Paul Muller Movies
- 2000
An exercise in chronological displacement, Total Loss begins and ends with the spectacular crash of a car carrying three drunken men, one of whom survives after being thrown from the wreckage. From the film's subsequent action, which takes place during the 24 hours preceding the crash, audiences learn that Ranier (Yorick van Wageningen) is a houseboy and all-around Guy Friday to Duco (Roef Ragas), an arrogant doctor who took Ranier in after he escaped a drug deal gone bad. Duco, a closeted homosexual, is attracted to Ranier and gives him lavish gifts even as he humiliates him with sadistic relish. One evening, Ranier discovers the near-frozen, unconscious body of Jeroen (Franky Ribbens) on Duco's property and nurses him to health. Once conscious, Jeroen tells his savior that he tried to off himself with pills after smothering to death his much-loved, Alzheimer's-ravaged father; Ranier in turn confesses his involvement in the aforementioned drug deal, further complicated by his pursuit by an old, allegedly dead colleague. Meanwhile, Duco is making trouble for Ranier; after doing cocaine with Jeroen, he demands Ranier drive them to a New Year's Eve party hosted by Duco's parents, where he plans to embarrass them in front of their guests by announcing his homosexuality. As the car carrying the trio lurches towards the inevitable crash, tensions heighten and tempers combust. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yorick Van Wageningen, Roef Ragas, (more)
- 1997
This soccer comedy was 1997's highest grossing Dutch film in its homeland, selling more than 300,000 tickets. Businessman Bram (former child star Danny de Munck) flies back from Taiwan and goes directly from the airport to his regular Sunday soccer stint with his pals -- Johnny, son of their former coach; gardener Willem, married to a black woman; rude Mark, cheating on his girlfriend Rose; and Hero, a young man attracted to his stepmother. With feuds and friendships, the gang splinters and regroups as they head toward their 500th game. Shown at the 1997 Nederlands Film Festival/Holland Film Meeting. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Antonie Kamerling, Danny de Munck, (more)
- 1994
A professional woman falls in love with a potentially murderous neighbor in her apartment building in this gripping Dutch thriller. Roos, a divorcee doctor with a young son, has just moved into her ultra-modern apartment beside the sea. One of her first visitors is Eric, an attractive copywriter who shares his suspicions that fellow tenant and housekeeper for Roos may be in danger. Sure enough, the housekeeper is found murdered in her apartment. Meanwhile, Roos is being harassed by an obscene caller. Unbeknownst to her, she is also being spied upon by a binocular toting peeper. Eric becomes buddies with her son Davy. Soon he tries to buddy up to her, and despite the warnings of other tenants, finds herself equally attracted to him. Eric is arrested as a suspect for the housekeeper's murder and also on the suspicion that he killed his wife and Roos begins to feel paranoid. Her fear increases when another woman in the building is found strangled. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Renée Soutendijk, Victor Löw, (more)
In Fiorile (US title: Wild Flower), Italy's Taviani brothers once again dissect the manners and mores of the Tuscany region. The story is predicated on a 200-year-old family curse. During the Napoleonic era, Elizabetta "Fiorile" Benedetti (Galatea Ranzi) discovers that her own brother Corado (Claudio Bigagli) is responsible for the crime for which her lover Jean (Michael Vartan) was executed. The embittered Fiorile places a curse on the Benedetti family, declaring that none of her brother's direct descendants will ever achieve true happiness. Over the next two centuries, the Benedettis' ill-gotten wealth increases, but they lose the love and respect of their neighbors. In fact, most people prefer to call the Benedetti family the "Maledettis," or the Cursed Ones. The film's final episode occurs during World War II, as Grandpa Massimo Benedetti (Renato Carpentieri), the last family member directly affected by the curse, relates his tale of woe to a pair of youngsters. Will the curse die with Massimo, or will the innocent young ones be forced to carry it into the next generation? Fiorile is not the sort of movie one sits back and relaxes with, despite its leisurely pace; those willing to work with the film, however, will be amply rewarded. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claudio Bigagli, Galatea Ranzi, (more)
In this Italian splatter film, director Lucio Fulci plays a horror filmmaker who goes to a psychiatrist because the types of films he makes are starting to disturb him, he suspects that his German producers are Nazis, and he believes he may be a killer himself. Much of the movie consists of clips from Fulci's previous films. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- 1987
In this genial lowbrow comedy, Felemón and Moyer are two good buddies who share a passion for soccer, and for each other's women. Felemón's two curvaceous daughters run around wearing incredibly revealing miniskirts, while Moyer's wife is the apple of Felemón's eye. Things get really confusing when Felemón wins big in the soccer pools and the party to celebrate gets hopping. This somewhat directionless comedy features large doses of mariachi, salsa and ranchero music. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lalo El Mimo, Lilia Prado, (more)
