Les paumées du petit matin (1981) Online

Marie and Michelle are escaping from a lunatic asylum. Michelle is a tough girl who knows how to survive on the road, but the extremely shy Marie desperately clings to her until Michelle gives in and promises help. The two get into a lot of trouble which puts their friendship to a test.

Rollin's lost movie, and lost for a good reason, as the director told in several interviews (one on the British DVD, for example): it was simply so poor no distributor bought it. The director blames this mostly on the scriptwriter. The producer had hired someone to keep the director from continuing with his usual vampire mystery stuff, and that kind of co-operation against each other couldn't work. However, "The Escapees" has enough magic moments to be worth watching. Especially when people stop talking such as in the ending, or when Marie skates on the ice, imagining she is admired by a crowd, but only Michelle is secretly watching her.

Although there is no horror and only a bit little sleaze and violence (courtesy of Brigitte Lahie no less) this is an unmistakable Jean Rollin film - nobody else could, or even wants to make films his way. Two girls, one rebellious and the other one almost catatonic, run away from a borstal-like psychiatric clinic, meets a butch pickpocket-girl, some black strippers and a bunch of sailors and ends up in various adventures. This almost plot less, commercially doomed movie, equally pretentious as it is naive, was bound to make 95% of its audience either laugh or leave their seats, but for a Rollin fan there are some beautiful shots to be found. The figure skating scene was incredible and so was some of the shots at the junkyard. I also liked the sad ending. Not among his best but an interesting footnote in his filmography... for a Rollin fan that is, all others beware! The most shocking thing about this film for me is that there is no...*gulp*... beach scene! What happened, Jean? A few years back you couldn't even shoot a cheap porno without a trip to the beach?

Escapees, The (1981)

** (out of 4)

Forgotten film from Rollin about two girls who escape from a mental hospital and go on an odyssey. Michelle is the rougher of the two as she knows how to survive. Marie on the other hand has a fear of people yet for some reason she is attached to Michelle and wants to stay close to her on this journey. If you're looking for some sort of plot then you're going to be disappointed because there isn't one here. In the interview on the DVD Rollin talks about the various issues with the production of the film and how when they finally got it filmed, no one wanted it. After being released on video in a few countries, the film was pretty much given away to air on TV before the eventual DVD release. I didn't think the film was as bad as many had made it out to be but it's not too good either and in the end this is certainly for Rollin completest only. Those new to the director would certainly be best to start with one of his vampire films or better known works like THE LIVING DEAD GIRL. This movie actually shares a lot in common with the director's 1980 film NIGHT OF THE HUNTED, which is one I really hated. This one here works if you view it as some sort of strange nightmare or surreal trip to some unknown world. Everything we see is a reality but you might as well look at it as some sort of dream because none of it really makes any sense and in the end you'll probably be asking yourself what the entire point of the film was. I'm not sure what the point was but we do get some classic touches from Rollin. One scene involves a rather beautiful ice-skating sequence that packs a nice little punch. Another scene happens just before it and that's when the girls are standing on some docks letting giant waves hit them. The sexuality in the film is actually quite low as is the nudity up until the very end when Brigitte Lahaie shows up and does a very sexy little number. The two female leads fit their roles just fine and the supporting cast isn't too bad either. The biggest flaw in the film is its 101-minute running time, which is just way too long considering nothing happens and there are several scenes that pretty much just replay things that have happened earlier.

Rollin's 'Les Paumées du petit matin' is finally being released in the UK and US by Redemption Films, re-titled 'The Escapees'. In the same vein as Night of the Hunted and Requiem for a Vampire, Rollin tells the tale of two young runaway girls escaping from an institution.

It might not be as accomplished as some of Rollin's greats, but it contains truly unforgettable scenes, imbued with all the ethereal, surreal qualities of a stylish Rollin masterpiece.

The stunning Britte Lahaie makes an appearance, which is as good a reason as any to buy this film, and Redemption promise an original negative in their release.

