User reviews

I hate to admit it, but I like the idea of Jean Rollin more than the reality of sitting through one of his films. It's not that I don't appreciate what he's doing. I do. He has a unique world view and holds a special place in the world of "fantastique" cinema that is indisputable.

Still, I find his films a little boring.

Case in point THE LIVING DEAD GIRL springs from a simple and fascinating concept of a dead woman, who must drink blood to survive, returning to a château to be with an old friend.

As fascinating as the concept is, Rollin doesn't do a whole lot with it. He serves up plenty of atmosphere, imbues his material with a subtle eroticism and draws a superb performance from the beautiful Francoise Blanchard. What else do you want? you may ask. I'm not sure. I wanted more to happen, I guess. I wanted Rollin to jettison the boring bits and replace them with his signature set pieces.

It's been described as "savage", an adjective I wouldn't use myself. It's also been described as "dreamy". For the most part that's true. My frustration is with the film's uneven tone. Why couldn't it remain "dreamy" right through? You do need patience and a little forgiveness to enjoy Rollin.

I still wouldn't miss anything he's done. He's one of us.

This Jean Rollin feature is an erotic horror about a woman who returns from the dead due to an accident involving an earthquake and toxic chemicals. She is The Living Dead Girl and she has a vampire like taste for blood. She is drawn back to her 'blood sister' Helene, who in turn finds victims for her.

This is another melancholic and downbeat effort from Rollin. Once again his vampire is a tragic one. She did not choose her fate. She feels guilt at her subsequent actions and is repulsed by them. We feel sorry for her. The film is also about friendship and loyalty. The bond between the two girls is effectively a pact that goes beyond the grave. One of the defining features of The Living Dead Girl is its goriness. It is very bloody by Rollin's standards, so in this respect it may be a little more accessible to a wider horror audience. But then again, aside from this, it's strictly business as usual. There are the usual selection of paper thin characters, weak dialogue and low production values; while the story emphasises things that are atypical for a standard horror film, such as a melancholic 'monster' and some poetic imagery. Examples of the latter would include scenes of the girl wandering through fields in a white night dress and the night time river scene. As usual Rollin does ensure the film looks interesting. There are some nice French countryside locations and a picturesque villa. While the atmosphere is moody throughout, with some delicate musical accompaniment on the soundtrack. It is a little odd though having an American couple in the movie. This, no doubt was a way of trying to sell the film easier overseas. But like all other Rollin films these characters are uninteresting, Rollin seems to be only interested in his female vampires/villains. It isn't without faults; it does drag in places but like others from the director would probably improve on re-watches. The film does, however, wrap up in one of the most effectively haunting endings Rollin ever conceived.

Living Dead Girl, The (1982)

*** (out of 4)

French horror film from director Jean Rollin, which mixes tons of sex and nudity with plenty of the red stuff. After some toxic waste falls on her grave, a young woman returns with a hunger for blood. This is probably the best place for a newbie to Rollin to start as this perfectly captures the atmosphere of his best movies but also throws in plenty of over the top gore scenes, which will probably make a casual viewer sick. As with other Rollin films, there's plenty of beautiful women getting naked but the film does move at a snail's pace, which will probably put some to sleep.

No doubt the lovers of the genre will absolutely love the start of this movie and prepare themselves for lots of more great and fun things to come. However this doesn't ever really happen, which in the long run makes this movie a bit of a disappointment.

It's funny how the French seemed to be 10 years behind with these sort of movies. It's the type of horror that was popular in Italy in the '70's. The sort of horror that is being extremely gory and violent and features lots of sex and nudity as well. This movie is build up exactly in the same way as one of those Italian '70's productions and also features all of the 'classic' genre ingredients.

Yes, there really is quite a lot of gore in this movie, which should definitely please the fans and was also the reason why I still am able to consider this movie to be a watchable one. There is really some hardcore stuff in this movie, which you perhaps would normally only see in a zombie-flick, for instance.

I only wished the movie worked out better and more intriguing with its story and characters. There is no real 'conflict' that needs to get resolved. No villain, no hero and the gore and violence is not enough to raise this movie to an higher level, or make it an effectively entertaining one.

Obviously a movie for genre lovers only, even though chances are they will also end up somewhat disappointment but at least the movie still has some redeeming qualities for them in it.

5/10

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(This Film Rates a B+ ) A dead girl comes back to life and requires blood to stay alive, zombie/vampire like. She reunites with her childhood "girlfriend" who truly loves her and will do anything to understand and help them be together. While one believes she is alive, the other believes she is dead. This film is pretty crude at times with more of a 1970's feel than 1982. There some laughable moments throughout; Are French people really bad kissers or is it just horrible acting? How about the girl getting a blood squirt to the face at the 29:45 minute mark or her dramatic death down the stairs. There are plenty of good gore effects plus a creepy yet soothing and psychopathic emotional element to the film/story line. The script is decent and often times poetic. Predictable, over dramatized but savoy. The set/scenery are foreign and fantastic plus the cinematography has some brilliant artistic moments. T&A are present. And that ending!

