Ilsa, Harem Keeper of the Oil Sheiks

Dyanne Thorne in Ilsa, Harem Keeper of the Oil Sheiks (1976)

Blount put in a fantastically realistic shift in Officer so I guess it’s time to examine a somewhat more cartoonish female. As you know, I’m a fan of Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS, a prime example of tongue-in-cheek Nazisploitation immeasurably helped by Thorne’s vampish outing. The controversial flick was such a success that a series of sequels followed in which Thorne played the same personality in a different setting.

First up she’s a harem manager for a particularly corrupt and sex-obsessed sheik somewhere in the Middle East. Despite this being a non-military position, she’s still decked out in a smart uniform, complete with peaked cap and a pistol on her broad hip. Nothing much has changed from her Third Reich days in that she’s still an ultra-confident, hands-on kind of filly that loves her job because it allows her to revel in degradation. One minute this buxom vixen is taking charge of a few crates of abducted women helicoptered out to the desert, the next she’s demanding answers from a belly-dancing spy as her captive’s large breasts are crushed in a press. Or as one observer says: “She’s not a lady to meet in a dark alley.”

Like most sequels, Harem Keeper is several notches down. It’s simplistic rubbish enlivened by full frontal nudity, flashes of grotesque humour, hammy performances and imaginative torture sessions. Thorne feels less central here than She Wolf. Her performance is also a lot stiffer as her character follows a similar course, including being tamed by a man. Nevertheless, it’s a diverting, mildly amusing ninety minutes, especially if you’re curious about the sexual capabilities of a leper or the results of an exploding diaphragm.