What begins as a tribute to ’70s Spanish sexploitation film-maker Jesus Franco, the film swiftly becomes something different. As British director Peter Strickland (Berberian Sound Studio) digs down to find the real substance in this increasingly offbeat look at a relationship between two women in a world without men, cars, or much of anything else beside butterflies.
At first the events of the film seem straight-forward: the youthful Evelyn (Chiara D’Anna) rides her bike every day to work as a maid at the house of the middle-aged Cynthia (Sidse Babett Knudsen). Cynthia is a hard task-master, and every day Evelyn manages to mess up something. Forget to wash a pair of panties? Fail to polish a pair of boots just right? There’s always something, and the punishments are increasingly kinky.
What does this have to do with Cynthia’s obsession with butterflies and moths, one all the women in town – and there are only women in town – seem to share? And just which one out of the master-slave duo really wields the power? This is more about creating a debauched and sensual atmosphere than actual nudity and sex – both of which are barely glimpsed here. While the events seem bizarre when stated plainly, the film gradually builds to a deep and insightful look at the power struggles and imbalances inside any long-term relationship, no matter what the surface differences. As for the symbolism of all the moths? You’ll have to figure that one out for yourself.
Reviewed by Anthony Morris