- 1985
Originally titled Speriamo che sia Femmina, Let's Hope It's a Girl is a multifaceted exploration of the pointlessness of sexual stereotypes. Liv Ullmann is a countess who, after her divorce, takes over the family farm. Realizing that she can't rely on the patriarchal society structure for assistance, Ullmann runs the farm herself with the help of her female servants and relatives. When the Count (Philipe Noiret) comes back into her life, he and his male buddies find themselves outclassed by the expertise of the ladies. The flawless cast of Let's Hope It's A Girl includes Catherine Deneuve and Bernard Blier, the latter superb as a doddering old nobleman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Liv Ullmann, Catherine Deneuve, (more)
- 1985
- R
Salome is a drama that oscillates between Judea in 30 A.D. to a kitsch New York in the 20th century. King Herod (Tomas Milian) is having a hard time. He is worried about the upstart Caesar, he's plagued by bad omens like the wrong birds flying in the wrong direction, and it does seem like term limits may be imposed on them. After all, he and his wife are responsible for their constituents' inability to enjoy sex; they murdered Salome's father (King Herod's brother) which has left the people with a decided lack of libido. Salome herself (Jo Champa) comes along to set things right again, and then grabs her seven veils for a performance down in a basement where the long-suffering Yokanaan (Fabrizio Bentivoglio) is tied-up in chains. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tomas Milian, Pamela Salem, (more)
- 1984
Part thriller and part experimental fantasy, this first feature-length film by director Waltraud Hollinger (aka Valie Export) concerns Judith (Adelheid Arndt), a journalist who becomes embroiled in a murder case through one of her two current lovers. When Judith is sent to investigate the peep-show business in Hamburg, she runs into the psychiatrist Dr. Alphons Schlogel (Rudiger Vogler), a former boyfriend who is now a part of a lucrative but illicit gun-running operation. Even though she is already involved with another married psychiatrist, Judith renews her relationship with Alphons. There may be a reason for these two psychiatrists in her life -- Judith has a tendency to garble fantasy and reality together, a trait that could leave the audience slightly confused as well. When Alphons' partner is murdered, Judith is drawn into the case and may be facing more than she can handle.
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adelheid Arndt
- 1980
This Anglo-Italian production was first seen as a five-part, five-hour miniseries on Britain's ATV in 1980. In Italy to pay a visit to her blind sister, British musician Barbara (Prunella Ransome) was told that her sibling had disappeared -- and may well have been murdered by a serial killer who specialized in knocking off sightless women. In despair, Barbara formed a friendship with fellow Briton David Malcolm (Jeremy Brett), who had exiled himself on a small off-coast island after his wife and son were killed in a diving accident. While pretending to be blind in hopes of trapping her sister's "killer," Barbara discovered that David's son was not dead after all, and might very well be the man she was looking for. But was her sister really dead -- and what did David know that he wasn't telling? After airing on British TV, Seagull Island was reedited and shown theatrically in Italy under the title L'Isola del Gabbiano. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
Presented as the drug-induced fantasies of a shy chemist, this cartoonish exploitation comedy from cult director Jesus Franco is a minor entry without much to recommend it. The chemist, Robinson Crusoe (Yuda Barkan), is an ineffectual Walter Mitty character who develops a potion allowing his daydreams to come true. Soon he is on a tropical island, where two beautiful women (Anne Libert, Ingeborg Steinbach) make love to him constantly. The group soon includes Crusoe's friend Linda (Andrea Rau), a reticent actress. The fantasy begins to sour a bit when Crusoe gets visits from his employer, mother-in-law, and wife, as well as a native tribe headed by Franco regular Howard Vernon in a grass skirt and warpaint. Crusoe's fantasies also include a pornographic film segment, lifted from Franco's own Jungfrauen-Report. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1978
In this complex political thriller, a police inspector operating out of Geneva discovers that the death of a Swiss journalist in Italy has more to do with Swiss international banking and high finance than is entirely comfortable. Indeed, as his investigation proceeds, he encounters car bombs and murders galore and challenges the prevailing system, briefly. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Sorel, Brigitte Fossey, (more)
- 1977
