Bad Habit
Dank Films
Web: http://www.dankfilms.com.au
I have always been a sucker for nuns in
films; the naughtier the better ! It is something
about the perversion of innocence that is so erotic and at the same time
subversive. Of course, I am not alone in this fetish; there is a whole genre of
exploitation film known as nunsploitation.
It is fascinating to chart the development
of this genre throughout cinema history.
Most film historians see its precursor in Witchcraft through the Ages
(aka Haxan) which was a Danish film by Benjamin
Christensen. Its real focus was in the 1970’s with such classics as The Devils,
The Nun and the Devil (1973) and Flavia The Heretic (1974).
While it has been generally assumed that
the focus of the genre has been on monasteries and the inquisition, there have
also been many films which have pushed outside these boundaries and moved the
genre into the modern period such as the ever popular Killer Nun (1978). The
genre is found across cultures, while there are many Eurotrash
Nunsploitation films with a large number of Italian
classics, there is also quite a few from Mexico such Satanico
Pandemonium (Gilberto Martinez Solares) (1975), Japanam such as Norifumi Suzuki's
School of the Holy Beast (1974) and Poland such as Behind the Convent Walls (Interno di un convento) (Walerian Borowczyk) (1978). The
Japanese titles are generally marked by their explicitness and emphasis on sado-masochism. In England Nigel Wingrove
of Redemption films first explored the genre in his short film Visions of Ecstasy (1989)
which was the first film banned in the UK on the grounds of Blasphemy. In it he
explored Saint Teresa of Ávila caressing the body of Jesus on the cross as she
becomes aroused and enflamed! He later followed this in 1999 with Sacred Flesh.
Many of his current Satanic Sluts range includes nuns
in a range of fetishistic depictions.
Bad Habits follows in the traditions of nunsploitation and has much in common with the imagery of
Killer Nun. It is a stylish, gritty low budget exploration of the life of
Sister Marie Fenche, a nun bordering on the brink. It
has the look of film noir film presented with dark skys,
moody music and an urban aesthetic that is extremely appealing.
“I thought you
were married to God ? ….God and I have an open
relationship”
Sister Marie has some problems. She is
plagued with insomnia, has a drug addiction and finds life a constant bore. Her
faith has little influence on her everyday experience and she takes affection
where she can get it. She is domination, aggressive and very unstable.
She roams the street at night drinking booze, having
sex and having increasingly surreal experiences. One night she goes home with a
mysterious stranger only to wake up and find him with his throat cut in the
bathtub and her name written in blood on the wall. Is she the killer or is another game afoot ?
The more she tries to unravel what is occurring to
her, the more bizarre things become as she encounters all manner of unusual and
eccentric characters including the enigmatic but potentially dangerous James
Bishop.
This is an extremely
effective and intriguing film; Sandra Casa is sultry and just plain dangerous
as Sister Marie and all the cast put in excellent performances.
The soundtrack is
atmospheric and the cinematography is exceptional. I certainly found Bad Habits
a classic example of the high quality cinema that can be achieved on when a
limited budget is overcome with buckets loads of creativity and innovation.
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This review will appear in Volume 2 No.5 (2009) of the digital and
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