Really Surprised!

Highly Overrated But Still Good

It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Spellbound by auteur film maker Jean Rollin's 1979 Horror Fascination,I was happy to find out that my dad had recently gotten hold of an overlooked Rollin title,which led to me getting ready to pay a visit to Bangkok.The plot:Learning that secret agent Rick has been killed in Bangkok during a mission to get hold of a tube containing weapons details,the French spy agency starts searching round for suspects.Getting hold of some home movie footage that Rick had done,the agency discovers that Rick had gotten involved in a relationship with a prostitute called Eva.Sending 2 of their best agents to Bangkok to locate Eva,the agents soon discover that there are more dangers in Bangkok then just the one in Rick's tube.View on the film:Kicking off with composer Georges Lartigau's grinding Disco theme music,director Jean Rollin keeps away from his trademark subtle,sensual atmosphere,to instead splash the movie with a tantalising mix of gritty Noir spy thrills & raunchy Fu Manchu-style chills.Whilst Rollin and cinematographer Claude Bécognée give each of the very pretty actresses (most of whom appear naked!) an elegant style,Rollin appears to be unable to build any sense of excitement towards the title,which to the movie leaving any potential excitement behind,to instead plod along at a gradual pace,which only lights up at the very end,when Rollin allows some sharp editing skills to display the dreamy,eye-catching, stylised Horror Film Noir that this walk down the side streets of Bangkok should have been.

Quite an unusual movie for director Rollin: no vampires at all. Instead he presents a crime thriller that reminds me of Joe D'Amato's flicks with Laura Gemser. Partly this is owed to the setting at Bangkok (the movie was shot in France, though) where secret agent Rick disappears. Various secret services now try and obtain the MacGuffin (a chemical weapon) which Rick kept. He was last seen with Eva, a dancer from a nightclub, who might have received valuable information from Rick. Eva is chased all the way from Bangkok to Paris, captured, tortured, always on the run. Who shall find what became of Rick's secret? This is a surprisingly speedy film, except for the lengthy and sometimes unnecessary dance scenes in the nightclub. Rollin fans who are used to his slowly unveiling style of "La rose de fer" and his love of the bizarre in "Le frisson des vampires", for example, are apparently not fond of "Les trottoirs de Bangkok", but everyone who likes sleazy low budget thrillers can give it a try. The director called it a "crazy cartoon" and named "The Mask of Fu Manchu" (1932) an important influence on this film (quoted from the book "Virgins + Vampires"). So don't take it too seriously. Yoko, an actress so obscure that even her last name is unknown, plays Eva which was her only main role in a feature film, but she is a great choice for this part of a vulnerable, hunted, innocent girl in trouble who can trust no-one.

This is not your typical Jean rollin film so don't expect any nocturnal creatures with lecherous plans lurking in fact don't expect much from this piece of tripe, period. This film lacks all the ingredients that have made Jean rollin the auteur he is today. Even the usually stunning Francoise Blanchard looked awful with that 80's hairdo. All Jean rollin fans stay away and rent any other Rollin film from the 70's instead.