The Escapees is one of Jean Rollin's most obscure films. As I watched it I couldn't help but wonder just who this movie exactly was aimed at. It's a wilfully uncommercial film, even by Rollin's standards. And while I am for the most part a fan of the director's oeuvre I can't say I enjoyed this one very much at all. The main problem is it's so mundane and lacking in the otherworldly feel that is typical of the director's best work and is grounded too much in reality. While the basic idea of a couple of young melancholic girls on the run encountering a series of unusual events is textbook Rollin, the movie has none of the fantastique element to feed off. I've heard that this was a result of producers trying to impose certain restrictions on Rollin, and ensuring he did not make another of his idiosyncratic vampire movies. They wanted a more sell-able product but ironically ended up with an even less commercial film than the director would normally turn out. It's really not difficult to see why this became a lost film and effectively sank without a trace.

There are occasional moments that have the director's fingerprints all over them. Such as the scene in the ice rink at night. This memorable moment incorporates the poetic and slightly surreal imagery that Rollin is most loved for. Unfortunately, The Escapees rarely has any other sequences that approach this. Its fairly plot-less story just meanders from one low key scene to another with very little over all purpose. It doesn't feel like the director's heart is in this project and it isn't ultimately a lot of fun.

Rebellious spitfire Michelle (a lively performance by the fetching Laurence Dubas) and the painfully shy and forlorn Marie (beautifully played with aching vulnerability by the lovely Christiane Coppe) are a pair of troubled young women who manage to escape from a sanitarium. The pair do their best to avoid detection from the authorities by joining up with a traveling band of exotic dancers.

Director Jean Rollin, who also co-wrote the odd and thoughtful script with Jacques Ralf, presents an unusual, affecting, and interesting cinematic meditation on the basic youthful human need to live a free and spontaneous independent existence that unfolds at a gradual pace, vividly captures stunning moments of raw beauty and wrenching poignancy (Marie's solo figure skating set piece at an empty ice rink in particular is simply breathtaking), does his customary ace job of crafting an enchanting dreamlike atmosphere, and astutely nails both the danger and excitement of throwing caution to the wind through living a rootless peripatetic lifestyle. Dubas and Coppe do sterling work and display an appealing unforced natural chemistry in the leads; they receive sturdy support from Marianne Valiot as scrappy thief Sophie, Louise Dhour as compassionate nightclub owner Madame Louise, Patrick Perrott as the sensitive Pierrot, and Brigitte Lahaie as a snooty rich bitch. The downbeat ending packs a devastating punch. Claude Becognee's sumptuous cinematography and Philippe D'Aram's spare melancholy score are both up to speed. Offbeat and worth a look.

After telling my dad last year that I had enjoyed watching the horror film Fascination from auteur director Jean Rollin,I was happily caught by surprise,when my dad recently revealed that he had picked up a Rollin film,which led to me going on the run with the escapees.

The plot:

Seeing their lives slip away inside an insane asylum, Michelle & Maire decide to escape to freedom.Breaking out of the asylum,Marie and Michelle run away into the wilderness,and end up at a circus being held on a concrete wasteland.As they start to become friends with some of the circus performers,Maire and Michelle set their sights on finally gaining true freedom.

View on the film:

Starting the film in an insane asylum,co-writer/(along with Jacques Ralf) director Jean Rollin drains the movie of any colour by subtly locking the girls in the asylum by surrounding them in dried up red, green and blues.Along with the brittle colours,Rollin and cinematographer Claude Bécognée also use swift hand held camera moves to give the circus a rolling in the chaos mood.

Pulled out to a 102 (not the 95 mins that IMDb list) minute running time,the screenplay by Ralf and Rollin struggles to develop any sense of rhythm,as Maire and Michelle's attempt to be freed of the asylum lack any sense of urgency or a deepening in the relationship between Maire and Michelle.Failing to take advantage of the elegant charm from Laurence Dubas and Christiane Coppé's performances as Michelle & Marie,Rollin's takes a mad dash in the titles final moments to strike a doomed romance Film Noir final note,which whilst impressive,is unable to make up for the previously plodding 95 minutes having been chained down.

