For this podcast (episode 145) Dan and Bradley welcome Elbee and Andrew from GRUMPIRE to discuss BELLADONNA OF SADNESS (1973) and VALARIE AND HER WEEK OF WONDERS (1970).
This post gives a brief note on each film and includes some of the clips and trailers used for the episode. Our podcast is full of spoilers and as always we highly recommend you watch the films we discuss prior to listening.
VALARIE AND HER WEEK OF WONDERS
This 1970 film was directed by Jaromil Jireš
The film is based on a 1935 novel of the same name. It is made up of a mélange of things we love here at Movies from HELL: Occult elements, surrealism, blasphemous religious elements and a touch of the experimental with it’s sets and time framing. The ambiguous relationships throughout make this a curios film that begs for multiple watches just to get a clear idea of what is happening.
Known for it’s beautiful look and it’s effective score, VALARIE AND HER WEEK OF WONDERS is a must see for those interested in strange cinema as well as a film that would be gobbled up by any self respecting cinephile.
INTRO VIA CRITERION
CRITERION TRAILER
FROM THE SOUNDTRACK
| Czech | Valerie a týden divů |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Jaromil Jireš |
| Screenplay by | Ester KrumbachováJaromil JirešJiří Musil (dialogue) |
| Based on | Valerie and Her Week of Wonders by Vítězslav Nezval |
| Produced by | Jirí Becka |
| Starring | Jaroslava SchallerováHelena AnýžováPetr KopřivaJiří Prýmek |
| Cinematography | Jan Čuřík |
| Edited by | Josef Valušiak |
| Music by | Lubos Fišer |
| Production company | Filmové studio Barrandov |
| Distributed by | Ústřední půjčovna filmů |
| Release date | 16 October 1970 |
| Running time | 77 minutes |
| Country | Czechoslovakia |
| Language | Czech |
BELLADONNA OF SADNESS
A 1973 film directed by Eiichi Yamamoto
BELLADONNA OF SADNESS gives us the goods with lush watercolor animation and a great soundtrack unleashing a load of Movies from HELL qualified themes including: orgiastic activities, psychedelia, The Devil, hallucinations, insanity, witchcraft and much more.
We highly recommend this film for cinephiles and depraved animation aficionados alike.
THE ORIGINAL TRAILER
MODERN TRAILER
YAMAMOTO’S CLEOPATRA
YAMAMOTO’s A THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS
| Japanese | 哀しみのベラドンナ |
|---|---|
| Hepburn | Kanashimi no Beradonna |
| Directed by | Eiichi Yamamoto |
| Written by | Yoshiyuki Fukuda Eiichi Yamamoto |
| Based on | Satanism and Witchcraft by Jules Michelet |
| Produced by | Tadami Watanabe |
| Starring | Aiko Nagayama Tatsuya Nakadai |
| Narrated by | Chinatsu Nakayama[1] |
| Cinematography | Shigeru Yamazaki |
| Edited by | Masashi Furukawa |
| Music by | Masahiko Satoh |
| Production company | Mushi Production[2] |
| Distributed by | Nippon Herald Eiga |
| Release date | June 27, 1973 ( Berlin)June 30, 1973 (Japan) |
| Running time | 86 minutes[3] |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |