March 21, 2006

Welcome to another DVD Late Show. Due to an overabundance of overlapping deadlines at the moment, this column's not only very late, but a bit shorter than usual. I'm hoping, however, that the extra servings of sadism and sleaze helps make up for its relative brevity. After all, this is my special Sex & Violence edition, with heaping helpings of sordid softcore sexploitation and a long-overdue round up of woman-in-prison (or, from here on, "WIP") discs.

Let's get right to the dirty stuff, shall we?

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ei Independent Cinema recently released the 70's sexploitation double-bill of 2069: A SEX ODYSSEY/RUN VIRGIN RUN (1974/1970) on their Retro-Seduction Cinema label. These West German softcore sex comedies got a lot of play in the drive-ins of the Seventies (and late night cable in the early Eighties), and while nobody's going to call them classics of any genre, there's enough voluptuous, naked frauleins on display to make for a couple enjoyable hours' worth of naughty amusement.

2069 (5 MADCHEN BLASEN ZUM ANGRIFF) tells the story of a group of beautiful Venusians who land near a small, picaresque mountain village in West Germany in search of virile young men to use as sperm donors – their planet is inexplicably devoid of males, you see, and procreation has become a problem. But while their plan is to hook the men up to what can only be described as a "milking machine," the nubile E.T.s soon discover the joys of carnal contact with the local peasants.

RUN, VIRGIN RUN (DIE JUNGFRAUEN VON BUMSHAUSEN) is another Teutonic sex farce set in a small rural village where the town's menfolk attribute their wives' high birth rate with a legendary mountain wind that makes them extra fertile. The truth is that when they leave for the fields every day, town stud Michael goes to work, servicing the oversexed women of the town.

The stories are mindless fluff, the women are quite attractive and silicone-free, and the dubbing is terrible. Sounds good to me.

Considering the age and origin of the films in question, ei's presentation is acceptable. Both films are presented full-frame and show considerable damage in the form of specks and dirt. There's a lot of grain and some occasional artifacts that lead me to suspect the films were culled from a videotape source rather than 35mm prints. But the colors are bright and the contrast is good, and they're quite watchable. Both films are dubbed into English, with no subtitle options. The only extra on the disc is the usual Retro Seduction Cinema trailer vault.

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The same company has also recently rediscovered a lost sexploitation classic, director Joe Sarno's previously unreleased ABIGAIL LESLIE IS BACK IN TOWN (1975).

This well-acted softcore soap opera tells the tale of an insecure housewife named Priscilla (subtly sexy Rebecca Brooke) who fears that the titular tramp (husky voiced honey Sarah Nicholson, a/k/a Jennifer Jordan) has returned to their small fishing village to rekindle an earlier affair with her husband (hardcore vet Jamie Gillis). But Abigail is interested in more than just a rematch with Priscilla's philandering hubby; she's a carnal carnivore with a vast appetite for sin that won't be sated until she's seduced every consenting adult in town, regardless of gender.

Filled with veteran hardcore performers of the era who all turn in very creditable acting jobs, ABIGAIL is a PEYTON PLACE-styled potboiler fueled by scalding softcore steam. Directed by legendary sexploitation auteur Joe Sarno (BUTTERFLIES, SIN IN THE SUBURBS), ABIGAIL LESLIE is a surprisingly thoughtful and adult Adult Film.

Never properly distributed back in the Seventies, ei Cinema brings this surprising gem to the digital format under their Retro-Seduction Cinema imprint with an excellent 1.78:1, anamorphically enhanced widescreen transfer supervised by Sarno himself. The disc also includes a commentary track by the director, his biographer Michael Bowen, and ei President Mike Raso. There's also an excellent on-screen interview with Sarno and his wife, Peggy, an eight-page booklet with liner notes by Bowen, and trailers for other Sarno-helmed Retro-Seduction Cinema releases.

Considering its budget and genre, ABIGAIL LESLIE is a great film. It's tough to recommend, though, because if you want wall-to-wall sex, this isn't the movie for you. There's plenty of hot action, but it's mostly in the second half of the movie. However, if you're interested in this era of adult filmmaking as filmmaking, you'll definitely want to check it out.

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Back in 1971, B-movie mogul Roger Corman sent veteran exploitation director Jack Hill (FOXY BROWN, SWITCHBLADE SISTERS) to the Philippines with fifty bucks, a script and a cast of attractive young women. What Hill returned with was BIG DOLL HOUSE, a genuine classic of the WIP genre and a huge hit for Corman's burgeoning New World Pictures.

