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Immoral Tales

Immoral Tales

Drama · Romance · 1974

Four erotic tales from various historical eras. The first, 'The Tide', is set in the present day, and concerns a student and his young female cousin stranded on the beach by the tide, secluded from prying eyes. 'Therese Philosophe' is set in the nineteenth century, and concerns a girl being locked in her bedroom, where she contemplates the erotic potential of the objects contained within it. 'Erzsebet Bathory' is a portrait of the sixteenth-century countess who allegedly bathed in the blood of virgins, while 'Lucrezia Borgia' concerns an incestuous fifteenth-century orgy involving Lucrezia, her brother, and her father the Pope.

Movie details

Immoral Tales

“Four Erotic tales that take us back through the centuries.”

1974 Drama · Romance 2h 5m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

5.9 / 10

Community rating

Four erotic tales from various historical eras. The first, 'The Tide', is set in the present day, and concerns a student and his young female cousin stranded on the beach by the tide, secluded from prying eyes. 'Therese Philosophe' is set in the nineteenth century, and concerns a girl being locked in her bedroom, where she contemplates the erotic potential of the objects contained within it. 'Erzsebet Bathory' is a portrait of the sixteenth-century countess who allegedly bathed in the blood of virgins, while 'Lucrezia Borgia' concerns an incestuous fifteenth-century orgy involving Lucrezia, her brother, and her father the Pope.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Immoral Tales?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Walerian Borowczyk

Written by

André Pieyre de Mandiargues · Walerian Borowczyk

Lise Danvers

Lise Danvers

Julie - Story 1

Fabrice Luchini

Fabrice Luchini

André - Story 1

Charlotte Alexandra

Charlotte Alexandra

Thérèse - Story 2

L

Lisbeth Hummel

Lucy Broadhurst - Story 3

Paloma Picasso

Paloma Picasso

Elisabeth Bathory - Story 4

Pascale Christophe

Pascale Christophe

Istvan - Story 4

Florence Bellamy

Florence Bellamy

Lucrezia Borgia - Story 5

Court is in session

Put Immoral Tales on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Sentimental Softie

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Adrenaline Seeker

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.