Black Boots, Leather Whip – Severin Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Spain, 1983
Director: Jesus Franco
Writer: Jesus Franco
Cast: Lina Romay, Antonio Mayans, Asunción Calero, Alfredo Kier, Rocío Freixas, Juan Antonio García, Hemy Basalo

Release Date: December 7th, 2021
Approximate Running Time: 88 Minutes 50 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVCC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Spanish
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $29.98

"When down-on-his-luck Pereira is hired by a sultry client (blonde wigged Lina Romay under her pseudonym 'Candy Coster') for a fast-buck job, he'll find himself caught in a web of seduction, murder, blackmail, polyamorous mayhem and a Sadomasochistic centerpiece that is jaw-droppingly extreme even by Uncle Jess standards." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "now scanned uncut from the original negative for the first time ever."

Black Boots, Leather Whip comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 32 GB

Feature: 24.1 GB

The source used for this transfer looks very good, and any source-related debris is minimal. The image generally looks crisp, colors look correct, black levels look good, and any compression related issues are minor.

Audio: 4/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in Spanish, and included with this release are removable English subtitles. Though this audio track is rather limited range-wise, it more than gets the job done. Dialog comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced.

Extras:

Extras for this release include reversible cover art, a locations featurette titled In The Land of Franco Part 5 (16 minutes 52 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Stephen Thrower author of Murderous Passions, Franco Volume 1: The Delirious Cinema of Jesús and Flowers of Perversion, Volume 2: The Delirious Cinema of Jesús Franco titled Shiny Boots of Leather (32 minutes 25 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles) and an audio commentary with I’m In A Jess Franco State of Mind Writer Robert Monell and NaschyCast’s Rodney Barnett.

Summary:

With a voluminous filmography like Jess Franco's, there are going to be many peaks and valleys. And, while some of his missteps receive more attention than they deserve from those who regard Jess Franco as a hack filmmaker. Ultimately, when he’s clicking on all cylinders, there’s no denying that he can deliver mesmerizing cinema.

Case in point: A Black Boots, Leather Whip, a film made during one of Jess Franco's most prolific years as a filmmaker, Content wise, Black Boots, Leather Whip is a Neo-noir that has a Sci-Fi vibe, and, of course, it wouldn’t be a Jess Franco film without erotica, which this film has an abundance of.

At the heart of Black Boots, Leather Whip is a story about a detective who’s down on his luck and in desperate need of money. This leads him to take on a case with a mysterious woman who hires him to retrieve her purse. From there, he finds himself in a web of deceit where no one can be trusted.

From a production standpoint, Black Boots, Leather Whip is yet another minimalist film from Jess Franco. It has a familiar premise, and it's propped up by a basic narrative that’s just enough to keep things moving along. Also, it features long takes and many zoom shots that are staples of Jess Franco’s cinema.

The cast is headlined by two Jess Franco regulars: Lina Romay (Female Vampire), who portrays a mysterious femme fatale who wears a blonde wig, and Antonio Mayans (Cries of Pleasure), in the role of a detective named Al Pereira. Although the rest of the cast is adequate in their roles. Another performance of note is Alfredo Kier’s delirious portrayal of Lina’s character's husband, a flamboyant crime boss.

It has often been reported that Jess Franco worked at a ridiculous speed, often making more than one film at a time. And though working in such a manner can be disastrous, It actually worked in Jess Franco’s favor since he was a stream-of-conscious filmmaker who was capturing his fever dreams on film.

Black Boots, Leather Whip makes its way to Blu-ray via a solid release from Severin Films that comes with a strong audio/video presentation and a trio of insightful extras, highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer