With delirious visuals conjured by cinematographer Jaroslav Kučera (Daisies, Diamonds of the Night) and often described as ‘the last film of the Czechoslovak New Wave’, Juraj Herz's delirious tale of terror is a surreal phantasmagoria of dark desires and splintered minds – a twisted Czech take on What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? and Poe's ‘The Black Cat’.
Based on a short story by Aleksandr Grin, (the 'Russian Poe'), Morgiana is the story of twin sisters, Klára and Viktoria who live a life of decadent opulence, somewhere in the late 19th century. Klára is charming, trusting and beautiful, whilst Viktoria is wicked, sadistic, bursting with hate and jealousy - and who hatches a terrible revenge by slowly poisoning her more popular sister. As the toxin takes hold, Klára begins to lose grip on her sanity...
Part fairy tale, part Gothic horror, Morgiana is a full-blown hallucinatory experience from the director of The Cremator, Oil Lamps and Beauty and the Beast.
Our region-free Blu-ray also includes the an exclusive filmed interview with the late, great Juraj Herz, plus a Projection Booth commentary and an expanded booklet with writing by Daniel Bird and Ian Conrich.
• Presented from a new HD transfer from the best existing original materials created by the Czech National Film Archive.
• An exclusive filmed interview with director Juraj Herz (2010).
• A Projection Booth audio commentary with Mike White,
Kat Ellinger and Ben Buckingham.
• Booklet featuring writing on the film by Daniel Bird
and
Dr Ian Conrich.
• New and improved English subtitle translation.
• UK premiere on Blu-ray.
• Region Free (A/B/C) Blu-ray.
Directed by Juraj Herz
Screenplay – Vladimír Bor and Juraj Herz
Based on the story 'Jessie and Morgiana' by Aleksandr Grin
Cinematography – Jaroslav Kučera
Art Direction - Zbyněk Hloch
Costume Design - Miloslava Šmídová, Irena Greifová
Music - Luboš Fišer
Editing - Jaromír Janáček
Sound - František Černý
Iva Janžurová - Klára/Viktoria
Petr Čepek - Glenar
Nina Divísková – Otylie
Josef Abrhám – Marek
Jiří Kodet - Bessant
Josef Somr - Opilec
Juraj Herz's acclaimed, chilling films
The Cremator and Beauty and the Beast
are also available on Second Run,
along with many other gems of Czechoslovak
and international
cinema.
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“Morgiana has all the irresistible gothic intrigue and narrative twists of Corman's Poe adaptations, fired through with an experimental verve and the confidence and energy of the Czech New Wave” Slarek, CineOutsider
“Edward Gorey as filmed by Ken Russell... It's like a dress-up, younger-generation version of Baby Jane, set in an ornamental snow globe” kinosvetozor.cz
“The film is an elegant, beautifully executed, post-'60s essay on sex and repression” Wally Hammond, Time Out Film Guide
“For those familiar with the, oft-chilling, The Cremator, by the same director - I'd say this is equally as good a film... and a unique, psychological, horror” Gary Tooze, DVD Beaver
“Melodrama is the keynote of Iva Janžurová’s performances, Herz’s approach and the operatic tone set for the whole movie.” Virginie Selavy, Electric Sheep
“Charm, artistry and daring... The film is beautifully photographed... Jasny's technique is both subtle and dramatic” New York Times
“Proceedings can grow outlandish – but Morgiana remains wonderful to watch and a deliriously exciting piece of feminist camp” Culture Fix
“The film is brimming with gleefully malicious energy...
a riot of crazy melodrama and eye-popping visuals, and when the ride is as wild as this, what’s not to love?”
Czech Film Review
