User Reviews

I have seen this bizarre satire at a certain turning point—scholarly, literary, sentimental, erotic, philosophical, social, creative—and it still has that exciting taste, that kick. So maybe it's not about the movie that much, but about the moment I saw it; I remember distinctly at least three characters—those played by the beautiful Di Lazzaro, by Grimaldi and by a lady who looks like a chilling character actor whose name I forgot.

Largely, ALCUNE … speaks melodramatically about evil, malice, bad people. It's also a satire, very popular and Decameronesque in tone.

I stroke out on my own and track down this eerie satire—about greed, lust, beauty, treason—a lurid tale, perhaps in the ancient 'giallo' line. At a certain moment of their sadly banal careers, the two beauties of ALCUNE SIGNORE PER BENE had this chance—many would hesitate about calling such a flick by the pompous name I just gave it …--and are maintained in a certain life in this medium.

A special mention for the tasty Mrs. Grimaldi, who plays a naughty but funny porn starlet.

ALCUNE SIGNORE PER BENE(1990) English titles: SCANDALOUS LIASONS/FEMININE CHEMISTRY

Sexual shenanigans swirl around a famous fashion house owned by the wealthy, ruthless Helen (Dalila Di Lazzaro) and when her top photographer, Julie Merriwether (Rossy de Palma), objects to the sleaze, she's promptly let go with a bribe. The voracious style maven is a nymphomaniac who's having simultaneous affairs with an employee, Mark, a powerful senator, and a musician, Paul (Donald Burton), who she picked up on the subway. Mark wants to turn his girlfriend, Corrine (Florence Guerin), into a supermodel and he introduces her to Helen. The two women begin an affair and Mark gets fired while Dick, Helen's free-lance photographer, pimps his favorite model, Tracey (Eva Grimaldi), to obtain incriminating photos of Helen's lover, the senator. Helen is also being blackmailed and, usually heartless concerning her carnal exploits, finds herself falling in love with Paul. The sexual merry-go-round soon spins out of control and one obsessed participant ends the wild ride for everyone with a double murder and suicide.

SCANDALOUS LIASONS is a practically incoherent soft-core soap-opera starring Italian sexpot Dalila Di Lazzaro. Filmed at the same time as SPOGLIANDO VALERIA/BLUE CHILL (1989) using many of the same scenes dubbed with different dialogue and combined with new footage, its only saving grace is the many gorgeous Italian starlets (in bad late 80s hair and fashions) getting naked and engaging in simulated sex. Florence Guerin, one of the most beautiful women in European films, is among them and Pedro Almodovar favorite Rossy de Palma thankfully isn't.

Plot never gets in the way of the many scandalous liasons; story lines are dropped almost as soon as they get started and it isn't clear who ran over and garroted two of the blackmailers. The gratingly repetitive 80s Muzak is just one more liability. As intellectual entertainment it's godawful and only the horny will see this recycled sexmess all the way through to the bitter end which, of course, won't matter a bit.

3/10 -and that's only because I watched all of it.