a.k.a. ‘The Perils of Gwendoline in the Land of the Yik Yak’
Films de L’Alma, 1984

starring: Tawny Kitaen, Brent Huff, Zabou and Bernadette Lafont
directed and written by: Just Jaeckin

the plot: Beautiful young Gwendoline (Kitaen) arrives in China in a wooden crate. She meets up with Beth (Zabou), a long-time friend, and after a few mishaps, the two wind up as prisoners of a cadre of gangsters. Things look bleak until Willard (Huff), a roguish junk boat captain and straight-up scoundrel, kills the gangsters and rescues the girls. Gwendoline and Beth ask Willard to help them in a quest to find Gwendoline’s father, who disappeared while chasing after a rare butterfly near the mythical land of the Yik Yak, but Willard wants no part of the girls’ plans. However, after much wheedling and a bit of conniving, Gwendoline convinces Willard to journey through harsh jungles and arid deserts in search of the Yik Yak. But the Yik Yak turn out to be much more than Gwendoline or Willard expected. A forgotten race of fierce warrior women, the Yik Yak mine diamonds out of an angry underground volcano, all at the behest of a cruel queen (Lafont). When Gwendoline, Beth and Willard sneak into the city, the queen orders the three captured and forces them to submit to terrible tortures and gladiatorial combat. But Gwendoline and her friends are more resourceful—and dangerous—than even the queen realizes.

why it’s good: “Gwendoline” is a lot like “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” only with Amazons instead of Nazis, light bondage instead of the Ark of the Covenant and lots of naked boobs instead of snakes. Okay, so “Gwendoline” isn’t like “Raiders” at all, although the two films do share a predilection for whips. “Gwendoline” is a weird bit of cinema, at once striving for eroticism (director Just Jaeckin previously adapted both “Lady Chatterly’s Lover” and “The Story of O,” two classic works of erotica, for the screen) and the pulpy adventure tales of yesteryear. The result is an off-kilter movie that leaps deliriously from scene to scene, often foregoing plot and logic in favor of girls in leather gladiator gear and elaborate, nonsensical torture machines. “Gwendoline” sure is a fun ride, though, full of bad acting, campy dialogue and ridiculous action scenes (watch out for the epic slave-girl chariot-chase near the end of the movie). If that’s not enough, Jaeckin throws in random bits of gore and vulgarity. Early in the movie, a dude gets a grappling hook through the neck, and, in one of the movie’s best bits, Willard takes a break from fleeing the Yik Yak to run back, call them all assholes and flip them the bird. 

why you should own it: Loosely based on “Sweet Gwendoline,” a series of comics created by noted bondage artist John Willie, the film version of “Gwendoline” is too campy and fun to pass up. Severin Films’ DVD features the full, uncut version of the film and a surprising wealth of extras, including an interview with Jaeckin, a collection of softcore photos of Tawny Kitaen from a French magazine, and an interview between Dr. Alfred Kinsey and John Willie.