COMMENTARY BY ROBERT MONELL: THE GIRL FROM RIO was never theatrically released in the US. It ended up as a direct to TV release with the somewhat more appropriate title, FUTURE WOMEN. This main title is printed over a freeze frame of Beni Cardoso (a live-action shot in both THE GIRL FROM RIO and the German version, DIE SIEBEN MANNER DER SUMURU/SUMURU 2, a complete recut with different musical cues and at least one action scene not in the English language versions) watching the torture of a male agent from behind one of the plexiglass barriers within the walls of the all female city of Femina. This scene is part of a precredit sequence in both THE GIRL FROM RIO and the German version which was dropped from FUTURE WOMEN.
This was just one of many changes executed by editor Alan Morrison for this TV version. Others include the removal of all nudity and numerous images of erotically charged torture and sexually suggestive dancing in the streets of Rio by scantily clad female participants in the 1968 Rio Carnival. Inserts of footage from another, still unidentified film of military installations and aircraft exploding were added to support the footage Franco shot of the final assault on Femina. These poor-resolution images were originally shot in desert locations which obviously clash with the tropical Rio environment! It's more than a bit ironic that Franco's director credit is missing from the shortened opening credit sequence. FUTURE WOMEN runs approximately 79m, while the 2004 BU DVD of THE GIRL FROM RIO clocks in at 94m making it the longest, but still incomplete, version. We'll explain why in a future blog...
COPYRIGHT BY ROBERT MONELL: 2021
No comments:
Post a Comment