I expect that Rollin, when he made this film, was just trying to make a few bucks off teenage boys with a plain old breast-and-blood flick. And really, that's all this is. Certainly every cast member gets naked at one time or another, and certainly there's plenty of blood, though the gore is never really overwhelming. Also, the script is pretty poorly written. I mean, it's inaccurate to say that the story is full of plot holes…the story itself is basically one big plot hole, starting with the first scene and continuing the length of the picture. I spent a lot of the time staring at the screen saying, "What? But, but…what?" What sets this film apart, though, what makes it worth watching, is the interesting transition taking place in the relationship between the main characters, which intimates a depth of story that Rollin probably didn't intend. The story is that Catherine (the Living Dead Girl in question) has to kill and feed on her victims, and with each victim she grows more nearly alive. But the interesting thing is that, as Catherine becomes more nearly human, she becomes more and more horrified with what she's become and what she's compelled to do. Meanwhile, her friend and protector Helene, at first revolted by the change in her friend, becomes more and more inured to the horror she and Catherine are perpetrating. It's interesting that, as Catherine becomes more and more human, Helene becomes more and more monstrous. To me, the dynamic between the two main characters is an idea that deserves a better exploration than this movie is able (or willing) to give. I would love to see someone like David Cronenberg rewrite and remake this movie; I believe it could be a horror classic with the right people behind it.

Jean Rollin's "La Morte Vivante"/"The Living Dead Girl" is an excellent erotic ultra-gory vampire tale and I like it very much.The film has some wonderful atmosphere and some striking images of eternal painful life.There is plenty of graphic gore to satisfy fans of extreme horror.Along with all of the gore there is a large amount of beautiful naked women running around.Rollin's trademark photography is naturally here but this film is much gorier than his other films that I've seen.Francoise Blanchard who plays bloodthirsty Catherine is incredibly beautiful.Overall,I enjoyed this film and you should too if you like zombie/vampire cinema.There is also an unofficial sequel to this one called "The Revenge of the Living Dead Girls"(1987).

This is an interesting film on several levels. It is not full of top notch acting, but it is different and I like that.

First, some sleaze-bags are dumping chemical waste in an underground burial vault that dates from the 12th century. A tremor releases gases and awakens our living dead girl (Françoise Blanchard). She wanders into the castle above, which happens to have been her home when she died two years ago.

Now, the realtor (Dominique Treillou) brings her boyfriend for a weekend of fun. Surprise! Our living dead girl needs some blood to survive. Now, is she a zombie or a vampire? She doesn't bite, but tears the flesh apart, but she doesn't eat the flesh either; she drinks them dry. Topic for discussion.

What I like about European films is that they have no problems with full frontal. They also use very healthy actresses, not some skinny starlet. Gorgeous bodies are on display in this film.

There isn't much story here. The film has constant flashbacks to the childhood of the zombie and her friend Hélène (Marina Pierro). Hélène comes to the castle after a phone call to see if her friend is alive. At first she doesn't understand, but is soon getting her fresh meat to drink dry.

The living dead girl just wants to die, but Hélène wants to keep her alive. One is never sure if there is more to this relationship than childhood friendship, but there is only one possible ending to it.

Really should be seen by all zombie lovers for a different take on the subject.

This film has great moments but has some serious flaws. The gore is juicy and plentiful and the French countryside and chateau locations are gorgeous but this film is seriously hampered by the intrusion of a couple of really boring and annoying Americans who are mystified by this strange undead woman. I was happy to see this couple finally get killed off when they get too curious. This is basically the tragic tale of a bond of friendship that lasts beyond the grave. Moments of effective drama are placed next to scenes of stupid comic relief that this film becomes an exercise in frustration thinking about how good it could have been. The ending is particularly haunting.

When two bumbling knuckleheads decide to rob the graves of a crypt where they go to dump barrels of toxic waste in, they quickly are in over their heads. An earth tremor spills one of the barrels onto the coffin of the deceased Catherine. After she shakes off her two year sabbatical in the catacombs she awakens to an insatiable lust for blood that quickly does in those poor goons. She goes back to the castle of her youth to reclaim her memories and for a light snack or two. When Helene, Catherine's childhood blood sister, races back to the castle to help Catherine she quickly learns that the pairs childhood vow to follow each other in to death will soon be fulfilled.

