Justine & Juliette (Impulse Pictures) Review

Distributor: Xploited Cinema / Impulse Pictures Edition Details: Standard DVD Movie Specs: Genres: Golden Age Classic, Feature Film, Comedy, Foreign Also known as: Justine and Juliette, Justine och Juliette, Marquis de Sade in Love Run Time: 96 minutes Rated: X Release Year: 1975 Director: Mac Ahlberg (as Bert Torn) Written by: Mac Ahlberg (as Edward Mannering) Cast: Marie Forså (as Maria Lynn), Anne Bie Warburg (as Bie Warburg), Harry Reems, Felix Franchy, Kate Mundt, Poul Bundgaard, Bent Warburg, William Kisum, Bert Bellman, Otto Brandenburg, Jim Steffe, Dicky Doll, Brigitte Maier (as Birgitte Maier), Ulla Sandö, Susanne Breuning, Louise Frevert (as Louise Freiwolt), Rex, Sandra, Robert Gardell, Ulla Finch, Lisbeth Olsen (as Elisabeth Ols), Marlene Dahl, Jonny Benneweiss, Pia Rydberg, Nina Gunke, Lone Gersel, Eva Axén, Irene Lindholm, Keld Holm Voices: Rune Hallberg, Börje Ahlstedt, Gunvor Pontén Release Specs: Audio: Swedish Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono Subtitles: English Video: Widescreen, 1.78:1 (anamorphic) Video Format: NTSC Format: DVD Regional Code (for DVD/Blu-ray): 0 (All) Number of discs: 1

Justine & Juliette is a Swedish classic adult feature film from Mac Ahlberg on virtue and vice. The film follows the virtuous Justine Karlsson (Marie Forså) and her sister the not virtuous Juliette (Anne Bie Warburg). The two sisters get kicked out of their house by their aunt and have to survive on their own in the world. Justine can't take the slutty ways of Juliette, so the two part, Juliette staying with the rich stranger and Justine becoming a prostitute.

Justine & Juliette is loosely based on two books, 1791's Justine, or the Misfortunes of Virtue and on 1797's Justine, or Vice Amply Rewarded by Donatien Alphonse François de Sade (better known as The Marquis de Sade). Bear in mind this is a loose basing as Alberg's film doesn't follow either novel, just the concepts behind the two novels, along with the character names. That being said, Alberg's film is an enjoyable comedy and viewers that go in not expecting a cinematic version of de Sade's novels should enjoy this venture. Ahlberg is put together a fun and enjoyable film with Justine & Juliette. The story is enjoyable and manages to entertain the viewer throughout the film. The story also serves as more than just a connective tissue between the sex scenes but instead works hand in hand with the sex scenes to make a complete film.

The sex scenes are a combination of softcore sex scenes and hardcore sex scenes that both . The two types of sex scenes work congruent to create an erotic film that doesn't always have to show the graphic sex to entertain the viewer. The cast does a great job with their sexual roles and their non-sexual roles. Justine & Juliette is beautifully shot and put together as well giving the viewer more the feeling of a mainstream film than an adult film. This isn't surprising though since Ahlberg, before his death in 2012, went on to work as a cinematographer for mainstream films.

Justine & Juliette was originally released as an exclusive DVD to Xploited Cinema, a now defunct online store, as joint project between Xploited Cinema and Synapse Films, using their new imprint Impulse Pictures. After Xploited Cinema closed, Impulse Pictures re-released the disc solely under their own imprint. The release reviewed here is the Xploited Cinema exclusive release; however, it is believed to be exactly the same as the current Impulse Pictures release.

Justine & Juliette is presented in the anamorphic widescreen ratio of 1.78:1 in 480p. The image is nice however, the entire film seems to have a blue tint to it that I am not sure is supposed to be there. Other than the blue tint to everything, the film sports nice colors. The print contains artifacts, print damage, and grain. The presentation looks very good and it is doubtful that anyone would be disappointed in this release.

Justine & Juliette is presented with a Swedish Dolby Digital 2.0 monaural audio track. The audio track sounds nice with crisp and clear dialog and no noticeable imperfections. Impulse Pictures has included removable English subtitles. There isn't a dubbed English language audio track option included on this release.

Impulse Pictures hasn't included any extras on this release.

Justine & Juliette is a fun Swedish adult film comedy from Mac Ahlberg that tells the story of vice and virtue giving a new twist on two of The Marquis de Sade's novels. Ahlberg has combined softcore and hardcore scenes to create this tale with a good story line and a good cast. Xploited Cinema and Impulse Pictures have done a good job with this release with a nice looking transfer, the original Swedish audio, and English subtitles.

Past Reviews Interviews