoon is not the best of Mario Bava's work, but this above-average horror film is a must see for those who love the genre and admire stylish horror films. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
