La Donna Scimmia (aka The Ape Woman) (1964)

An unscrupulous hustler (Ugo Tognazzi) discovers a young woman (Annie Girardot) in a convent whose body and face are covered in hair. He exploits her as an "ape woman" that he captured in the jungles of Africa by putting her on the freak show circuit. But what he doesn't count on is that she's a woman with a woman's feelings and body. Directed by Marco Ferreri (LA GRANDE BOUFFE). Inspired by the story of Julia Pastrana, a 19th century woman exploited as a freak show attraction. One of the most disturbing films I've ever seen. The exploitation of one human being's misfortune for profit by another human is distressing. Thematically, the movie is a cousin to Lynch's THE ELEPHANT MAN but Joseph Merrick eventually was taken in and cared for by a hospital and the exploitation stopped. The "ape woman" is exploited even after her death. I watched Ferreri's orginal cut of the film with its dark ending which was cut but now restored. Someone (producer Carlo Ponti?) gave the movie a "happy" ending for its French release whereas the Italian version simply ended the movie before the film's upsetting final act. Kudos to Annie Girardot for taking on the challenge. With Achille Majeroni and Ermelinda De Felice.