TRANSGRESSION

(A.k.a. LA TRASGRESSIONE)

While preparing to revise for an exam in his untidy apartment, student Angelo (Pierfrancesco Campanella) cooks up some heroin on a spoon and injects it into his arm. The screen blurs as he lurches forward and rests his head wide-eyed on his kitchen table.

In the next scene, Angelo watches agog as a gorgeous blonde strips slowly for him while cheesy funk plays incessantly.

This, apparently, is a hallucination – and a mile away from the drabness of reality. Real life for Angelo appears to consist of monotonous revision while surrounded by ugly decor, and taunting his wheelchair-bound mother by withholding her medicine for kicks.

Unfortunately this latter source of amusement results in mother dying in Angelo’s arms. But, even after her funeral, he is incapable of showing any signs of remorse. Rather, he uses a few moments alone with his baby nephew to stab the kid with a needle in a bid to make it cry.

It’s a bizarre opening, and it only gets weirder as Angelo goes hitchhiking and decides to hop into a flash car, inviting himself to stay over at the owner’s posh house. Upon arriving there, we learn that the well-to-do stranger has a housemaid called Giuditta and a daughter by the name of Valeria (porn star Milly D’Abbraccio). Angelo’s interest is piqued in the latter.

The interest is obviously mutual as they meet. And, for whatever reason, only Giuditta appears to have a bad feeling about the blatantly demented Angelo.

Better for us that the others don’t see through him, as he gets to stay longer and woo Valeria with his poor piano playing. This in turn leads to the pair indulging in some serious and sexy madness.

As the plot becomes more and more surreal, taking on an increasingly nightmarish sense of ill-logic, the line between drug-induced fantasy and reality becomes irreparably blurred.

Through mocking bourgeois family dinners and kinky sex, to murders that may or may not be happening for real – Campanella’s own script is one that is tough to synopsise but fun to watch unravel.

Indeed, from the opening credits which run atop two clowns dancing with umbrellas before a black background, you know that TRANSGRESSION is going to offer something left of the middle.

It doesn’t disappoint on this initial promise. On the contrary, events keep getting more and more weird (Angelo’s midday urge to slay a family chicken; foosball on the beach), the ensuing madness barely grounded by the mounting suspicions of the maid. Director Fabrizio Rampelli doesn’t always appear to have the greatest handle on this awkward manner of storytelling, but keeps the pace ticking over and the visuals keen for good measure.

Artificial lighting lends style to the erotic scenes (most of which focus on D’Abbraccio’s awesome derriere) while the score is perfectly in synch with the other Eurotrash of its era (late 1980s).

One 7 Movies’ disc is playable worldwide, and presents the film uncut in its original 1.66:1 aspect ratio. The transfer is enhanced for 16x9 televisions.

Minor print damage is not the only thing that viewers may raise their eyebrows at while checking out this presentation. Unfortunately, blacks waver and colours appear somewhat washed out on occasion, while images are generally soft. It seems apparent that this is sourced from a superior VHS print.

The Italian mono audio track fares better than the film’s video quality, but even this exhibits a slight hiss throughout. At least the dialogue is consistently audible. Optional English subtitles are easy to read but do contain occasional typos.

Extras begin with two deleted scenes. The first is very brief; the second is an alternate ending. Both are presented in non-anamorphic widescreen and look pretty terrible. At least they make you appreciate the main feature’s picture quality more! Together these last just under 5 minutes – much of which is taken up by the titles playing out at the end of the alternate finale. Both come with optional English subtitles.

Next up are two trailers. First we get the film’s original trailer bearing its working title CATTIVI PIERROT (BAD PIERROT); the second is the film’s final theatrical trailer. Both uncannily make the film seem a lot more sinister than it is. These last for just under 6 minutes.

Finally we’re furnished with a photo gallery. This stylish set of production stills and poster art runs for 4 minutes.

The disc opens with a static main menu page. From there, an animated scene-selection menu allows access to TRANSGRESSION via 12 chapters.

Incorrectly billed as a sex comedy on the DVD’s back cover, I’m not entirely sure what you’d class TRANSGRESSION as. It’s weird, occasionally dark fare with a definite erotic edge. Its disjointed plot dynamics and mannered unfurling won’t be to all tastes, but the stylish compositions and hyper performances from Campanello and D’Abbraccio should entice those with a taste for madcap Euro sleaze.

Review by Stuart Willis