A comeback film of sorts for director Marco Vicario, Mogliamante stars Laura Antonelli as the wife of political activist Marcello Mastrioanni. When her husband has to go into hiding from the authorities, Laura consoles herself by going through his private papers. Curiously, discovering the length and breadth of Mastrioanni's activities-including his extramarital affairs--sparks a sexual reawakening in his wife. More curious is the personality change undergone by Laura: formerly meek and subservient, she literally "becomes" her firebrand husband in his absence. As for Mastrioanni, once his role in life has been usurped, he is reduced to little more than a sidelines observer. This diverting domestic drama was also issued under the titles Wifemistress and Lover, Wife. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laura Antonelli, Marcello Mastroianni, (more)
- 1975
One of cult director Jesus Franco's best-known efforts, this Swiss-West German co-production was his first collaboration with producer Erwin C. Dietrich, who would release numerous Franco efforts through his Elite Film studio. It seems like a standard women's prison tale, with Lina Romay as Maria, jailed for life after killing her father when he tried to rape her. There's a lesbian warden, more rape, torture, insanity, and so forth, with the obligatory conspiracy and a downbeat twist ending to round out the formula. What makes this film different from many others in the subgenre is its unremitting atmosphere of despair and sleaziness, a quality Franco and Dietrich also brought to the similar Greta, Haus Ohne Maenner two years later. Monica Swinn co-stars with Paul Muller, Ramon Ardid, and -- in an expectedly tacky bit of casting -- the director himself as Maria's lecherous father. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1974
This adventure based on a true story features the courage of teenager Penhaligon who hikes through the Amazon jungle after a plane crash leaves her the sole survivor. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Susan Penhaligon, Paul Muller, (more)
Pam Grier and Margaret Markov reteamed a year after Black Mama, White Mama for this similarly crowd-pleasing exploitation effort. They play Roman slaves who eventually rebel against their male oppressors. Mixing elements from the Italian peplum and the Filipino women's prison movies, The Arena also adds some po-faced feminist theory while still managing to exploit its scantily-clad stars. Italian film regulars Lucretia Love and Rosalba Neri look strangely out of place in a movie filmed in their own country, but fans of drive-in movies should be pleased. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1973
- R
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Pretty Christina (Christina von Blanc) encounters ghostly apparitions when she travels to a mansion in Honduras for the reading of her father's will. Thinking that she is going mad, Christina investigates further and discovers some horrible family secrets which could consume her. This witty erotic horror effort from cult director Jesus Franco is a perfect example of the re-editing and butchering of European films, which became common practice in the 1970s. At least 10 different versions exist, some with completely different plots than others. A 1974 re-release contained softcore sexual inserts featuring Marie-France Broquet, Waldemar Wohlfaart, and other performers not present in the original version. In the 1980s, French director Jean Rollin was hired by the Eurocine studio (by far the most common offender in the area of "cut-and-paste filmmaking") to shoot additional scenes. Rollin's footage consists of approximately 15 minutes of gory, uninspired zombie attacks, meant to capitalize on a then-popular subgenre initiated by Lucio Fulci's Zombi 2. Yet another version contained scenes from a Rollin-directed vampire film and was advertised with a picture of Vincent Price, who does not appear in any known version of this film. Further complicating matters is the fact that most of these alternate versions exist in varying lengths, reducing a rather interesting film to an incomprehensible mess. Britt Nichols, Paul Muller, Howard Vernon, and Anne Libert co-star, and Franco appears in a cameo role excised from some prints. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Howard Vernon, Paul Muller, (more)
Italian horror icon Riccardo Freda directs I Spit on Your Grave star Camille Keaton in this gory shocker concerning four hippies who seek shelter from a summer storm in a seemingly-abandoned villa, only to realize that they have stumbled into a satanic sacrifice. Frightened away by the gruesome orgy of violence, the hippies waste no time in beating a hasty retreat. Things quickly go from bad to worse, however, when the innocent peaceniks are subsequently accused of committing a massacre that eclipses that of even the Tate-LaBianca murders. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Camille Keaton
- 1972
