Rent Schoolgirl Hitchhikers (1973)

Nothing 'fantastique', but still with that Jean Rollin flourish - Schoolgirl Hitchhikers review by NP

Jean Rollin, my favourite director, was responsible for many dark fairytale, horror fantasies between 1968 and 2010, all of them very personal and not necessarily commercially successful. To subsidise his work, he also made a range of porn films, often starring cast members from his repertoire company.

Having loved every one of his ‘legitimate’ projects, it would be narrow-minded not to view his other available offerings – ‘The Seduction of Amy’ and this. Joëlle Coeur, the memorably perverse Tina from The Demoniacs, plays Monica, and Willie Braque, the moustached actor from a number of Rollin’s films, plays underwhelming stud Fred. Ice blond Gilda Stark plays Jackie; the enigmatic Marie Hélène Règne plays Patrice, while pig-tailed Reine Thirion plays the nameless dark horse secretary.

While the many soft-core sex scenes are played with gusto, especially by Coeur, the story is just a means of allowing the cast to disrobe for lengthy periods of time. Let’s not worry about that too much.

Titillation is what we’re watching of course, but there’s no doubt that Rollin’s trademark ‘look’ is often present – his talent for making his well chosen locations look stark and slightly unreal is here. The décor, the skeleton trees; the contrast between drab yet warm interiors and their open fires, to the stark cold of outside is effectively used. The backpacking girls – not really hitchhikers and certainly not schoolgirls – display all of Rollin’s engaging mixture of naivety and sensuality (and certainly don’t deserve the indignities heaped upon them), and the whole thing, although clearly using very small budget, looks atmospheric and is packed with visual detail.

Without anything vaguely supernatural or ‘fantastique’ to sustain it, ‘Schoolgirl Hitchhikers’ is a little dull, with only the performances, which are surprisingly good for this type of caper, and Rollin’s signature directorial style, to recommend it. Enjoyable for what it is, and not as exploitative or sleazy as its title would suggest, it would be churlish not to give it less than 6 out of 10.