Vampyros lesbos: Closing Write-up

I think Vampyros lesbos is Franco at the peak of his powers. He really has a command of his craft here.

“I lost myself completely in her. She was me, and I was her.”

Dr. Seward runs a nearby sanitarium (he’s played by Dennis Price), and he has a special patient who perhaps would be considered the Renfield of the film, Agra (Heidrun Kussin). Agra refers to the Countess as the “Queen of the Night” (I love that!). The Countess has left a residue of her control over Agra. Agra experiences what the Countess does. Feels what the Countess feels.

I kind of look at the Westinghouse character as a combination of Harker and Mina. Westinghouse went to see the Countess on business, and her fate is perhaps sealed when she, prior to the visit, had dreamed about her before their first meeting. The stage performance is when Westinghouse is spellbound by the Countess. This event spawned the dreams. The meeting set-up, and the actual face-to-face contact. She is the conquest pursued and eventually taken. A really wonderfully off-the-wall and unexpected scene comes when Westinghouse sees the Countess lying (it appears to be) dead, seemingly, in a pool, naked with just her iconic red shawl, her eyes staring out into the sky, body motionless. It has this impact because it is only about 30 minutes into the film. It leaves you wondering what it means and where the film is headed.

I think casting for the lead vampire can be a crucial step in how successful a movie about a member of the “great undead” is. I truly believe Franco knew what he had with the enigmatic, alluring Soledad Miranda, and his camera makes the most of her particular casting. Look at his camera set ups for her and shot selections/compositions. She is more than some character in the movie: she is the dark heart of the movie. I love this monologue she has about how Dracula came into her life. How he killed a soldier raping her centuries before. His taking her blood, addicted to her body, and eventually bringing her into the vampire fold. Morpho (José Martínez Blanco) is her henchman, accomplice, and family. He’s part of her “inner circle” even though she admittedly hates men. The rape may have something to do with that. Dracula feeding from her after rescuing her might have had a hand in such hatred. Whatever the case, Murpho is an ear, a dedicated loyalist of hers, and he’s always just in the area. He’s an enigma, too. Few words, if any, leave his lips; Morpho has this serious tone about him, a very intimidating look, and quite a brooding presence.

“You are one of us now. The Queen of the Night will bear you up on her black wings.”

There is the mild lesbian encounter where Westinghouse answers the drawing call of her Queen. This whole experience is not remembered by Linda, while the Countess places her under a vampiric spell. When Omar, Linda’s lover, is becoming a feed-victim, she will need help from Seward (who has become an expert in ‘occultism’) in order to halt the lure of the bite. Intriguingly, the method described by Seward to kill the vampire is “trauma to the brain”, not the typical stake to the heart (again, a differing method Franco has updated from the roots of the Dracula legend).

Agra is an amusing character to me. You see in other Renfield incarnations, this lunacy and deprivation of blood promised him. In Franco’s film, Agra is devoid of a satisfaction of lust. One scene shows her totally in this orgiastic euphoria that has her writhing on the floor of a room at Seward’s sanitarium. It seems the Countess visits her from time to time, a type of spiritual possession that leaves Agra devoted sexually to her master. Seward is powerless to stop the Countess. The Countess wants to meet her adversary, and Agra is like a buffer between them. Lust as an albatross and sexual delight as a weapon: quite a unique means for the vampire to torture the human possession.

Also, Franco takes the Seward character and turns him inside out as well. As he reads up on vampires, he becomes completely involved in gaining access to the dark world of the Countess’ empire. To be given access to the supernatural and be a member of the undead becomes Seward’s goal…too bad the Countess hates men. Their official meeting ends rather abruptly as Seward attempts to go all Catholic and call upon God (a little too late for calling on the Lord considering just moments ago you wanted to go bad and never come back…), with Morpho putting an end to that right quick-like.

“I’ve come to say goodbye. I have to leave you forever.”

With Seward out of the way, Agra has no rehabilitative support, and the Countess needs to rid herself of “excess baggage”. With Linda almost secured to her, the Countess doesn’t need Agra summoning for her and still around to be all in synchronicity…in other words, the link needs to be severed. There is a clever trick where Franco has the Countess appear to Agra, with Agra reaching out to touch the master who has been seemingly so far away. But the Countess doesn’t stay around very long, just saying goodbye. Agra is denied her master.

“My hate and love for you are infinite.”

“She felt happiness in my arms through my torture.”

Memmet returned a little later to snag Westinghouse and hole her away to torture her into becoming his love bunny. She’s tied up and he salivates homicidally about what he plans to do to her, and how she’ll respond in adoration to him! Weird for the sake of weird, the scene does tie into the film. Agra was Memmet’s wife (!), and he will take his pound of flesh. Or so he thinks. Linda wisely carries on with him until he frees her through some manipulative goading. This hacksaw that Memmet parades around, and the female body of a previous victim stored away as a torture trophy just add to the absurdity of the whole scene. With the saw in her possession, Memmet is toast.

“Only through your blood will my strength return.” – Countess

“No, I don’t want to belong to you.” – Linda 

There is a kind of betrayal at the end of the film. The Countess has put a lot of stock in Linda being a member of her intimate entourage (a trio, instead of just her and Morpho). Linda isn’t so keen to be a vampire, and the master and potential bride meet one last time. Linda has a decision to make…join the Countess or defy her. Linda decides on the latter. A sharp metal spike (very small) hidden in her pocket, Linda takes advantage of a weak Countess who needs to drink or die. Linda actually bites (!) her, drawing what little blood is left before ramming that spike right into her eye. Morpho suicides once that happens by using the spike that killed his boss to jam it into his own chest. Linda rejoins her man and current psychiatrist (Paul Muller; the Franco stock company in full force) at the end, putting this whole ordeal behind her. The scorpion had been used by Franco as a symbolic example of what the Countess is: a danger with a sting. Once the scorpion (in a pool, starting to die) keels over, soon the Countess follows suit. 

The film is known for Soledad’s unique stage performances. She has the aforementioned human mannequin on stage to perform off of. Undressing herself in the second stage act, and dressing the mannequin, Soledad is scantily clad and in total control. It is very similar to her work opposite the Westinghouse character. Westinghouse (Agra, perhaps even more) is in many ways like the mannequin…seemingly a playtoy for the vampire to do whatever she wanted. Where it differs is that the Countess gave over a love for Linda that cost her dearly at the end. The Countess admits that Linda was different that other past victims. In allowing love to creep in, the Countess’ countenance fell and her power depleted to nothing. The bride-to-be feeding from the master has quite a distinct irony to it.

****/*****