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Film: Orchestrator of Storms: The Fantastique World of Jean Rollin
Year: 2022
Directors: Dima Ballin and Kat Ellinger
Writers: Dima Ballin and Kat Ellinger
Starring: Howard S. Berger, Véronique Djaouti and David Hinds
Review:
This is a documentary that caught my interest when I heard people getting the chance to catch this at film festivals. I believe one of them was Duncan from the Podcast Under the Stairs. I’m curious to learn about filmmakers that are a bit different so this one seemed right up my alley. I was excited when Justin Cook sent over a link to view the screener.
Synopsis: this documentary tells the story of one of Eurocult cinema’s most singular voices. Deeply misunderstood and widely misrepresented, during his decades-long career as a director (1958-2009), Rollin’s work received absolutely no recognition in his native country of France and was completely unknown anywhere else. This project attempts to tell the deep and rich story of his life.
Now the synopsis I found was much longer so I did what I could to piece together a few lines to give an idea of what we’re getting here. This goes through his life before being a filmmaker, giving the trials and issues he went through to work in the film industry in France. It then ends with his latter works and his legacy. I thought this does a great job at not only setting the stage for the eras he worked, but also developing the story of the man behind what he did.
Rollin lucked out being born to Bohemian parents. They did divorce when he was young, but that allowed his mother to bring influential voices into his life as well. Into his teenage and early adult life, he worked with a film critique magazine in France. He even got to know the members of the French New Wave movement and how his films weren’t that much different. He decided to go into the horror genre as well as into pornography.
There is a personal touch here as this movie tells how Rollin tried to give his take on Hammer horror that was popular from the United Kingdom. A producer who helped finance his films wanted more nudity and sex. This wasn’t Rollin’s plan, but he also realized that to make money, that was needed. I felt bad hearing from actors and his close family friend, Véronique Djaouti. They wanted the best for him, but it wasn’t easy. Rollin seemed to be ahead of his time and struggled like so many other greats with getting funding.
Despite these issues, Rollin was able to adapt. He directed 52 works, wrote 36 and even acted in 37. Much like the synopsis said, he worked in the industry for 51 years. At the time of writing this, I hadn’t seen any of his works that he is credited for. I have heard about The Living Dead Girl, Zombie Lake, The Iron Rose and The Grapes of Death coming in to see this documentary. If anything, this makes me appreciate the man more and now I am going to make it a point to seek these movies out.
The last bit here before I go over to more of the technical aspects, I think it is interesting that he didn’t succeed more as a director. What I’m gathering is that he didn’t make gritty dramas like the French New Wave group did. He did incorporate similar themes to them, but by being in horror and then porn, it didn’t translate as well. The lack of budgets and tampering by those that gave money behind the scenes also hindered the product. A couple of people interviewed here believe that if he would have gotten a Hollywood budget, he would be remembered more. It does intrigue me, especially since the parts of the movies incorporated here look interesting.
There isn’t much more I can say about the subject so let me get to the filmmaking. I think that co-writers and directors Dima Ballin and Kat Ellinger do an excellent job here. They get people who knew him to tell their thoughts. They also get historians and others who can put into context the things that Rollin did. I love the editing in of footage to help show as well. That made me want to seek out his works even more. We also get to hear excerpts from things that Rollin wrote. That adds a personal touch. This is a well-made documentary for sure.
In conclusion, I’m glad that I got the chance to see this documentary. It lived up to what I was expecting and taught me things about a director that I knew of but didn’t know much about. How this is set up with those that are interviewed, putting into context Rollin’s works and even hearing from him is good. There is a personal touch there. I’m glad that this is getting out there so more people can learn about him and hopefully seek out his works like I want to now. I would recommend this if you’re into Eurocult films or want to learn more about this lesser talked about director.
My Rating: 7.5 out of 10