Die Nichten der Frau Oberst (1968 version) (3 Stars)

This is Erwin C. Dietrich's first version of "The nieces of the colonel's wife", the literal translation of the film's title. When it was released in America it was called "Guess who's coming for breakfast". That title actually makes sense, in the context of the film. The colonel's wife has no shortage of lovers. She enjoys casual affairs, but she turns down offers of marriage. She wants her nieces to get married, which is difficult, because they're more interested in one another than in men. After sleeping with a man, the colonel's wife invites him to breakfast to meet her nieces.

There are many differences between the two versions. I really should have watched them in the other order.

The 1968 film is set in the present, i.e. the 1960's. The 1980 film is a period piece that takes place in the 19th Century or earlier.

The colonel's wife is comfortably rich in the 1968 version, but in the 1980 version she's much wealthier.

There are only brief glimpses of nudity in the 1968 version, whereas the the 1980 version presents gratuitous nudity throughout.

The 1968 film tells us a lot about the men, whereas the 1980 film is told entirely from the women's perspective.

The 1968 film features a nephew called Sebastian who's missing in the 1980 film.

The 1968 version has a more detailed plot and is probably more faithful to Guy de Maupassant's story, on which the films are based.

In the 1968 film Florentine gets married to Alexander, one of her aunt's former lovers. It's an unhappy marriage, because he can't perform in bed, leaving her a virgin. It must be a psychological problem, because he had no trouble satisfying the colonel's wife.

In the 1968 film Julia has a boyfriend who's a rich nobleman. He's a pig. She wants to remain a virgin until marriage, so he tries to force himself onto her. He hits her whenever she says No. Eventually he leaves her, despite a lucrative offer from the colonel's wife: "You can sleep with me while you're waiting to get married to my niece". 

This was the most successful  film of Erwin C. Dietrich's career. It sold over five million tickets in the cinema in 1968. In comparison, the 1980 film was only moderately successful. I don't understand it. The 1980 film is much better, in my opinion. Maybe the 1968 film was just the right film at the right time.