Baba Yaga

Rating:
Summary: Cool Psyche Film
Review: This movie is a great period piece, nice dream sequences and some very pretty set pieces. It's not a Eurotrash sleaze film but a serious art film a la Blow-up or Barbarella. Would be a great film to watch while tripping.

Rating:
Summary: Fast forward review
Review: This movie is based on an Italian comic strip steeped deep in rich dream symbolism and sadomasochism. I felt the movie succeeds only partially in the mixing of dream and reality, which is odd, since so many Italian horror movies and giallos eschew rational in favor of dream logic.

The main plot revolves around the title character's (Baba Yaga) scheme to draw the comic strip's main protagonist, Valentina, into the underground world of lesbianism and witchcraft. Considering Valentina's politics, not to mention her sensitive New Age guy boyfriend, Arno (played by George Eastman), its a wonder that Valentina doesn't willing shackle herself to Baba Yaga's whipping post.

Other then the film itself, which looks gorgeous, there is an interview with director Corrado Farina and a documentary on Guido Crepax's comic strips. There are also about ten minutes of deleted scenes.

This is a hard film to recommend because about 1/2 of the people you would expect to enjoy it will end up hating it and wonder what kind of person you mistake them for. And about 1/3 of the people you would expect to loathe it will claim it's their favorite Italian film of all time.

I'm the type of person who thinks this movie will grow on him over time and after repeated viewings but right now I can only give it three stars, though the DVD is definitely a five-star effort.

If money is tight, rent before you buy. But if you're an Italio-phile, you're going to end up buying it at some point anyway so you might as well just make it your next impulse buy.

Rating:
Summary: Bizzare, entertaining, Euro-surrealism
Review: This movie is based on an Italian comic strip steeped deep in rich dream symbolism and sadomasochism. I felt the movie succeeds only partially in the mixing of dream and reality, which is odd, since so many Italian horror movies and giallos eschew rational in favor of dream logic.

The main plot revolves around the title character's (Baba Yaga) scheme to draw the comic strip's main protagonist, Valentina, into the underground world of lesbianism and witchcraft. Considering Valentina's politics, not to mention her sensitive New Age guy boyfriend, Arno (played by George Eastman), its a wonder that Valentina doesn't willing shackle herself to Baba Yaga's whipping post.

Other then the film itself, which looks gorgeous, there is an interview with director Corrado Farina and a documentary on Guido Crepax's comic strips. There are also about ten minutes of deleted scenes.

This is a hard film to recommend because about 1/2 of the people you would expect to enjoy it will end up hating it and wonder what kind of person you mistake them for. And about 1/3 of the people you would expect to loathe it will claim it's their favorite Italian film of all time.

I'm the type of person who thinks this movie will grow on him over time and after repeated viewings but right now I can only give it three stars, though the DVD is definitely a five-star effort.

If money is tight, rent before you buy. But if you're an Italio-phile, you're going to end up buying it at some point anyway so you might as well just make it your next impulse buy.

Rating:
Summary: Baba-Yaga-Da-Vida Baby!
Review: Valentina, a beautiful fashion photographer, is haunted by a strange woman. The woman turns out to be a witch named Baba Yaga (Carrol Baker), with kinky intentions for our heroine. Valentina ends up at Baba Yaga's spooky house, which is complete with both stuffed and caged animals, a bottomless pit in the livingroom, and a dungeon / bedroom full of heavy play toys. Yaga puts a curse on Valentina's camera and gives her a doll in full S&M gear. From that point on, whoever Valentina takes pictures of falls over dead. You see, the doll can become a full grown woman with a nine inch hairpin for killing people! Yaga continues her supernatural stalking by casting runes and phone harassment, while Valentina keeps right on taking pictures of soon-to-be corpses. Yep, this is pretty freaky stuff. It all ends in a final showdown at Baba Yaga's pad where it's Yaga and her living leather-doll vs. Valentina and her boyfriend. BABA YAGA is not entirely my cup of hemlock. I prefer straight horror. However, there were enough creepy elements to keep my interest...