La Morte Vivante (Living Dead Girl) is considered to be one of Rollin's most commercial efforts. This being one of the first Rollin flicks that I've seen I can't really compare this to any of his others, that said I will say that his plain but adequate filming style goes about things in a leisurely paced fashion but comes alive at the right moments. This simple tale of two friends has a few gory moments and a generous helping of skin to satisfy most people who crave those things. The acting is good for the most part. Françoise Blanchard does a good job as the living dead girl. She even shows off an occasionally convincing dramatic moment when her character breaks down towards the end. Marina Pierro plays Catherine's friend Helene. It's not the best written part ever but she does what she needs with what she was given. . I would like to know why is it that she would call her best bud, two years after her death. But her character's devotion to her friend is pretty much the dead heart of this living dead girl.

In the end you have a rather simple tale that expands a little bit out of its' rather typical vampire / zombie roots. The film is plainly shot with an occasional flare and the sets, while convincing, are not as neat as they could have been. Is that one of the most boring mausoleums or is it me? Not horribly bad….but not totally engaging either.

LIVING DEAD GIRL was my first Jean Rollin experience and I have to say that I somewhat enjoyed it. The production values, from the actors to the sets to the FX, ranged from average to below average. The direction though was glacially slow and for many moments, my attention drifted to other things than the movie, which ain't a good thing.

Some scenes are haunting and the look of the movie is a nice change from the usual horror movies but I never really got involved with the plight of the two girls. I don't know why but I thought the two lead actresses were a bit too aloof. Overall, LDG is okay but you need to fast forward through many long and dull moments. And some of the FX are really terrible, even for such a low budget effort.

Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of The Living Dead Girl; here's the breakdown of my ratings:

Story: 1.25 Direction: 1.25 Pace: 1.25 Acting: 1.25 Enjoyment: 1.50

TOTAL: 6.50 out of 10.00

It's great to see Jean Rollin back on form with The Living Dead Girl, especially after rewatching Zombie Lake (no wonder he directed it under a pseudonym), but it still doesn't beat his classic The Grapes Of Death.

The principal element I loved about this story was the graceful metamorphosis into a love story. We start with a couple of hoodlums stashing their illegal haul of toxic waste in the catacombs of an abandoned chateau. However, the crypts are not completely forsaken. A couple of stiffs still dwell in their darkness. Catherine Valmont and her Mother reside and recline in their coffins. While the goons stack the barrels of deadly crap, a small earthquake shakes the foundations and topples their towers of toxins. The spillage causes Catherine to rise out of her sepulchre. Being undead comes with some strange desires. Catherine needs fresh blood. The lovely claret she can only find in the veins of the two thugs rambling around her family's tunnels. Once she's satiated, she strolls through her expansive garden. She is caught on film by a couple of vacationing Americans, and, the mystery begins. But this isn't your average undead blood-drinking story. Rollin slowly takes the viewer through Catherine's childhood with the use of regained memories. It would appear that the more blood she drinks more humanity returns to her. And through subtle turns and twists, Catherine remembers not only her childhood friend, Helene but also the loving blood pact they made. But as her human side resurfaces, will she be able to cope with the monster she's become, and will Helene still love her? How Rollin handles these questions and their answers give a modest horror movie a smidgen of astuteness, raising it above the usual run-of-the-mill silver screen screamers.

Moreover, Rollin's back on form with his cinematography, though he still falls short of masters like Argento and Fulci. Nevertheless, he manages to deliver one of the best iconic death scenes. After the Estate Agent invites her boyfriend round to the big house for a night of carnal pleasure, they are attacked by the undead Catherine. The agent stumbles away and collapses on the chateau's front stone steps, naked. Then you see the dark shadow of Catherine appear in the doorway. She meanders outside, looks at the prone body, and then drops to her knees and feasts. A minute later, Helene drives in and bathes the gruesome scene in gold light from her headlights. It's a gorgeous sequence. Intelligently thought-out and beautifully captured. Though many shots are finely composed, none quite hit the prominence of this one. The finale comes close, though, and it packs the required punch of power the scene demands. But not every image is perfect. There's a lot of average and below-average filming in the movie. For example, there's the spectacle of the village celebration. The footage looks to be filmed on cheap stock using a cheaper camera. It's very amateurish and horrid. Though it's only on the screen for a few seconds, it's nasty enough to be memorable. But on the whole, the cinematography is pretty solid.

The cast is okay. What irked me the most was Francoise Blanchard's portrayal of Catherine Valmont. She can be damned good when she has lines to recite, but when silent, fails to be scary or even eerie - and she's abundantly mute at the start of the film. She is superb at the vacant thousand-yard stare, but there's nothing spooky about this Living Dead Girl. If Blanchard had taken this route, it would have injected extra potency into the story - it is, after all, a horror.

I would gladly recommend The Living Dead Girl to every horror fan and newbie around the globe. It's entertaining, intelligent, and thought-provoking. It's a decent film for a Friday Fright Night double bill, particularly on a cold and dark winter's night.

