Contains Full Nudity & Sexual Content
Immoral Tales (Contes Immoraux) is a 1973 French anthology film directed by Walerian Borowczyk. The film was Borowczyk’s most sexually explicit at the time. The film is split into four erotic-themed stories that involve the loss of virginity, masturbation, bloodlust, and incest.
It is definitely not a porn film, and in the 1970’s teen nudity in films was very common. At least in Europe, it was not considered taboo at all, but this film has a lot of it, and in today’s more restrictive climate, is considered quite controversial.
The first story involves André (Fabrice Luchini), who takes his 16-year-old cousin (played by Lise Danvers) to the beach to perform fellatio on him in tune to the waves of the incoming tide. Lise Danvers was actually only 15 during filming, although no explicit fellatio can be seen.
The second story, La Bête (starring Sirpa Lane), was removed from the film in many countries, and later produced as a separate film. Sirpa Lane was 21 during filming.
The third story is titled ‘Thérése the Philosopher’, an adaptation of the 1748 novel of the same name. It involves a teenage country girl (Charlotte Alexandra) who intermingles sexual desires in her imagination with her dedication to Christ after being locked in her room. Charlotte was 18 at the time of filming.
The fourth story ‘Erzsebet Báthory’ features Paloma Picasso as a countess who murders young girls in order to gain eternal youth by bathing in their blood and a girl (Marie Forså) putting pearls inside her vagina. Marie Forsa was 16 at the time of filming, and most of the other uncredited girls were likely also 15 or 16. Fun fact: 30 gallons of real blood (from pigs) were used for the Countess Bathory’s bath.
The final story ‘Lucrezia Borgia’ involves the daughter of Pope Alexander VI, Lucrezia Borgia played by Florence Bellamy, having sex with her male relatives. The director, Walerian Borowczyk revealed that the scene in which Florence appeared fully nude was shot in a real church. “Florence was only seventeen years old, I remember, and very shy. We got permission to film in a real church, a very beautiful and quite famous one, an historical monument. There were no difficulties with the priest; I was very surprised.”