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Amazon.co.uk Review
Caught midway between 1970s soft-porn clunker The Story of O and Bunuel's sado-masochistic fantasy Belle de Jour, the 1968 erotic curio Girl on a Motorcycle is one of Marianne Faithfull's chief claims to notoriety. She stars as Rebecca, a leather-clad, former bookstore clerk in search of sexual fulfilment who flees her dependable schoolteacher husband for a dangerous liaison with Daniel (Alain Delon), a dashing Professor addicted to speed. The story is told entirely in flashbacks as Rebecca rockets along the road, having donned her leathers and walked out on her sleeping husband at the crack of dawn. It all must have seemed fairly daring and provocative in 1968, providing viewers with ample opportunities to view a naked Faithfull at the height of her allure. But today the existential musings of the lead character seem achingly pretentious, the erotic symbolism merely gawky and unintentionally amusing: the sight of Alain Delon with a phallic pipe dangling from his mouth is like something out of a Rene Magritte painting. The sex scenes between Delon and Faithfull are all swamped in a polarised visual effect that, while garish and psychedelic, is dated and distinctly unerotic. Director Jack Cardiff is better known as a cinematographer on classics such as The African Queen and Black Narcissus. Among Cardiff's other directorial credits is a worthy adaptation of DH Lawrence's Sons & Lovers, but Girl on a Motorcycle is a saucy road movie with no final destination.

On the DVD: This DVD version is misleadingly presented as being the fully restored and uncut version of the film. Yet it was the US version not the European one that was heavily cut (and titillatingly re-titled "Naked Under Leather"). The restoration certainly does not refer to the print quality: although the colours are vivid and bright, the print used to master the DVD (in 16:9 anamorphic format) is extremely grainy and, at times, speckled with dirt and scratches. Included as one of the special features, a theatrical trailer loaded with innuendo shows just how much the film was marketed to a prurient audience. Director Jack Cardiff provides an audio commentary but has few revelatory things to say about his film beyond technical considerations, and even makes several clunking errors (recalling his casting decisions concerning a scene that takes place in a provincial German café, he raves about how he strove to find authentic French locals!). He does reveal that the film's use of a voice-over was inspired by the internal monologue that forms the basis of James Joyce's Ulysses. Given Cardiff's age and experience one feels that he must have more interesting anecdotes and insights, making this commentary feel like a wasted opportunity. --Chris Campion

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4 Reviews 5 star:  (1) 4 star:    (0) 3 star:  (2) 2 star:  (1) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review (4 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   9 of 11 people found the following review helpful: Venus in Leather, 11 Sep 2001 By A Customer This review is from: Girl On A Motorcycle [1968] (DVD) This Sixties leather clad romp fails to live up to its sexy subversive reputation. The pouting Marianne Faithfull plays the bored housewife who slinks into her leather catsuit and rides off on her motorbike for trysts with the edible Alain Delon whenever the going gets tough. This sounds erotic but sadly isn't. The acting is wooden and much of the dialogue is laughably inane. Even the sex scenes between these two hot young things are banal. Altogether a wasted opportunity - the only thing that throbs with passion is the titular motorcycle!  Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)   6 of 8 people found the following review helpful: Girl on a Motorcycle, 25 Oct 2003 By  "artnoddy" - See all my reviews This review is from: Girl on a Motorcycle [1968] (DVD) Classic bike movie or thinly disguided soft pornography? You'll have to decide which. This is a 'classic' film. Not one of the best but interesting for a number of reasons and with a real twist to the story.  Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)   7 of 11 people found the following review helpful: The Sixties Relived, 29 Mar 2002 By  Mr. Philip Eckett (England) - See all my reviews    This review is from: Girl On A Motorcycle [1968] (DVD) A cult film I remember seeing when it was first released in 1968. Poor filming and poor story line, but there was something about it that made it a classic. Watching it again now it looks aged, but that was what made it more special, and of course the DVD quality is superb. I always remember an old friend of mine, Phil Read (ex bike racer) telling me that he was the one riding the bike in the distance shots - with a blonde wig of course. Amazing how Marianne could be pushing 100 mph but her hair wasn't moving! Great film, great DVD, but then I was a biker in that era. Worth watching just to see what the older generation got up to years ago.  Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) › See all 4 customer reviews...		Most Recent Customer Reviews Watch as a flawed road movie I bought this in a fit of nostalgia, having enjoyed it as a boy interested in motorcycles and women (at a time when both were beyond me). Read more Published 13 months ago by MarkE Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews › See all 4 customer reviews...