Scream of the Butterfly

A 40's style melodrama for drive-ins told in flashback (with a Miklós Rózsa-esque score by John Neel) showcasing director Eder Lobato's bouffant blonde wife Nelida Lobato as the butterfly broken on the wheels of her lover's white Triumph.

Lana Turner never wore a bikini as skimpy in 'The Postman Always Rings Twice', while Deborah Kerr's top remained firmly on in the beach scene in 'From Here to Eternity'; and I certainly didn't see the revelation in the final fifteen minutes coming!

Surprisingly well written and well filmed, Scream of the Butterfly is a lusty, busty noir film full of surprises which ultimately delivers the goods....It wouldn't be surprising to discover that the leading lady was the original model for the classic and controversial Barbie doll, with her spun-gold beehive hairdo and over-developed bust and hips. Nearly all the performances are good, with the exception of the inept husband...surely someone who is supposedly wealthy could afford to get a better haircut than an out of date flat-top he might have sported as a teen, and could dress better than the Goodwill outfits he apparently favors. It's no wonder that Marla flips as soon as she sets eyes on the beautiful gigolo David, who's almost as much a stunner as that famous statue he's apparently named after (Nic Novarro does the role proud) The pace and turns of the story keep viewers interested and the plot has more than a few clever turns in it all the way up to the final minutes. The excellent music score is appropriate for crime and noir and it does justice to a well-executed script. This film was definitely a bit ahead of its time, correctly depicting the probability of David's conviction by a jury for murder unless temporary insanity was claimed. However, the only persons truly capable of deliberate homicide were Marla (who had already attempted to drown her husband) and the jealous lover who hated her. David's crime was unpremeditated and happened in the confusion of Marla's unnecessary and violent vituperative rage and could very well have been accidental.

With the few seconds of gratuitous t&a footage cut, this film would have gained wider mainstream distribution and the audience it deserves. Definitely worth your time if you enjoy a good noir murder and lust story.

Grindhouse regulars must've been shocked in l965 when this way-above-average exploitation film began its cycle on the marquees of theaters along 42nd Street.

Scream of the Butterfly is strikingly photographed by Ray Stickler who used bright, white lighting that brings out the stunning beauty of its female star--the incomparable Nelida Lobato, famous at that time as a dancer and singer. She gives us an unforgettable portrait of a man-eating temptress who has no hesitation bedding down a gorgeous hunk although she has only been married for a few weeks.

She's shown here as the immoral sex-pot Marla who marries a rich man but who grovels and swallows her equally gorgeous boy toy, Nick Navarro. The latter was also an aberration in the soft-core flicks of that era because he was so gorgeous and sexy looking.

Most of the male leads in those soft-core flicks were heavy, middle-aged looking slobs, buddies of the film makers.

Nelida has several crowd-pleasing moments when her perfectly proportioned body is revealed. The strongest and most unforgettable moment in the film comes when Marla and her stud make love in the surf as a thunderstorm rages. The lushly romantic music is perfectly crafted to enhance this moment and raises this well-done movie to memorable heights. As was typical of that era, although Nelida is completely nude in her love scenes, her boyfriend always keeps his pants on, even while rolling with her in the waves. This is a stunning sequence in this unforgettable film noir that should have been better promoted and distributed to mainstream theaters.

My only complaint is the way too much dialogue scenes in the office of the district attorney as they argue and argue about the fate of the young killer. But--that ending is a big jolt--we don't see it coming which makes this movie even more fascinating.

Eber Lobato, who produced this movie, was the lucky husband of the silver-haired sex queen who never made another film--what a shame and a loss. Another factor which raises this art house erotic classic is that both Nelida and Nick were not the usual soft-porn performers mostly male audiences saw at that time. Both were unusually beautiful--which makes their absence from movies thereafter a shame. Both performers were worthy of big studio careers. Nelida died at the shocking age of 47 in her home in Buenos Aires. Nick Novarro vanished totally from the scene. Wherever he is now, he should be proud of his haunting presence as the beautiful David in an extraordinary cult movie that definitely deserves a bigger audience.

This mid-60's potboiler has some interesting scenes and SOME of the dialogue is great. The best thing about this flick is the presence of the incredible Ms. Lobato (whose husband directed it). She's a gorgeous creature who's great when she's angry or in a bikini. The ending was quite a surprise. A 5 out of 10.

Best performance = Ms. Lobato. The dopey good-guy husband is well-cast and the cinematography by Ray Steckler is great. All of the attorney scenes are a bore-fest. Interesting musical score. But Nelida Lobato makes it all worthwhile. I wish she'd made more films. Apparently she was a singer as well.

Way too confusing, as the actors who play Paul and Christian look so much alike, as to be identical twins. Hilarious that this happened and it ruined the movie, as you kept thinking Christian was Paul.