THE IMAGE

(A.k.a. L’IMAGE; THE PUNISHMENT OF ANNE; THE MISTRESS AND THE SLAVE)

Jean (Carl Parker) narrates as we meet him at a plush dinner party, where he greets old friend Claire (Marilyn Roberts). She introduces him to a pretty young blonde model named Anne (Rebecca Brooke). We quickly learn that Anne is controlled by the icy Claire, and is subject to her every whim.

In a bid to demonstrate her power over Anne to Jean, Claire welcomes him to partake in one of their ‘games’. His narration continues as he is invited along to local woodlands the following day, and watches as Claire has Anne pull off her knickers, squat and take a piss in front of them.

After this bizarre encounter, Jean goes back to his daily life. But, as he informs us, he can’t get the alluringly submissive Anne out of his head. He’s therefore delighted when he spies her at a newsagent’s stand. He approaches her but she brushes him away, exhibiting a confidence he had not previously seen in her.

Intrigued all the more by this shift in character, Jean contacts Claire in a bid to see more of Anne. Claire is obliging, and invites Jean to her home ... where she draws him further into a world of domination and S&M.

Things really start to heat up as Anne is shackled in chains and whipped by Claire while Jean sits watching incredulously. Anne is then untied and made to fellate Jean while Claire shoves her thumb in and out of Anne’s arse.

Jean is infatuated. An affair ensues between him and Claire, under Claire’s watchful eye (she acts as lookout while Anne sucks Jean’s cock in his car on a busy street, etc).

But, as the sexcapades orchestrated by Claire between Jean and Anne become more and more extreme – allowing for some surprisingly mean-spirited scenes – the question is raised: why does Anne remain complicit? She could presumably vacate this arrangement at any time – so why doesn’t she?

Although the unfurling plot respects its viewer too much to answer these questions so brazenly, it does offer the canny suggestion that perhaps Claire is not the one with the power in her hands, come the end of the film. And Jean’s position in the cycle is perhaps more slave-like than he cares to admit ...

Divided into chapters that appear as title cards a’la a silent movie, Radley Metzger’s classic 1975 film plays quite close to its source novel, ‘L’Image’ by Catherine Robbe-Grillet. While the subject matter and origins in French literature may liken this to Just Jaekin’s THE STORY OF O, released in the same year, the results are a lot different.

For a start, Metzger is a director of considerable skill, eking out beauty from even the ugliest scenes. He has a knack for stunning compositions, enjoys the storytelling as much as the money shots (though there are none of the latter here), and has a way of coaxing the best out of his actors. So far as adult filmmakers go, his track record is astounding: SCORE, THE OPENING OF MISTY BEETHOVEN, THE PRIVATE AFTERNOONS OF PAMELA MANN, MARASCHINO CHERRY, BARBARA BROADCAST ...

While THE IMAGE shies away from being a full-on hardcore experience, it certainly flirts with explicit sex. A couple of blowjob scenes are startling in their sudden graphic detail, while elsewhere Metzger’s camera lingers on fingers playing with Brooke’s vagina lips on countless occasions. It goes without saying that she spends most of her time on screen in the buff.

Locations and costume designs are well considered, ensuring the film is consistently colourful and aesthetically arousing as a result. Performances are solid, and even the score lends character to key scenes.

The major pleasure of THE IMAGE though is its effortless eroticism. Understated acting, long takes and soft photography help, but the success of the film’s mood is chiefly due to Metzger’s understanding of his subject. Nothing is forced, everything seems candid and natural. If you never thought watching a woman pee could be kinkily arousing, think again: Metzger is the guy to turn you on. The same goes for the harsher content, later on in proceedings.

Colours are impressively deep in this new 1080p restoration from Synapse. Remastered directly from the original 35mm negative, this transfer is infinitely better than their previous DVD release (and that was really good). Minor grain is natural, image enhancement and DNR are totally kept in check ... there’s nothing to grumble about, save for the occasional on-screen softness (but what else would you expect from a slice of mid-70s erotica?).

The film comes presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and is enhanced for 16x9 television sets on this region-free blu-ray disc.

DTS-HD Master Audio is presented in 5.1 and 2.0 mixes. Both are superb, and natural-sounding. Optional subtitles are provided in English for the Hard of Hearing.

An isolated music track is also proffered, which is a nice touch. This also enjoys a Master Audio mix.

The animated main menu page leads to a pop-up scene-selection menu allowing access to THE IMAGE via 12 chapters.

Extras are limited. Effectively they consist of a well-written text filmography for Metzger. From there, there is a nice 4-page booklet containing liner notes from Nathaniel Thompson. The monochrome photography in the booklet is attractive, including a reproduction of original theatrical poster artwork for the film which is so much better than the blu-ray cover art.

It is a little disappointing to learn that Metzger still declines Don May Jr’s invitations to provide the likes of a commentary track for Synapse’s releases. Lord knows what hold Cult Epics have over him, as he’s much more obliging with them (check out their releases of SCORE; LICKERISH QUARTET; CAMILLE 2000). But that doesn’t take away from the fact that this is a great release.

What with this and the three films mentioned in the last paragraph all either out or out shortly on blu-ray, this is wonderful time for fans of Metzger. If you count yourself as one of these fans, you know you need this in your collection. For all others, it’s well worth investing in – and has never looked better.

Also available on DVD.

Review by Stuart Willis