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That's right, - no torture scenes!
(Please note: This review contains explicit, potentially offensive screenshots)
Throughout the seventies Spanish exploitation maestro Jess Franco has been somewhat – in fact almost entirely - preoccupied with lesbian vampires, nuns and women behind bars, revisiting these themes numerous times with only minimal variation in set-ups and storylines. And considering how prolific he is (so far more than 150 movies and still counting), telling his movies apart occasionally can prove a slightly difficult task. Downtown from 1976 therefore sets itself apart by not only being a brief departure from the director’s many other contemporary efforts in terms of subject matter, - good ol’ Jess, who often appears in his own movies in minor supporting roles, also gets star credit this time around. So if you’ve ever wondered how a noir drama would turn out in the hands of this infamous enfant terrible, here’s your chance … but Francophiles will know that the result is inevitably going to be very different from and nothing like your regular mainstream block-buster experience.
And what does that imply? Let’s just for a minute assume that you’re in uncharted territory and one of the – presumably – many who’re not acquainted with Mr. Franco’s distinctive trademarks, then there’s basically just one thing you need to be aware of before taking the plunge: What graphic, bold and controversial screen contents is concerned it’s fair to say that he isn’t exactly puritanical or bound by inhibitions and neither are his (mostly female) performers, who’re always game and willing to go a couple – or five – steps further for our little chubby and cheerful Spaniard than what’s normally required in major studio productions. Do you absolutely consider yourself a liberated, broad-minded individual not easily offended and who’s got his heart set on sampling a bit of Franco escapism? Then here's the usual high guaranty of extensive (some would surely say inordinate), healthy dozes of gratuitous nudity which translates into e.g. scanty dressing and pelvic grinding lavishly peppered with luxuriant, intimate hair growth and genitals aplenty, - occasionally in generous close-ups. Still not blushing or wracked with guilt? Then by all means read on.
Having hereby firmly established the director’s inclinations, it doesn’t mean that the spicy plot of Downtown can’t feature some of the same ingredients of the classic noirs, and thus we get one of the genre’s recurring characters, the private eye - here in the way of Al Pereira (always drowsy looking Franco in an uneven, but laid-back and amusing turn). Besides being a low-life he is also decidedly small-time and the type who’s not too proud of taking on the seedier, more dubious cases, - on the other hand he can’t afford to have standards, since he’s deeply indebted. So given this precarious financial situation he has no choice but to accept when a luscious brunette, the feline nightclub singer Cynthia (Franco’s muse and ever dependable exhibitionist of choice, the gorgeous and zesty Lina Romay) approaches him with a straightforward business proposal which in all its simplicity requires Pereira to take some incriminating, compromising pictures of her wealthy husband in the arms of another woman. What at first seemed like a walk-over and a sweet deal suddenly puts our anti-hero into a real fix when the man in the Polaroids unexpectedly turns up dead and the police come knocking, suspecting him of murder. Has Pereira in reality been used as a scapegoat?
It doesn’t, however, get any less mysterious when Pereira accompanied by the police inspector Mendoza (Franco regular Paul Müller) looks up the recent widow of the deceased who initially hired him for the job. Because the lady of the house who greets them looks nothing at all like the woman he previously met in his office, - her name is Olga Ramos (Monica Swinn, yet another Franco regular), but even though the two has obviously never met before, for some unknown reason she confirms everything Pereira has to say and thereby gives him a much needed alibi. Now cleared of all charges, Cynthia still remains a mystery figure and you should think that this strange event has been a learning experience for our favorite detective – but as destiny would have it their paths converge once more, and this time he gets to meet her girlfriend lover as well, the equally questionable Lola, played by delicious Martine Stedil (e.g. from Barbed Wire Dolls and Doriana Grey – by Franco, surprisingly), who, like Romay, is also noticeably lacking in carnal restraint and more than complies with the existing undress code. They need Pereira’s services – i.e. his camera - once more for yet another dirty snapshot detail and in order to persuade him they’re using all of the most impudent (but efficacious) women’s wiles in the book with a vengeance. Will he be able to resist the temptation or are some people simply incorrigible?
Considering this is a Jess Franco pic the simple plot, scarce and somewhat contrived as usual, is nevertheless slightly more elaborate than one would generally expect, but never so much as to prove mentally challenging given the heavy emphasis on the erotic elements. These are fairly lengthy and take up quite a bit of the already short running time, which clocks in at around 83 minutes, so consequently this doesn’t leave much room for narrative refinements along the lines of, say, a Raymond Chandler story … but you knew that already. No, your enjoyment of this risqué concoction does in large part depend on your personal tolerance for said particular trait of Franco, and he arguably manages to serve up the ‘scenes of natural content’ at a steady pace. Seeing this is a comedy with a distinct noirish flavor an attractive femme-fatale wouldn’t be completely out of place, and here we get no less than two, Romay and Stedil; as a couple of seductive, scheming vixens they certainly look the part and despite their roles being one-note, there’s no denying their charisma and they do indeed perform their Sapphic couplings with gusto, adding considerable heat. Moreover, try to keep cool and focus solely on Romay’s singing voice during her audacious, saucy nightclub act.
