In the mid ‘70s a whole slew of World War Two-themed sexploitation films were churned out (most coming from Italy) in the wake of the highly successful Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS. Most of the films, typical ‘70s softcore porn pieces with swastika-sporting actors, followed the standard “women in prison” film formula—the locale having been transferred to the Nazi death camps and field brothels. In Italy these films are known as part of the “il sadiconazista” cycle, the bulk of which were influenced as much by Ilsa as they were by three controversial Italian art-house films: Liliana Cavani’s The Night Porter, Tinto Brass’ Salon Kitty and Passolini’s Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom. The entire genre can be traced back to 1969 when Bob Cresse and Lee Frost created the depraved “roughie,” Love Camp 7, which set the standard for all others to follow.
 

 
The SS-ploitation film-makers had discovered that it was far easier to get violently sexual situations past the censors if they were presented within the context of being based on the historical facts of Nazi war atrocities. Of course, none of these films had any interest whatsoever in being historically accurate. The producers were making bank by exploiting 1970s movie audiences’ craving for weirder and wilder psycho-sexual delights and justifying it all as supposed statements against war crimes.  Producer Dave Friedman (under the pseudonym Herman Traeger) put this written notice in the first shot of Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS:

“The film you are about to see is based on documented fact. The atrocities shown were conducted as ‘medical experiments’ in special concentration camps throughout Hitler’s Third Reich. Although these crimes against humanity are historically accurate, the characters depicted are composites of notorious Nazi personalities; and the events portrayed, have been condensed into one locality for dramatic purposes. Because of its shocking subject matter, this film is restricted to adult audiences only. We dedicate this film with the hope that these heinous crimes will never happen again.”

These films pushed the boundaries of bad taste to their lowest limit.

It’s difficult to pin down the continued appeal of these films. Any first year psychology student could interpret these films’ appeal in relation to dominance and submission, bondage fetish, rape fantasy, or basic misogyny. The likely fundamental appeal for many viewers is simply the fact that a whole slew of beautiful women get naked frequently. For others, the appeal of a film like Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS stems from the audacity of the images and the bad taste campiness of the acting and direction.

One thing is certain, these blatant exercises in cinematic depravity make no apologies and force their contents upon the viewer on their own moral terms. Unquestionably, the majority of these films are in the poorest of possible taste, yet they present material in a manner which pulls no punches—a spectacle which would never fly in today’s age of obsessive outrage. These films blur the lines between good and evil when they present Nazi atrocities in a manner that may not only repulse, but also spark the prurient interest of the viewer. To most, the thought of this is an absolutely unacceptable identification with the films’ antagonists, yet there can be a very fine psychological line between repulsion and titillation—and as such, for some, these films hold a certain power, if not vulgar charm. There are those out there who simply worship outrageous schlock, and some that just want to see a pair of boobs jiggle across the screen, and still others who are truly sick, deranged perverts. For better or worse (probably worse), there’s an audience for this shit.
 
A top ten list of Nazi sexploitation depravity after the jump…

 
Austro-Hungarian artist Alfred Kubin’s haunting surrealism is made all the more alienating by the monochrome dingyness of the world he created. His lithographs and pen and ink illustrations show influences of Goya and Edvard Munch, but it’s the the colorless, scratchy haze that makes these nightmares so unique. Death, violence, fertility and fascism all play out in a dimension of strange physics, with revolting bodies and monstrous creatures. It’s no wonder he got work illustrating the works of Poe and Dostoevsky.

Kubin came by his disturbing imagery honestly—he was extremely troubled throughout his life. In 1896, he attempted suicide on his mother’s grave. He inexplicably joined the army shortly after, but washed out due to continued mental health issues, and finally decided to study art. Kubin had some initial success with the Munich avant-garde scene early on, but eventually drifted away to work more autonomously, and even write a few novels, the themes of which pair well with his art.

Kubin moved to a small, rural 12th century Austrian castle in 1906, but traveled fairly often to promote his work. As you can imagine, the first World War affected him deeply (during this time he converted to Buddhism for a while), and themes of war became more prevalent in his drawings. Regardless, he continued to work consistently, even during WWII when the Nazi regime banned his art as “degenerate.” Despite all of this when he died at the age of 82 in 1959, he was fairly successful, in 1959.
 

 

‘Das Grausen,‘1902
 

 

‘The North Pole,’ 1902
 
More of Alfred Kubin’s work after the jump…

 
Before the two screenings of Lars von Trier’s Melancholia at this year’s Fantastic Fest, there was a screening of an interview with Von Trier conducted by Badass Digest’s Devin Faraci for the festival. Von Trier has a good relationship with Fantastic Fest and given the fact that he doesn’t fly had chosen to introduce his film via Skype. I was there and the audience response to the interview, in which von Trier is surprisingly likeable and upbeat, was more enthusiastic than to Melancholia itself, which I found beautiful, well-directed, but ultimately kind of pointless - though it did generate quite a bit of discussion and debate.

You may recall that von Trier got himself into a bit of a public relations nightmare at this year’s Cannes Film Festival when he provocatively called himself a Nazi during a press Q&A - you can read Roger Ebert’s account of the incident here. As is his nature, Von Trier was being a shit stirrer, he was joking, pushing buttons, but the French have strict laws about proclaiming you’re a Nazi (apparently even in jest) or making anti-Semitic comments in public (just ask former Dior designer John Galliano). Now it seems that the French government may be planning to prosecute von Trier for his remarks. As hard as it is to believe, Von Trier may be tried for his facetious comments. Yesterday Von Trier issued the following press release.

“Today at 2pm I was questioned by the Police of North Zealand in connection with charges made by the prosecution of Grasse in France from August 2011 regarding a possible violation of prohibition in French law against justification of war crimes.

The investigation covers comments made during the press conference in Cannes in May 2011. Due to these serious accusations I have realized that I do not possess the skills to express myself unequivocally and I have therefore decided from this day forth to refrain from all public statements and interviews.”

If indeed von Trier never does another interview, the one he did with Faraci for Fantastic Fest may be the last one we’ll ever see. Here it is:
 

 
Thanks to Brandy Fons & Fantastic Fest