Sexomania / Lady Desire (BLU-RAY)
SEXOMANIA (1974)
Concerned for the mental health of his beautiful wife Lena, successful entrepreneur and neglectful husband Dimitris Sotos consults a psychiatrist. Determined to get to the root of the problem, the expert physician attempts to shed light on Lena's troubled childhood and her turbulent, secret love life. As a result, a vivid kaleidoscope unfolds as the social prejudices, emotional trauma, broken dreams, and unspoken passions that shaped Lena's character come to light. But the question remains. Can the unconventional psychotherapist help Lena rid herself of the ungovernable urge to seek pleasure in all the wrong places?
The 1974 release, Sexomania, is something of a mystery production. The credits list two directors:Dimitri Papakonstantis and Mario Retsilas; three screenwriters: Vassilis Manoussakis, Giannis Tziotis and Giorgos Siotis; and two directors of photography: Dimitri Papakonstantis and Syrakos Danalis. The films rather schizophrenic storyline - with two parallel narratives linked by Lena’s memories of her childhood - suggest that here we have two films that were edited together, presumably after production issues of some sort. Whatever its problems were, the film is wildly entertaining and contains more than its fair share of psychotronic episodes and “what the heck??” moments. Famous Greek actress and dancer Maria Ioannidou gives a great, uninhibited performance that led to her later becoming a Playboy centerfold.
LADY DESIRE (1968)
Living in self-imposed exile, hiding from the rest of the world in her eerily vacant Athens mansion, Christina, an affluent, sad-eyed heiress, is shocked to discover that an audacious burglar has stolen her precious collection of jewelry and family heirlooms. To get to the bottom of this challenging case, the inquisitive local police commander decides to dig deep into the opaque past of the cryptic young woman, following half-baked leads and half-truths. As the experienced officer tries to connect the dots, unexpected discoveries about Christina’s personal life come to light. However, Christina is a hard nut to crack, and the commander has no other choice but to resort to unconventional methods to shed light on the mysterious robbery. Now, it is up to Lieutenant Dimitris to help find the truth. Can he crack the case?
Produced by the controversial Greek-American filmmaker James Paris, the film’s Greek title was Katigoro to kormi mou (I Blame My Body) and as that title suggests, is a steamy, sex-based melodrama about a young woman whose passionate, and often destructive, love affairs fill her with guilt and conflicted emotions. Superbly handled by Errikos Andreou, one of the best young directors of the time, the film was widely exported. This is its first appearance on home video and is a global Blu-ray premiere.
DISC FEATURES
- Region free
- Greek Language with optional Eng subtitles
- Brand new 2k restorations of both films
- Tribute video to actor Costas Prekas
- Tribute video to actor Maria Ioannidou
- Stills and posters for Sexomania
- Trailer for Sexomania