John Seal
Jess Franco claimed in 1973 that this was the lowest-budgeted film he had ever worked on, and his claim is borne out by what is (and isn't) seen on the screen. Much of the film consists of un-erotic groping and a somewhat more inspiring (but still overlong) strip tease, most of the plot is conveyed by voice-over narration, and Franco's developing penchant for the zoom lens is becoming evident. On the plus side, Paul Muller is predictably good, but given much less interesting material than in his previous Franco production Eugenie de Sade. I'm generally inclined to cut Franco some slack--the man rarely had the resources he needed--but this is definitely one of his lesser efforts. That said, Bruno Nicolai's score is excellent and well worth acquiring on CD.
Michael_Elliott
Nightmares Come At Night (1970) ** 1/2 (out of 4) A stripper named Anna (Diana Lorys) starts having nightmares that she's involved in some kind of murder but soon she realizes that these might not be nightmares but instead reality. This is Jess Franco's "lost" film, which was just discovered after nearly thirty years and while it's not one of his best, it does offer some nice touches. Lorys is quite good in the role as is Franco regular Paul Muller. The main key to Franco is his poetic eroticism, which comes off here as well as a nice jazz score by Daniel White. Soledad Miranda has a small but thankless role. As usual Franco fills the screen with beautiful, naked women as well as lesbian sex.
bensonmum2
When things go bad in a Franco film, they really go bad. Even by Franco's standards, Nightmares Come at Night is a total bore. The plot deals with a woman who may be going insane. She has reoccurring dreams of killing people and cannot distinguish what's real and what's part of her dreams. But the plot is secondary to Nightmares Come at Night's primary purpose – show as much pointless nudity as possible. Most of the movie consists of Diana Lorys walking around with little or nothing on. I felt like screaming "Do Something!" at the screen. And it doesn't help that it's filmed in the most unimaginable way possible. To make matters worse, Franco introduces a diamond heist subplot in the final third of the movie and gives it little more than lip service. It adds nothing to the film.When you pick up the DVD, you would understandably think that Soledad Miranda was the star of Nightmares Come at Night. I mean it's her face on the DVD cover. However, as was the case with Lina Romay in Franco's The Erotic Rites of Frankenstein, Miranda has only 10 minutes of screen time. Plus, she has no connection with anything else in the movie. Her scenes were obviously filmed at a different time and location from the rest of the film.
MARIO GAUCI
I've just received and watched the R1 DVD of NIGHTMARES COME AT NIGHT (1970). I'm not quite sure what to make of the film on the basis of this one viewing: most of Franco's usual ingredients were there, to be sure – the accent on eroticism, of course, but also his customary virtues in the form of a bizarre and eclectic score and an effortlessly haunting, dream-like atmosphere. Special mention must also go to the stylish credit sequence, which was quite a nice – and unexpected – touch. However, I did feel that something was missing here: perhaps because it was all so hastily put together, the film seemed to be going nowhere most of the time. Maybe it also had something to do with the incongruity of the two female leads: on this and other Forums, I've read a lot of praise for Diana Lorys' performance but, personally, she didn't impress me too much – though I wouldn't call her acting bad, and she can certainly handle herself well in a nude scene – and seemed only to alter between playing agitated (especially in her scenes with Paul Muller, where she must have asked him if she was going crazy a thousand times!) and being in a daze. As for Colette Jack, to me, she didn't manage to put across convincingly either the spell her character is supposed to have over Lorys or the intelligence necessary to organize a jewel heist, let alone the elaborate way in which her accomplices are dispatched (her final confrontation with Muller clearly suggests she was the 'brains' of the outfit)!On the other hand, I was pleased by the contribution of both Muller (one of his few really meaty roles for Franco) and Jack Taylor (his one scene in the film – a very Godardian moment, by the way – is its highlight). To get to the jewel heist subplot, which many feel is out of place, one must remember that without it the film would have no plot whatsoever: since the whole ruse of hypnotizing Lorys is actually to get rid of Taylor (assuming he too is an accomplice, as this is never explained), Soledad Miranda and Andre' Montcall! Still, I would disagree that Miranda is wasted here: with only a few gestures and lines of dialogue in a couple of brief scenes, she manages nonetheless to create a character and, with the aid of her indelible sensuousness, leave quite an impression – I certainly wouldn't want the film to be without her!Regarding the DVD itself, I would like to point out that I too experienced a momentary glitch during the layer-change. Knowing of Media Blasters' notorious reputation through online Forums (this is the only disc I own by them), I don't think I'll bother sending for a replacement as I doubt a repressing has been made at all. What's more, having recently experienced disappointment with the replacements I got from Flicker Alley (JUDEX [1916-17]) and Mondo Macabro (MILL OF THE STONE WOMEN [1960]) – where this same glitch was still present on the extra copies I received from both labels – I'm a bit wary of the prospect, to say the least!As for the DVD transfer, the full-frame print used was rather soft (though this may have been intentional) and displayed occasional damage but it was certainly acceptable, especially when considering the extreme rarity of this item. On the other hand the French-language track, with its literate English subtitles, was very satisfactory when compared to the lifeless newly-dubbed version, clips of which were included in the Franco interview. The latter, then, is one of the most entertaining discussions I've seen featuring the Spanish director; his accent sometimes does get in the way but his recollections of Soledad were certainly articulately put, as well as obviously heartfelt, and the interview never wore out its welcome. The other extras were more basic stuff, though the photo gallery (sections of which are also featured in the interview) was quite a nice addition. In the long run, I would consider the film second-tier Franco: it's as if he was biding his time here waiting, as it were, for the full flowering of Soledad Miranda in order to embark on the next phase of his debauched career
