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Carmen, Baby
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Wikipedia article
'Carmen, Baby' is a 1967 American-German-Yugoslav romantic drama film directed by Radley Metzger, based on the novella 'Carmen' by Prosper Mrime (which also inspired Bizet popular opera, 'Carmen').
Plot
A liberated woman tempts a local police officer into a romantic entanglement with unpleasant consequences.
Cast
* Uta Levka as Carmen
* Claus Ringer as Jose
* Carl Mhner as Medicio
* Barbara Valentin as Dolores
* Walter Wilz as Baby Lucas
* Christiane Rcker as Misty
* Arthur Brauss as Garcia
* Doris Arden as Darcy
* Michael Mnzer as Magistrate
Reception
The film 'Carmen, Baby', according to one reviewer, was the beginning of Metzger's successful style in his later films: that is, adapting "a literary classic in a gorgeous European locale with high polish and a goodly helping of sophisticated sex and seduction." Film critic Jesse Vogel noted that the film is an example of Metzger's signature style, "cool, classy, distant, with a distinctively European sensibility". According to film reviewer Gary Morris, 'Carmen' was "well played" by Uta Levka; lighting and camerawork by Hans Jura was "first-rate".
Another reviewer wrote that the film had "a rather classy look" and that the performers were "attractive" and the setting "beautiful".
Legal issues
In the case of 'Rabe v. Washington', 405 U.S. 313 (1972), the Supreme Court of the United States decided that the manager of a drive-in movie theater could not be charged with obscenity for showing the film which was not wholly determined to be obscene, but only parts were, holding that the citizens of Washington State had no notice under the Sixth Amendment that the place where a film was shown was an element of the offense.
Popular culture
Wally Lamb mentioned the bottle dance scene from 'Carmen, Baby' in his 2016 book 'I'll Take You There'.
Notes
According to one film reviewer, Radley Metzger's films, including those made during the Golden Age of Porn (19691984), are noted for their "lavish design, witty screenplays, and a penchant for the unusual camera angle". Another reviewer noted that his films were "highly artistic and often cerebral ... and often featured gorgeous cinematography". Film and audio works by Metzger have been added to the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City.
References
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