It’s France at the turn of the 20th century. After a successful robbery the leader of a gang turns on his accomplices and takes the loot himself. Trying to make his way to London he stops at an isolated chateau and hides out. The women who live there assure him that they wont turn him in as they are waiting for the noblewoman they serve to arrive. Eventually his former accomplices track him down, the already tenuous situation turns violent in all possible ways. But when the noblewoman arrives with more of her servants it becomes clear that all the women are not exactly who, or what, they appear to be.

This film by French cinematic iconoclast Jean Rollin was his 9th, and widely considered his most mainstream and commercial yet. He had made his name in 1968 with his first film, the equally controversially titled and received, The Rape of the Vampire. His style of blending eroticism with the fantastique genre and gothicness had always been considered low-brow by many critics, while creating an incredibly loyal and vocal base of fans. While he never was able to appeal to the mainstream, and often had to film pornographic movies for hire under pseudonyms to make ends meet, Rollin is unquestioningly an auteur with a vision and style so strong that it’s absolutely unmistakable. His rich, lush, dreamlike world of dangerous, beautiful women and untrustworthy men has never been better represented than in Fascination.