This movie gets a bad rap as it is not your typical Jean Rollin vampire romp. I guess not every movie has to have nudity and violence. I can't believe that's coming from my mouth. But it kept my interest which is very hard to do with so many movie options nowadays. It's a story about caring for other people. The one girl Michelle is very attractive and I hate to say that if she was not "hot" the movie would not be watchable as shallow as that sounds but I'm being honest. I'm not proud of that statement it's the truth.

At one time this was one of Jean Rollin's lost films, but in the age of DVD/Blu-ray its becoming a thing of the past. So is it worth the lime-light(?)... for me, it's a no. That's not implying its awful, just strictly mundane and forgettable low-budget drama.

There's really nothing there, outside a couple of brief moments highlighting Rollin's signature touches (two young women, erotic lesbianism and haunting tragedy). It just lacked those surreal images or better put dream-like quality, instead favouring a glum, down-to- earth reality to tell a tale about the journey of a pair of runaways from an insane asylum. The journey doesn't really add up to much, as it meanders and falls on the repetitiveness with its talkative nature. Because visually it's not striking enough, the plot less nature is found out by being bogged down and it slowly moves from one scenario to another with little conviction. Although the last 10 minutes or so, is where Rollin shines (outside the intro and ice-skating ring scene).

Laurence Dubas and Christiane Coppé are quite good as the two runaways. Watching their neurotic relationship develop made the ending much more effective. Also showing up in a minor bit part is Rollin's regular Brigitte Lahaie.

"The Escapees" is nothing more, nothing less then a curio.

Marie (Christiane Coppé) has an incurable inability to communicate with the outside world, and has been in care on three separate occasions. We first see her sitting in isolation, rocking to and fro forlornly in a chair in the misty gardens of a stately asylum. It's the classic, haunting type of scene French Director Jean Rollin excels at. Curiously, Marie begins a rapport with fellow inmate angry, loud Michelle (Laurence Dubas), and together, they plan to escape from the institution. Once again, Rollin's predilection for a young female duo as main players comes into play here. The two girls instantly find comfort in one another, their more tender scenes illuminated by Philippe D'Aram's melancholy score.

To steer Rollin away from his favoured theme of supernatural horrors, Jacques Ralf was drafted in to co-script the story, much to Rollin's discomfort. Unusually, some of the more 'talky' scenes were cut by the director, who usually refrains from cutting much at all. We are still left with a wordier storyline than we're used to. Long considered a lost film, it was with great anticipation the eventual project was found - and it is that reason more than anything else that 'The Escapees' has not enjoyed great acclaim among Rollin aficionados: the hype put the film on a near-impossible pedestal.

Having said that, events are very slow-moving here, and not hugely filled with incident. But then, that's a trademark of Rollin. This, however, doesn't lend itself to the typical dream-like atmosphere due to its very real setting. The two girls' adventures are a curious delight especially an almost surreal and rowdy erotic dance performance in the middle of a freezing night-time junkyard, and so is a very haunting set-piece in an abandoned ice-rink (Coppé was hired partly because of her proficiency as a skater).

Two increasingly disillusioned girls meeting a disparate band of other disillusioned people: dreamers, outcasts and drifters. This may not make for the most scintillating narrative, and some scenes do drag, but 'The Escapees' contains more than enough Rollin-esque touches to keep me happy. Equally, the oppressively drab, unfriendly, rainy, cold darkness of many of the locations still somehow comes across as being strangely poetic. Regulars including Natalie Perrey, Louise Dhour ("Sometimes it's better not to know what your immediate future holds,") and mighty Brigitte Lahiae (and Rollin himself) are reassuring just by being there, even if their characters are further examples of the kind of people and societies the two girls are trying to escape. The hopelessness of their ambition is compounding by a very sad finale which seems nevertheless to be tragically inevitable.