In the late 80s it seemed that film makers were dead set on
turning comic book properties into camp parodies of their origins. In 1980 we
had FLASH GORDON, in 1979 two Captain America films best forgotten, CONDORMAN
in 1981 and THE SPIRIT in 1987. So it should come as no surprise that one of
them would be based on the bondage comics of John Willie that were popular when
it was made in 1984. That film was GWENDOLINE aka THE PERILS OF GWENDOLINE IN
THE LAND OF THE YIK-YAK.
With only two minor roles to her credit at the time actress
Tawny Kitaen stars as the title character, the daughter of a lepidopterist
(those who study butterflies) searching for her father in China, the last place
he was seen. Her father was seeking a rare and elusive butterfly with the hopes
of being the first to bring one back home to be named after himself. With her
faithful sidekick Beth (Zabou Breitman) by her side she’s immediately kidnapped
and taken to the bar/brothel of a local gangster about to be traded into the
white slavery market.
Before that can happen adventurer and scalawag Willard
(Brent Huff) breaks in to collect a debt he is owed by the brothel owner.
Leaving behind the bodies of the man and his crew, he hits the bar and betting
tables with Gwendoline hot on his trail, hoping she can recruit him to aid in
her search. He refuses at first but Beth hides the cargo he is to transport for
another criminal and he has no choice but to help.
In addition to giving him back his cargo, Gwendoline agrees
to pay him $2,000 for his assistance. What she doesn’t tell him is that to
raise the funds she sells off his cargo. With the criminals after him he has no
choice but to help them as they head off to find her father.
Their journey takes them up river and then into a jungle
where they encounter the Kiops tribe, a group of cannibals who capture them
with the intent of dinner. Escaping from them they head out to a desert area
that even the Kiops are afraid to travel. With little to go on a frustrated Willard
is about to leave the two women when they fall into a hidden land beneath the
sand, a land of only women, all scantily clad.
This is the land of the Yik-Yak, a location full of legends
and fables concerning a volcano that could erupt at any time. It is also a land
where the main focus of their people is mining huge diamonds. The queen tells
Huff that he will be the prize for a combat involving members of the tribe, the
winner getting to mate with him. What she doesn’t tell him is that afterward he
will be killed.
Can Gwendoline, now in love with Willard, save him with the
help of Beth? Will they find her father? Will the find the butterfly? Will they
be able to escape and take along a fortune in diamonds? Will the queen win and
rule forever? Will the volcano explode?
The film plays out like those old serials that used to play
in front of feature films long ago. Well sort of. Those films didn’t use plenty
of exposed flesh like this one does nor the sexual situations it employs or the
low level bondage seen here. But it does have that feeling and does so in a
homage style that makes it fun.
None of this film is to be taken seriously and it was
intended as such. This was a romp that would provide that all around fun hero
genre with a touch of sex and nudity and draw in most likely a young male
audience looking for just that type of film. What could satisfy the needs of
then nerds that heroes and breasts? The film provides both. Is it the best film
made? Far from it. But at least it knew what its target audience was and played
to those strength.
That being said those hired for their roles were far from
the cream of the crop. And yet they do a decent enough job here. Kitaen went on
to marry and star in music videos with then husband David Coverdale and his
band Whitesnake before dealing with addiction issue. Huff went on to a solid
career and can be seen in the current series THE ROOKIE. The rest in supporting
roles also went on to bigger and better things.
Director Just Jaeckin, who had made a name for himself in
soft core porn films like THE STORY OF O, EMMANEULLE and LADY CHATTERLEY’S
LOVER never made another feature film after this. His films did show a talent
there but for some reason he decided to leave film and pursue art instead.
Is the movie great? No, not really. But it can be fun if you
enjoy those campy films of the past or movies that offer more skin than sex
focusing only on women being naked for the most part. Fans who have a nostalgic
sense of the film having seen it repeatedly while growing up late at night on
pay stations will be certain to pick it up as well.
Severin is to be applauded once more for bringing life to a
movie lost among the VHS shelves of mom and pop stores in the past. They’re
offering it in blu-ray format with a newly scanned uncut 4k version from the
original film negative making it the cleanest version ever offered. In addition
to that they’ve included some nice extras as well including the alternate US
version of the film with the lengthier title, an audio commentary track with
Jaeckin, an audio commentary track with Kitaen and Huff, “The Butterfly Effect”
a 2019 interview with Jaeckin, “Bondage Paradise” interviews with costume and
concept designers & comic book artists Francois Schuiten and Claude Renard,
“The Perils of Production” an interview with producer Jean-Clause Fleury,
“Gwendoline’s Travels” an interview with production designer Francois Deleu,
blu-ray promos with Kitaen and Huff, “The Last Temptation of Just” a 2006
interview with Jaeckin, “Dr. Kinsey Interview with John Willie the Creator of
Sweet Gwendoline”, trailers. a reversible cover and six lobby cards while
supplies last. Whew! That’s an extensive bunch of extras for a movie like this.
It shows the work that Severin is willing to do for a movie that wasn’t among
the top of the box office charts but does have its own cult following. Kudos to
them once again for stepping up to the plate with a title like this.
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