Blood Tastes Like Perfume Review on Blu-ray from Bizarre Theatre!

Blood Tastes Like Perfume: The Short Films of White Gardenia

Over the years on Severed Cinema, there have been a handful of artists and such who demand our attention the moment we notice something new is out. One such man is Daniel Valient a.k.a. White Gardenia. I first chanced upon Daniel and his gang of blood-covered misfit gems mid-way through 2018 via the soundtrack to Poison Rouge’s No Please Not in my Mouth (see review here). Having got in touch with one another, White Gardenia it transpired, turned out to be the maker of many underground fetish shorts and later one of the mass of Domiziano Cristopharo contributors to his anthology flicks.

White Gardenia is rightfully one of a kind. Daniel is a crimson-soaked windup toy sat on a shelf which is avoided by all but glares out at his surroundings whilst amusing himself by mutilation. I have reviewed so many of his small epics over the years (including White Gardenia Shorts and Bondage Clips pt. 1 and pt. 2, plus Blood is Sweeter than Honey – follow the linked text) and interviewed the man himself earlier this year (readinterview with White Gardenia here). White Gardenia is a staple ingredient to Severed Cinema. In fact, Chris had the wonderful vision of Daniel’s showstopping removal of part of his body in XXX Dark Web (see review for XXX Dark Web here) after reading my synopsis, and I don’t think Chris has recovered.

So, for those new to this realm, we have a lot of nudity, pain, sadism, devoted masochism, and themes based loosely around chosen subjects like old detective magazines and such. I will mention here and now that I have already reviewed a handful of the short films contained in this Blu-ray release by SamHel and Bizarre Theatre, thus to save referring you all to the reviews, or skimming over, I’ll include excerpts from those reviews along the way.

The Blu-ray for Blood Tastes like Perfume: The Short Films of White Gardenia demonstrates the power that these visions can contain. These films have obviously captivated a select crowd which grow regularly and SamHel will help deliver the nasty goods to many more (well, 150 more since it’s a limited edition I’m holding).

Beginning our journey with probably the most relaxed of all entries on the disc, we have a few minutes of regular alternative lady, Allison, stripping, putting on a collar, donning a rabbit mask, then masturbating with a carrot whilst accompanied by truly ear grabbing macabre music. Worth noting here and now that many of White Gardenia’s productions have rich soundtracks which are sometimes worth the price of admission alone. Allison is also worth the money, to be honest. She is as intense as Daniel when it comes to some of these films, cutting herself, suffering humiliations, and abuse of many kinds. A role model for young girls everywhere. Dedication to something she has a passion for.

Anyway, make sure you hide all the sharp objects because here comes Uncle Daniel, accompanied by one of the past faces in the movies, Cher. Nicely playing and teasing with the name of a Salvador Dali piece from the late ‘20s, Blood is Sweeter than Honey opens with a trippy musical accompaniment of tunes in reverse. I think a close comparison would be to the breakdown in the centre of David Bowie’s Black Star. We watch our main lady swaying in the kitchen whilst adorned in an oversized Witch’s hat – this one is apparently loosely inspired by the Witchsploitation flicks of the ‘40s and ‘50s. The film becomes dreamlike as we see her sat with a man (played by Daniel) and they play with a knife whilst a glass before their naked flesh glints with blood. Next the camera becomes repulsively grainy and gritty as she drinks from the glass. The screen changes ratio suddenly and Daniel is glaring at us now and then as she drinks.

For a moment he appears nervous, almost debating his next actions. Then he stabs repeatedly, and she flinches for a second for he drives his blade into his own body off-screen. She lustfully licks at his bloodied hand. When I say lustfully, I don’t mean in an over-the-top pornographic moaning and rolling about fashion, I mean to say watch her expression, it says it all. Daniel looks annoyed throughout!

He is the giver of blood to Allison in our next quick clip. He stabs himself with scissors and the always nude lady is happy to lick at his wounds. “So, I guess we’ve learned a few things today.” he tells her as she sits looking fed up in the bathroom in Bondage Clip #2. “Yes, Master.” she’s learnt that he’s the Master and she’s the Slave. Yep, you guessed it, he ties her up after breaking a video cassette to pieces (offensive! Tapes are sacred to me!) then slaps her breasts a couple of times for a laugh. The camera blurs from time to time, but that’s cool because it sort of adds a very dislocated view on everything.

Cher Dancing in a Dream really gives me an early John Waters vibe, along with the photography of Romain Slocombe when touching upon bandages and injury fetishism. Once again, the soundtrack is sublime. All she’s doing is swaying around and around but it’s so captivating.

Blood Tastes like Perfume Short Films of White Gardenia screenshot

Akasha Drinking My Blood is quite a show stealer, for one, like Cher dancing and Alison wearing her necklace and rabbit mask, this is new to me. Akasha is an attractive girl down the street who passes you by every day and you either wish to date her, spank her, or murder her, depending the person you happen to be. She fluffs her lines a bit but what she is saying to begin is she’s seen the videos, heard the music, now wants to sup some of the red. Our main gentleman obliges, and she takes in some mouthfuls, before sucking penis. Then we have some deep writing about Alice in Wonderful across the screen whilst she nods back and forth, inserting the mandatory White Gardenia thought-provoking flavour.

Anyway, after one more bondage quickie, it all ends with A Perfume Made from Blood and Tears. Cue experimental dark techno industrial madness via Oval as Allison removes her top. The focus of attention this time ‘round for now, is her breasts plus a razor cut to her arm. Daniel happily suckles on her bloody nipples, then her cheek after she pierces a needle through it until he reverses roles and sticks a knife into his hand.

White Gardenia is artwork. It is simply fluid motion with the spiked taboo of self-mutilation and pain fetishism. I have been friends over the years with a few people who redesign their own flesh – for example, a couple who sliced one another whilst having sex, and a man who DIY sliced his own tongue in half for the thrill chase, so it didn’t make me raise my eyebrows. I enjoyed the wealth of ideas in such simple pieces of work that unfortunately too many people will try to take it too seriously, be offended, and shocked then switch off. Watched carefully there is a streak of black humour and a knowing wink within Blood Tastes like Perfume.

What has to be understood about his chosen art is the fact he takes inspirations loosely from the surrealists of yesteryear and in the case of his bondage clips, from the pages of the detective and men’s bondage magazines circa the 1950s. Daniel is like a new version of Richie Edwards who lurks about in the darker corners of the internet and offers very intelligent material to his audience.

As I stated on one of the earlier reviews, I’m an observer (sometimes entering), I don’t judge or question, I’m the guy who sits staring with creepy weird reptile eyes. I’ve seen so much in my years. I find enjoyment in near enough anything I chance upon or am sent. People like Daniel and his gang are the reasons I love reviewing for Severed Cinema. I cannot wait for the next delivery courtesy of White Gardenia and also SamHel, who by the way has done an absolutely remarkable job. Blood Tastes like Perfume fits perfectly with him. Great raw punk DIY style cover art as well. The Blu-ray arrives with a fold out poster tucked away inside to make you smile gleefully. I must add as well, a wonderful quote taken from a certain website called Severed Cinema across the back sleeve. Hmm, heard about those boys before, supposed to be a right bunch of bloody weirdos.

I grinned broader still upon noticing a playing card on the cover and poster which connects everything to a certain Domiziano Cristopharo anthology.