Now pass the claret and settle down because it's time to review my Absolute Horror list and see where I ranked The Living Dead Girl.

Take Care & Stay Well.

This is a very interesting film. I honestly felt I was bored through a large portion of this movie but I could not stop watching. I was wrong I was not bored I was fascinated and intrigued a feeling very rare in the world of modern film watching. So rare I did not recognize the feeling until well into he film. This is truly gripping and ultimately tragic horror film. HIGHLY recommended.

"The Living Dead Girl" is a mesmerizing cinematic gem that transcends traditional horror conventions, offering a hauntingly beautiful and thought-provoking experience. Directed by the talented Jean Rollin, this French horror film redefines the genre, offering a unique blend of horror, fantasy, and drama.

The film opens with a powerful and emotionally charged scene, as the audience is introduced to Catherine, a character who awakens from a decades-long slumber to find herself transformed into a living dead girl. The sense of melancholy and tragedy that surrounds her predicament immediately captivates viewers, drawing them into her world.

What makes "The Living Dead Girl" truly remarkable is its ability to evoke empathy for a character who is, by nature, a supernatural creature. The film delves deep into the existential crisis of Catherine, as she grapples with her newfound existence and her insatiable thirst for blood. It's a compelling exploration of the human condition, wrapped in a visually stunning and eerie narrative.

Jean Rollin's direction is nothing short of visionary. He creates a surreal, dreamlike atmosphere that envelops the entire film, from the eerie château setting to the hauntingly beautiful landscapes of the French countryside. The cinematography is exquisite, with each frame resembling a macabre work of art. The film's use of color and lighting is particularly striking, creating a visually arresting experience that lingers in the memory long after the credits roll.

The performances in "The Living Dead Girl" are equally impressive. Francoise Blanchard delivers a haunting and captivating portrayal of Catherine, showcasing her remarkable range as an actress. The supporting cast complements her performance perfectly, adding depth and authenticity to the characters.

The film's score, composed by Philippe d'Aram, is a hauntingly beautiful accompaniment that enhances the emotional impact of the story. It adds a layer of complexity to the film's atmosphere, drawing the audience deeper into the enigmatic world of the living dead girl.

"The Living Dead Girl" is not your typical horror film. It's a profound exploration of the human experience, wrapped in a visually arresting, atmospheric, and emotionally charged package. It challenges the audience to empathize with a character who defies the boundaries of life and death. Jean Rollin's masterpiece is a testament to the power of cinema to transcend genres and leave a lasting impact on those who dare to explore its depths. If you're looking for a horror film that will haunt your dreams and stay with you long after it's over, "The Living Dead Girl" is a must-see.

Any college student could do better. It feels like Jean Rollin did a one take anything goes. It's one of the worst acting and story line I ever saw. The nudity is only there to compensate for the lack of a story.

Prior to my viewing of 'The Living Dead Girl', my only taste of the master of erotic vampire films, Jean Rollin, was the low quality and overall less than brilliant 'Lips of Blood', and because of that I wasn't expecting great things from this movie. However, to my surprise this is a surprisingly good movie! The Living Dead Girl hinges somewhere between a love story (between two women, no less) and a very gory zombie flick and while it could easily have gone wrong, Rollin has created a film that will both shock, amuse and even touch you, and that's not something that can be said of many zombie movies! The plot is like an early blueprint for the underrated second sequel to Return of the Living Dead, and it follows a toxic spill that brings a dead heiress back from the dead. Naturally, being a zombie she brutally murders everyone in the vicinity, but it gets really interesting when we find out that before death, she and a friend were very close, and now that the heiress is back from the dead; the old friendship can be rekindled.

On a technical level, The Living Dead Girl isn't all that great, but considering the low quality of the picture, it's not all that bad either. The script is rather trite, and the film is also rather oddly paced, as it starts off like any other silly zombie movie, only to mature into something much more interesting later on, which may annoy some viewers. The acting is surprisingly decent, which is good because one doesn't watch this sort of movie for great performances, so when there is one or two, it's a treat. The characters are definitely underdone, but the actresses make the best of them. Rollin makes best use of the actresses too, with numerous nude scenes, which help the erotic element of the movie no end. The lesbian undertones also help to up the sleaze level, which is fine with me! Finally, there's the gore, which is both striking and excellently done. Despite being over the top, it still manages to be realistic and the French director has proved that he isn't one to hold back the bloodthirstiness of a movie with this picture. On the whole, it's not for everyone...but if you like erotic horror sleaze with lots of blood and nudity; see this movie!

i expected to see a good horror movie, when i bought "the living dead girl" but i was disappointed. the dialogues are boring, the plot is unimaginative, the camera stands somewhere in the corner without dramatic.the whole movie is long-winded. the special fx are ridiculous and the erotic-factor is zero, just some naked women standing around.