Originally planning to watch Karel Kachyna's Long Live the Republic got stopped in their tracks,when the DVD kept jamming up in the player.Since I had planned to watch the movie after seeing Horseman,I decided that it was time to meet Morgiana.

The plot:

After the sudden death of their dad,sisters Klára and Viktoria attend the reading of the will.Caught completely by surprise, Viktoria discovers that their dad has left most of the riches to Klára.Shortly after the reading of the will, Klára starts to go out with a guy who Viktoria has secretly had her eyes on for ages.Burning with rage,Viktoria picks up their pet cat Morgiana,and starts to tell Morgiana her plans to take from Klára what is rightfully hers.

View on the film:

Whilst the print does have some noticeable dirt,Second Run still run with a strong transfer which picks up the notes of Lubos Fiser's spidery score with a clarity and also showcases the depth of vision for this Gothic nightmare.

Breaking out from the grainy black and white world of The Cremator,co-writer/(along with Vladimír Bor) director Juraj Herz leaps into colour with an infectious energy.Opening with clipped paintings,Herz and cinematographer Jaroslav Kucera crush the screen with vibrant reds and charcoal blacks which under a cloud of mist reveal the Gothic Horror Melodrama that the sisters are entwined in with a delicious richness. Unexpectedly dipping into the psychedelic,Herz shows an amazingly playful side which jumps from an ultra-stylised "light show" and Giallo-style first person tracking shot, (with black gloves!)to reflecting in-camera special effects which highlight the deadly differences between each sister.

Getting Alexander Grin's (whose books were banned by the Soviet Union for "not promoting socialism") novel from out of the cave,the screenplay by Bor & Herz cleverly uses the sisters to link the genres that the movie is crossing,as Klara's ordeal keeps the Melodrama bubble away whilst Viktoria's sting makes the Gothic chills strike with a mysterious atmosphere.Making sure that the sisters don't get to keep all the fun to themselves,the writers edge out their Gothic dream with wonderfully quirky sides,from a cat who witnesses everything,to a dashing lover who injects Viktoria with burning eyes of jealousy.

Reuniting with Herz after making Oil Lamps a year earlier, Iva Janžurová gives an exquisite performance as Klára & Viktoria.Taking on both roles, Janzurová lavishly gives each sister a distinctive quality,thanks to Janzurová soaking Klára in a care-free mood which is crushed by Viktoria's blistering eyes and twitch of a furious lip,as Viktoria tells her secrets to the pet Morgiana.

"The draught will kill me one day", Viktoria (Janzurová) fussily complains about the opening window, her words will actually come true, through a tenuously linked poetic justice, it is a symbol of Morgiana's revenge.

The story of this Czechoslovakian drama is rather minimal, set in an unspecified period time, Viktoria is plotting to murder her twin sister Klara (also played by Janzurová, but distinct with a light-colored hairdo and dress-code from Viktoria's black widow outfit, yet equally ornamented by the over-saturated make-up) through slow poisoning, since the latter inherits most of their father's property. Then, who is Morgiana? It is Viktoria's pet black cat, and one of the tricks of this garish sibling-rivalry tale is the fish-eyed angle from Morgiana's viewpoint, a nifty bit of sleight-of-hand, will become a key takeaway from the film, apart from its Klimt-esque opening credits and striking Gothic grandeur, however, the same admiration cannot be referred to the lurid hallucination shots.

Morgiana is a loyal witness of its mistress' evil plan, but unwittingly its own life happen to be the victim of its collateral damage. The said window is Morgiana's entrance into the room, and due to the maid's casual gesture, it is opened at that particular moment, through the ripple effect, the draught and the bang of the door, it counteracts Viktoria's carefully calculated pseudo- suicidal bluff. Apart from this well-conceived comeuppance, the plot is amateur at its core, namely, the jejune involvement of a blackmailer is a major distraction from the central suspense, whether Klara will die or not.

It is not just wealth prompts Viktoria's motivation, the suppressed sexual desire is the culprit here, Klara is a sweetheart, a perfect specimen of a desirable maiden, inadvertently wins over everyone's heart including those Viktoria feels attracted to. Director Juraj Herz expressly accentuates Viktoria's jealousy and dyed-in-the-wool conservative reckoning towards sex and sensuality, with a terrific score fittingly hones up the menacing but otherworldly ambiance.

Performances are fairly attenuated to be functional with a theatrical stiffness, save Janzurová, who benefits greatly from playing both twins, gives an exceptionally expressive split image divided by polarised personalities, also credits must be given to her cosmetic and costume props.

After all, Herz manifestly leaves his eccentric directorial marks in this film (particularly impressive is the shots where both twins appear in the same frame),MORGIANA is an inviting piece of curio bodes well for further digging into his body of work.

Morgiana is a product of the Czechoslovakian new wave. It's a turn of the century melodrama that has elements of Gothic horror. It's about two sisters, Klára and Viktorie. The former is good hearted and the other is wicked. The story begins with the death of their father and the reading of his will. Unsurprisingly, his inheritance favours Klára, much to Victorie's displeasure. Her uncontrolled jealousy drives her to try and murder her sister with a hard-to-detect slow-acting poison but events do not pan out quite as planned.

The most obvious film to compare this one to is Valerie and Her Week of Wonders, the wonderful dark fantasy film from a couple of years earlier. It too, was a product of the Czechoslovakian new wave and both films share a similar aesthetic. While Valerie is the more visually striking, Morgiana is a very beautiful film too. Its female characters wear intense make-up and over-the-top elaborate costumes. Very garish and almost grotesque at times, the look is very reminiscent of characters from a fairy tale, which is an aspect that Morgiana definitely shares with Valerie.

The Central European ambiance certainly counts for a lot in this movie and from the outset it's pretty evident with an opening credit sequence replete with surreal paintings of the type very much associated with this part of the world. The slightly unreal and fantastic feeling is maintained throughout the movie, with melodramatic acting, garish décor and unusual outdoor locations such as the elaborate gardens and the standing stones near the cliff. The look is accentuated further by the use of fish-eye lenses and even agitated camera-work from the point-of-view of Morgiana the cat! The score from Lubos Fiser is extremely effective too, capturing the dark tone very well. As far as dramatics are concerned, it's essentially a tale of two sisters and both are played by the same actress, Iva Janzurová. She is so convincing that, when watching, I thought it must be two different real sisters in these roles.

Morgiana is a real treat for anyone who appreciates Gothic cinema, particularly those who loved the Czechoslovakian ambiance of Valerie and Her Week of Wonders. It's a visually enchanting film and one that should certainly be seen by a wider audience.