There must be a slew of reasons, most of them probably justifiable, to dismiss Franco’s films as being lurid and exploitive, because that’s what the majority of them are, - it’s really that simple. But there is something inexplicably irresistible and liberating about his consistent disdain for conventional cinematic rules of what’s acceptable or not, he persistently and deliberately continues to push the envelope even further, keeping censors (and their scolding scissors) around the world busy, but sometimes it's a necessity to keep provoking in order for things to change and evolve … although I’m doubtful that a guy like Franco has ever strived for a higher purpose with his films. I may be wrong, but as I see it he merely wants to entertain and tell (naughty) stories his own way without restrictions or limitations (artistic, that is, not financial), and in the case of Downtown, which, unlike his WIP, nasty nuns or female vampire excursions, is completely devoid of any kinds of sexual violence, this is easily the most accessible and lightweight (albeit slightly silly and not all that surprising) effort of his numerous Erwin C. Dietrich collaborations (which totals 14 or 15 if I remember it correctly) to date. 
René Pedersen, November 19th, 2006
Picture: 7/10
Generally the impressions of this release as regards technical quality are on the positive side. The transfer seems to be pulled from a negative that's been well preserved, - it looks very clean and apart from the odd, minor scratch and dust speckle that pops up now and then (the opening credits sequence looks the worst and does exhibit some wear) there's virtually nothing in the way of print damage. The colors may not exactly be leaping off the screen, but they're nicely saturated nevertheless and pleasing to the eyes, as are the natural and well rendered skin tones. A layer of mild to moderate grain is present throughout, contrasts are quite satisfying with the deep black levels standing out in particular, and although the image occasionally appears perhaps a bit too dark as well as slightly smudgy or soft, sharpness stays relatively strong and maintains a surprisingly high level of detail, - which could have been improved even further had the picture been anamorphically enhanced, by far the biggest drawback of this release. Compression artifacts were negligible, if not absent, and some very minor edge enhancement, barely noticeable, showed up in a few scenes. The aspect ratio was a bit inconsistent but measures out to approximately 1.51:1.
Sound: 7/10
Although a tad on the thin side, the only available audio track, German Dolby Digital 2.0 mono, sounds quite good. There's a constant, faint hissing in the background, but it never affects the dialogue which comes through nice and clear and remains perfectly intelligible, and even if the score could have benefited from a fair bit more bass response, the limited dynamic range is acceptable enough considering the low-key nature of the film. On occasion the optional English subtitles disappear for a very short period of time, but it seems as if no dialogue crucial to the plot is missing and shouldn't therefore interfere with your viewing experience.
Extras: 4/10
Nothing much in the way of supplementary materials, however, in a feature running exactly 11 minutes talkative director Jess Franco and producer Erwin C. Dietrich turn up for interviews. Oddly, the main focus here is on another Franco/Dietrich collaboration, Greta - Haus ohne Männer (Ilsa - The Wicked Warden) and taken into consideration the main attraction on this disc, it's rather peculiar that Downtown at the very least isn't even hinted at. Among other things Dietrich (speaking in German (fortunately very slowly) without English subtitles!) gives a lot of praise to the leading actress Dyanne Thorne as well as Franco's extremely good rapport with every actor, actress and crew member he's ever worked with, but even though I have a quaint weakness for him myself, to put the director on the same artistic level as Chaplin is perhaps a trifle rash and overstated. Furthermore he offers his view on the age-old discussion on when nudity in films can be regarded as art or sleaze, pointing out that it often depends on which director who portrays it - certainly a good topic for debate, but frankly I don't think Dietrich argues his case particularly well. Still, anyone who - like him - is a defender of free speech and insists on making available on DVD all of the films Franco made for him completely uncut gets a point in my book. During this feature Franco himself isn't allotted that many slots, but in spite of that he once again manages to come off as a very relaxed, sympathetic man with great respect for his actors and who's always open for suggestions ... and it's truly touching to watch Franco in that last shot as he loses his speech for a second or two, obviously profoundly moved when reminiscing about the people he worked with decades back. Lastly you find trailers for two additional Lina Romay titles, Rolls Royce Baby (2.39 min) and Das Bildnis der Doriana Gray (0.53 min); the latter is out on two different DVDs - needless to say the uncut version is the way to go, and that one's been released in absolutely stunning quality by VIP as Doriana Grey.
Final thoughts:
Provided you're completely aware off what you're getting into, Downtown is a thoroughly enjoyable and off-beat romp that definitely delivers what the cover art suggests. Incidentally, this film is supposedly going to be part of The Official Jess Franco Collection by VIP sometime in the future, and judging from that company's eleven previous immaculate releases the picture quality will undoubtedly be superior. At the moment, however, it's uncertain when that DVD's going to hit the stores - and in what way, as VIP some time ago, after a prolonged hiatus, decided to put out their latest title, Frauen ohne Unschuld, only in an economically not very attractive 8 disc Box Set and making this the sole venue of purchase. So here's hoping that all the remaining films of The Official Jess Franco Collection (Frauen ohne Unschuld included) will happen on DVD anytime soon - separately.
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