This 1972 international production of Treasure Island is one of many film versions of the classic adventure by Robert Louis Stevenson. Kim Burfield plays Jim Hawkins, a young man who works at a pub with his mother (Maria Rohm). When drunken old sailor Billy Bones (Lionel Stander) comes in for a drink and dies, Jim gets his hands on an old pirate's treasure map. He then enlists the help of Squire Trelawney (Walter Slezak) and Dr. Livesey (Angel DelPozo) to join him locate the island on the map. They join the ship lead by Captain Smollett (Rik Battaglia). The ship's cook, Long John Silver (Orson Welles), has convinced the rest of the crew to organize a mutiny in order to keep the riches for themselves. This adaptation of Treasure Island was released in several different language versions, each with a different director. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Orson Welles, Kim Burfield, (more)
- 1971
During a political demonstration some years before, the police brutalized the demonstrators and Trassell (Jean-Pierre Mocky) fought back. Without his intending it, a policeman died. He spent some years in prison and has now escaped. His lawyer will help him leave the country if he can make it to the border on his own. Instead, he winds up having to take a hostage -- Paula, the daughter of a prominent politician. The politician's own corrupt history becomes known in the intense spotlight of news coverage about Trassell's escape. Paula grows enamored by Trassell, and they begin to work as a team as this French political thriller goes on to its ironic climax. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marion Game, Paul Muller, (more)
- 1971
- R
This lurid but entertaining Italian/Spanish twist on the Frankenstein legend begins with Baron Frankenstein (Joseph Cotten) being assisted in his research by his sultry daughter Tania (Sara Bay). The doctor's first attempt at a stitched-together creation results in a lumpy, pop-eyed monstrosity with little of the expected respect for its creator. In fact, the monster begins its rampage by murdering the Baron and escaping into the surrounding village. The younger Frankenstein returns from medical school with newly-acquired surgical expertise and a desire to follow in her late father's footsteps. She soon begins work on a creation of her own by transplanting the brain of her brilliant but deformed assistant Charles (Paul Müller) into the body of a brawny handyman. The result is a handsome and powerful male creature not only capable of destroying the original monster, but virile enough to satisfy his creator's overwhelming sexual appetites. Tania is apparently quite eager to test the latter, and she does quite frequently, as indicated in the film's numerous softcore sex scenes. This lengthy romantic interlude is cut short when the first monster returns to finish what he started. Directed by Mel Welles (who B-movie fans will remember as Gravis Mushnik from Roger Corman's cult classic Little Shop of Horrors), this film plays like a sexually-obsessed version of an early Hammer production. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- 1970
Director Jesus Franco's surrealistic reworking of Bram Stoker's short story "Dracula's Guest" has acquired a substantial cult following due to its hallucinatory erotic imagery and a sexy performance by Soledad Miranda as vampiric Princess Nadine Korody. Ewa Stroemberg stars as Lucy Westinghouse, an American working in a Turkish legal firm. Lucy is plagued and thrilled by a series of erotic dreams concerning a mysterious vampire woman who seduces her before feeding on her blood. When she travels to an island to settle Princess Korody's inheritance, Lucy recognizes the beautiful woman as the vampire from her dreams. A poetic, arty horror film which begs comparison to the work of French director Jean Rollin and Spaniard Jose Larraz, Vampyros Lesbos is an ode to indulgent, funereal excess and is among the most peculiar, gripping films of Franco's career. Dennis Price and Paul Muller co-star, while Franco appears as a hotel porter. Various versions run 89, 82, and 78 minutes. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ewa Strömberg, Soledad Miranda, (more)
- 1970
Cult filmmaker Jesus Franco directed this erotic horror film using the pseudonym "Frank Hollmann." The plot concerns Dr. Johnson (Fred Williams), who is driven to suicide after being exiled from the medical profession for his unorthodox experiments involving human embryos. Blaming the medical board, Johnson's distraught, psychotic widow (Soledad Miranda) hunts down the doctors one by one, murdering them by methods both sadistic and sexual. Paul Muller, Ewa Stroemberg, and Howard Vernon co-star, while Franco appears as Dr. Donan, who meets a gruesome torture death at the end of the film. A distinctive visual style, replete with surrealistic photography by Manuel Merino, sets this film apart from scores of similar sex-horror entries flooding the market in the early 1970s. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1970
- PG
This uneven comedy finds Fred (Ian McShane) as a writer living off his royalties in Italy. Married to the long-suffering Millie (Ann Calder-Marshall), Fred revels in a series of affairs with a bevy of Italian beauties. Millie soon grows tired of being alone and takes up with two Italian Don Juans (Sammy Pavel and Marino Mase). When she meets Grant Granite (John Gavin), the two immediately fall for each other and are unable to contain their animalistic passion. Joyce Van Patten also appears in this effort that barely scratches the surface of comedy outside of a few running gags. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ian McShane, Anna Calder-Marshall, (more)
