Werewolf Woman Slaughter Hotel

If you don’t mind a quick digression, let’s take moment to lament the lost art of liner notes. While the ‘70s graced us with beautiful album covers often accompanied by informative introductions and anecdotes, the death of vinyl all but killed the written word when it came to music. Home video never even had glory days to wax nostalgic about, unless you count a few deluxe laserdisc titles. But niche DVD labels like Criterion and the short-lived NoShame resurrected the practice of including well-researched, entertaining essays that served as a gateway to the often outré material contained within.

What’s the point, you ask? I’m paying to watch a movie, not read some chump’s opinions. True, but chances are if you’re buying something like Slaughter Hotel or Werewolf Woman you’d likely appreciate the camaraderie of a fellow fan…not to mention a little back story on the production, which Raro Video’s new Blu-ray releases do quite well thanks to liner notes by Fangoria’s Chris Alexander.

Ostensibly directed by Fernando Di Leo, better known in his native Italy for violent cop movies like The Italian Connection, the clumsy erotic fumblings of Slaughter Hotel seem more like the work of Jess Franco, whose camera always seemed to stumble upon the onscreen naughtiness by accident. The film uses a “giallo” format (a type of Italian mystery) to set up a thin story about a killer stalking his sexy female victims at an exclusive psychiatric facility. Klaus Kinski headlines with a cast of Euro-sex starlets like Rosalbo Neri (Lady Frankenstein) and Margaret Lee who disrobe then die at the hands of a black-gloved maniac.

Slaughter Hotel is sleazy with a capital “S,” with graphic sex inserts that are almost clinical in detail and presentation. When the lens keeps its distance, one is able to better appreciate the assets of an actress like Neri, who bravely goes naked for most of the film but still manages to create a memorable character. Kinski lets his haunted eyes and bad boy reputation do most of the talking for him. With an emphasis on sex, the film doesn’t really bother creating suspense. It simply interrupts with a few token stabbings when the narrative insists…until the gonzo finale that seems to be the only time Di Leo stepped behind the viewfinder.

Even the director admits Slaughter Hotel is a trashy giallo cash-in with few redeeming qualities. But – as Alexander points out in his notes – it’s that sort of desperately unapologetic filthiness, along with some bizarre editing choices, that give it some lasting appeal.

Rino Di Silverstro’s Werewolf Woman is a different breed altogether. With equal amounts of sex and violence, the film certainly delivers the sleazy thrills audiences expect. But it also proved just how weird exploitation films of the era were allowed to be as long as they hit a few high notes now and then.

Convinced she is the reincarnation of a distant relative burned at the stake as a lycanthrope, Daniela (Annik Borel) gives in to her twisted impulses to rip the throat out of any man (or woman) who gets her sexually aroused. Similar to Paul Schrader’s Cat People remake (and sharing the mental illness angle of George Romero’s Martin released that same year) but with a seat-of-your-pants script, Werewolf Woman is part soap opera, part Gothic horror, part rape-revenge saga. Plenty of Italian films used this kitchen-sink approach, but few can match Di Silvestro’s go-for-broke plotting and Borel’s carnivorous performance.

No matter how high your expectations for Raro’s restorations, you still won’t believe how incredible both films look. And better yet, both include a fair amount of extras. Slaughter Hotel tacks on an interview with actress Rosalbo Neri, a 15-minute Making Of and Deleted Scenes (mostly of a sexual nature). Werewolf Woman adds a 22-minute interview with director Rino Di Silverstro and a pair of trailers. Then there are the aforementioned liner notes, which play up each film’s historical significance in the Italian horror genre and their lasting hold over fans…like Quentin Tarantino who list Werewolf Woman as one of his favorite films.