‘Orgasmo’ or — Easily Seduced?
Don’t be fooled by the title (apparently director Umberto Lenzi hated the distributors for imposing it) as ‘Orgasmo’ (1969) is nowhere near as sleazy or salacious as its name might imply. Admittedly what it implies is insanely debauched and this is certainly a film that deals with erotic desire and sexual manipulation but far from being a sordid slice of exploitation it’s a genuinely interesting, compelling and incredibly stylish melodramatic thriller.
Recently widowed socialite Kathryn West (Carroll Baker) retreats to an isolated Italian villa to recover from the death of her husband who died in a car crash leaving her his $200 million fortune. Struggling to process the shock Kathryn numbs her pain with alcohol and prescription medication, as well as taking her grief out on her housekeeper. Although when a handsome young American, Peter (Lou Castel), takes a shine to her and ingratiates his way into her home Kathryn sees this as an opportunity to release her grief in a more physical manner as well as indulging in passions that were obviously denied to her during her marriage. Yet when Peter’s “sister”, Eva (Colette Descombes), arrives at the villa and also becomes enamoured with Kathryn this trio become increasingly psychological and sexual entwined.
Is this a case of a hip, young couple attempting to swindle an older woman out of a vast inheritance through deceit and drugs or is this simply a bereaved, middle-aged widow indulging in the forgotten ecstasies of youth as a means of coping with loss? It’s hard to tell with all the stimulants flying about.
What’s most surprising about ‘Orgasmo’ isn’t the sex, drugs or looming spectre of death but how restrained Lenzi keeps it all, so those expecting an erotic frenzy of nudity and violence will be sorely disappointed. Instead, it’s more a psychological study with the drugs and free love a way to examine both generational and class differences as well as grief-driven addiction.
What really helps sell all this is Baker’s performance as Kathryn which is superb. She’s unafraid to play her as frequently unlikable, condescending and aloof (if you watch the superior original Italian cut her nastier side makes more sense after a cool final reveal) yet always keeping us on her side. Sure, that’s not hard when she’s being put through hell but she certainly grips our attention.
Made a year before ‘The Bird with the Crystal Plumage’ (1970) ‘Orgasmo’ doesn’t possess any of those grand, elaborate set-pieces you’d find in the work of Argento but that doesn’t mean Lenzi’s film isn’t dripping with flair and style: the cinematography is awash with hazy pastels, Baker burns her way through a wardrobe of ever increasing extravagance and the only thing more outrageous than the plot’s premise are her sunglasses.
Lenzi also pulls off some nice, if unsubtle, shots and compositions to heighten her sense of escalating disorientation, although the film’s real jewel is Piero Umiliani’s ravishing score which isn’t just one of the composer’s best but might be one of the most enchanting Italian soundtracks of the Sixties (it’s that gorgeous combination of flugels, voices, strings, organ and vibraphone).
‘Orgasmo’ might appear dull, if not downright boring, for anyone craving a pulse-pounding, bloody, sexy thriller but that’s only because that’s not quite what we’re dealing with here. Instead, it’s more pop-art melodrama with a psychological twist so viewed as a sort of mash-up between Clouzot with a splash of Sirk and even a touch of Godard then you might find yourself falling for this a little more than that title suggests.
