AniInterview Sorry, this movie sucks

Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Brendon Jones It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Bonehead-XL Highly regarded by hardcore Rollin fans, "Fascination" is a break from the arty vampire flicks he's best known for… Sort of. The director actually seems more interested in telling the story then nudity and pretty images. It's by far the most polished of his films I've seen.Which isn't to say it doesn't feature his trademarks. In the late 1800s, a thief swipes some coins from his fellow thieves. Despite the female tempting him with her heaving bosoms, he continues into the forest with his loot, the others in pursuit. Eventually, he comes to an isolated lake-surrounded château, home to two mysterious women. The girls immediately manipulate the guy, doing everything they can to keep him there until midnight. The girls, lesbian lovers and master seducers, keep whispering about a mysterious ritual. What does this have to do with the opening scene of a woman drinking ox blood for her anemia? It's a highly erotic film. I counted three sex scenes and there's far more nudity. The girl, locked in a room, enjoy each other's company, caressing one another's backs and suckling each other's breasts. A pretty hot scene, especially since Franca Mai and Brigitte Lahaie are gorgeous. Eva, the blonde, seduces the young man into another stimulating scene and, later on, she is forced into servicing one of the other thieves in a stable. Despite being more plot-focused, it's still fair to say the film crosses over into soft core porn.The horror elements slowly work their way in. The most famous scene involves Lahaie, clothed only in a black robe, swinging a giant scythe, an eroticized version of the Grim Reaper. Murder shows up more then once, bloodily slashing through the subplot. Once night falls and black fog rolls over the lake, a cult of women appear and the movie turns out to be a vampire story after all, of sorts. So if boobs are distracting and you're wondering when the horror will show up, be patient.A woman in white standing in butcher's shop, the walls and floors covered with blood, is the first striking image. Eva writhes on the bridge in a see-through pink dress. Faces, half-bathed in shadow, peer around a wooden plank. So, no skimping on the visuals. What there isn't any of is funny camp or over-the-top pretensions. That's good and fine and probably makes the movie highly accessible, but it also makes it a little less fun. Mai and Lahaie both give good performances and Rollin keeps his embarrassing tendencies under wrap. I can certainly recommend "Fascination." But I actually think I like the director's work better when he's trippier and goofier. We'll see how that opinion evolves as I continue my journey.

gavin6942 This erotic horror film, set in 1905, tells the story of a thief who seeks refuge in a castle owned by two women, Eva (Brigitte Lahaie) and Elizabeth (Franca Mai). The women are seductive and teasing, but turn out to be part of a vampiric cult of blood-drinking aristocrats.Why would you drink the blood of an ox as a way to cure anemia? Why? I mean, maybe it would work... but there has to be a better way, even in 1905.I must say, this film is a very interesting twist on the siege subgenre of horror (a subgenre John Carpenter loved to explore). The thief in a house with two lovely ladies while the villagers outside want him dead and may try to bust in to get him... good stuff.The style is all Rollin, and the plot is surprisingly better than some of his other work, not just relying on pointless lesbian vampire sex scenes. This may be the best film he has ever made, at least of those I have seen.

Paul Andrews Fascination is set in the year 1905 & starts (properly) when thief Mark (Jean-Marie Lemaire) double crosses a gang of crooks & runs off with a bag full of gold & the crooks in hot pursuit. Mark happens upon a large Château surrounded by water with only one bridge offering access, Mark feels this would make a perfect hiding place until the cover of night. Inside he finds two young attractive women, Eva (Brigitte Lahaie) & Elisabeth (Franca Mai) who just happen to be lesbians. Mark holds them hostage at gunpoint & has sex with one of them. Eva & Elisabeth try to convince Mark to stay for a mysterious reunion that they are having that very night, Mark sticks around, out of curiosity apparently, until the first guest arrives Helene (Fanny Magier). As four more female guests arrive it fast approaches midnight which seems to hold some significance that when Mark discovers what it is he wish he hadn't...This French production was written & directed by Jean Rollin & it didn't do much for me. While I respect other people's opinions that Rollin's films are artistic, dream like & visually stunning I don't think that about Fascination at all. Don't get me wrong there are some very nice shots & imagery in Fascination, Eva wandering around with a long robe & scythe being a particularly memorable scene, the pigeon loft scene is visually unusual & the Gothic Château setting is impressive & adds a great deal to the film, but overall I just felt it was cheaply filmed with Rollin lingering on shots & keeping his camera rolling for far too long, as a consequence at times this slows Fascination down to a virtual stand still. The one area that I do agree with the general opinion is that Rollin isn't particularly interested in story telling or a coherent plot which is a shame because if he put some of the effort that he puts in his visuals into a decent entertaining film than he'd have a winner on his hands. There is virtually no dialogue in Fascination & the plot is basic & somewhat predictable. One more thing I must state at this point is that there are no traditional Vampires in Fascination at all, no fangs, no stakes through the heart & no sleeping in coffins. There is some brief blood drinking but it's not for any sort of supernatural reasoning. I also found Fascination's exploitation elements lacking, maybe I was expecting too much but there is virtually no blood or gore & the sex & nudity seemed very tame, there is one lesbian scene & two sex scenes & that's your lot. Having said that these French women are very pretty & easy on the eyes. I don't know, maybe I'm missing something here but I just didn't find anything here to gain any sort of enjoyment from apart from some nice looking locations & a bit of nudity. Finally Fascination commits the fatal mistake of being boring & slow & at just under 80 minutes that's not a good thing to think, I can forgive almost anything as long as a film entertains me & Fascination simply didn't. I just can't imagine any regular modern cinema goer getting much from this arty mess.

deheor A thief who is fleeing the partners that he double-crossed comes across a mansion with only two beautiful (and odd) occupants. His plan to stay until nightfall seems to be easily achievable when he finds out the home owners have no desire for him to leave.From this simple premise Rollin creates his most engrossing work with the thief coming to realize that his greatest threat may not be the crooks outside the house but the ladies within. Though slow moving this film ratchets up the tension as midnight approaches and a mysterious ceremony is soon to begin.Strong performances abound with special mention to frequent Rollin star Brigitte Lahaie who has never looked (or acted) better. The women in this film are all incredible and like in all of his films, Rollin shows a photographer's eye for beauty. Once again Rollin indulges in his fondness for lesbian sex scenes but they don't overpower the film like they do in some of his other works.For anyone who has not yet seen a Rollin film, either this one or 'Grapes of death' would make excellent starters although, obviously, keep the kids away.