Provocazione was originally made in Spain as No es nada, mamá, sólo un juego, but we like this promo made for Italy. In English it was known as Beyond Erotica, which is a weird title for a movie of this type. What type is that? It’s a psychological drama shot in tropical Venezuela about Andrea Lau taking a job as a maid on the failing estate of mentally disturbed David Hemming and his enabling mother Alida Valli. Hemmings is set on manipulating and abusing Lau, but because her employment eases the tough circumstances of her father—also an employee of the estate—she puts up with the conditions. What she doesn’t know is that Hemmings has gone as far as murder with previous women, but she starts to get an idea about that when he sticks her in a cage for days on end.
Provocazione is well made and adequately acted for a women-in-prison flick, but it irked us. Most of the women we know would kick Hemmings squarely in the balls on day two rather than stick around to be meekly baffled by his petty psychological games. However, we recognize that not everyone can tap into aggression when needed, and not every daughter could go back to dad and say, “Sorry—I just couldn’t put up with the shit.” So Lau finds herself trapped behind bars. But it’s only temporary—after all, how can Hemmings shag her if he doesn’t eventually let her out?
Judging the movie on its own merits, it’s not bad. There’s a clear metaphor in which Hemmings’ feelings of powerlessness about his collapsing estate trigger his sadism, however metaphors can be stretched until they snap. Dressing Lau in a rabbit outfit to symbolize her status as prey was too on the nose. Laughably so. She wears it well, though, and that’s what acting is all about—giving your best performance even when you have a sinking feeling you’re going to look incredibly foolish in the final cut. Provocazione premiered in Spain May 1975, and Italy today the same year.
