In the morning, Sylvia is still lost in the cave and rejecting Fabrizio's pleas to stay with him. Fabrizio repeatedly begs Sylvia to stay with him forever. Sylvia breaks down revealing what a little girl she really is. All three of them go into the cave to escape a thunderstorm and Fabrizio pulls the same stunt on Sylvia that he pulled on Laura, pretending to be lost, to get the girls to stay the night with him. At one point, the duo 'hunt' Laura with bows and arrows and at another, pretend to throw her off a high ledge.Īt the end of summer, with the girls talking about going back to school, Fabrizio takes Sylvia to the ruins for the first time. Laura, reluctant to leave her old friend and new lover, sticks around and becomes the target of the duos ever progressing cruelty. Sylvia quickly replaces Laura as Fabrizio's queen, demoting Laura to servant and victim, though there is also friendship. Using both of these qualities, Sylvia draws Fabrizio into her 'world'. Unlike the previously virginal Laura, Sylvia is well versed sexually and truly sadistic.

Things go from bad to worse when they meet Sylvia (Eva Ionesco). She stays with him, asking, 'Why can't you be gentle?' I got the impression she would have complied if he proceeded romantically as he had before, but this was him taking her, not seducing her. He does relent when she makes it clear she is not interested. At one point he turns their second love-making with her into a somewhat over the borderline attempted rape scene. Inside, Fabrizio seduces Laura.įabrizio's cruel streak is boosted by his new sexual confidence. One day they climb the 'Blue Mountain and discover ancient building ruins. He excelerates his torment of Laura in many ways, including tying her up and putting a snake on her and killing a pet bird. Laura is falling in love with Fabrizio and vise-versa.įabrizio has also been developing a cruel streak to his personality. The film well represents them as part child, part adult. This summer new aspects enter into the plot as the kids are growing up. Fabrizio's favourite game is 'King of the Forest' with Laura as his queen.

In 1977, Hamilton released a photobook, Bilitis, which included the most memorable images from the film.Laura ( Lara Wendel) and Fabrizio ( Martin Loeb) have been meeting summers in the forest by her parents summer home. The film was shot in the same soft focus style that was common of David Hamilton's photography and his other films. Īlthough Bilitis can be best described as a coming of age film the title character, Bilitis, ends up returning to school at the end of the film, realizing that she is not yet ready for adulthood. Meanwhile, she pursues a local teenage boy and tries to find a 'suitable male lover' for the wife. A teenage schoolgirl spends the summer with a couple whose marriage is on the rocks, and develops a lesbian crush on the wife.

Maladolescenza nudity