Best remembered as blaxploitation queen Pam Grier's (COFFY, FOXY BROWN) breakout film, BIG DOLL HOUSE is a suitably nasty little exploitation effort, full of great B-movie personalities like WIP mainstay Roberta Collins (CAGED HEAT) and Sid Haig (SPIDER BABY, THE DEVIL'S REJECTS), plenty of shower scenes, brutal catfights and a bloody escape attempt from the Philippine jungle prison.

Grier is tough and sexy as hell, and the movie possesses a sweltering grittiness – you can almost smell the actresses sweat. As a bonus, Pam Grier even performs the movie's theme song, "Hard Time Woman."

Buena Vista (Disney) has just re-issued BIG DOLL HOUSE is a new version that is essentially a straight re-packaging of the previous New Horizons release. The film is presented full-frame (1.33:1), and looks fairly good, although there is some minor print damage here and there. The sound is Dolby Mono. The meager extras include the original theatrical trailer, select cast biographies, and the recycled "Leonard Maltin Interview with Roger Corman" that appeared on the previous release.

I'm disappointed that Buena Vista didn't put more effort into the disc (more on that below), but I recommend the movie highly to fans of Pam Grier or the WIP genre.

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CAGED HEAT (1974) is the archetypal Roger Corman WIP film. Best known today as the directorial debut of Jonathan Demme, HEAT embraces every cliché and convention of the genre – from the sexually deviant (in this case, frigid) female warden (Barbara Steele, BLACK SUNDAY), to the perverted prison doctor, steamy shower room catfights, sapphic sex, and gun-blazing climax.

The cast, which includes Roberta Collins (BIG DOLL HOUSE), Juanita Brown and the late Cheryl "Rainbeaux" Smith (THE SWINGING CHEERLEADERS), is better than average for a movie like this, sexy and savage in turns. And while there's nothing particularly stylish in the direction, the pace is good and it never gets boring.

Buena Vista's new DVD is identical to the previous disc offered by Corman's New Horizons label, right down to the full-frame (1.33:1) transfer and mono soundtrack. The picture is solid and in surprisingly good shape, with only minimal age-related wear and damage. It even includes the puffy "Leonard Maltin interviews Roger Corman" featurette that graced the original release. The only other features are text bios for some of the cast & crew and the original theatrical trailer.

I'm very disappointed that Buena Vista/Disney isn't taking the opportunity to properly matte these films and give them anamorphic enhancement. With the home video market racing towards hi-def and widescreen TVs, it seems very shortsighted – and lazy – on their part. They have an opportunity here to remaster these perennial crowd pleasers for today's more sophisticated film buffs and collectors, but they're taking the easy route and screwing the fans with substandard product. Typical Disney, unfortunately. Too bad Corman couldn't have licensed these films to a company like Blue Underground or Anchor Bay…

Well, despite its technical shortcomings, CAGED HEAT is a classic of the WIP genre and is belongs in every exploitation film fan's library.

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A particularly nasty entry in the WIP genre, Bruno Mattei's WOMENS PRISON MASSACRE (1983) features lovely Laura Gemser (EMANUELLE IN AMERICA) as an investigative reporter wrongly convicted and locked up through the machinations of a corrupt politician. Oddly, although Gemser's character is called "Emanuelle" in the English dub, she never disrobes nor participates in any of the film's sex scenes.

This Italian entry in the genre features all the usual trappings of lesbian titillation and voyeuristic humiliation, but puts a slight twist on the formula when four vicious male criminals are diverted to the women's prison, escape from their guards and hold the warden and various female inmates hostage.

Needless to say, that's when things get really interesting.

ei Cinema/Retro Shock-O-Rama's unrated DVD of WOMENS PRISON MASSACRE looks surprisingly good. ei's done a new telecine transfer from a decent 35mm print, presented in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio and anamorphically enhanced. There's a fair amount of print damage and wear, but the colors and contrast are solid. The mono sound is clear with only minimal background noise. The disc also includes a handful of Retro Shock-O-Rama trailers, and more informative liner notes by 42nd Street Pete.

WOMENS PRISON MASSACRE is mean-spirited stuff, but well-worth checking out for diehard WIP and exploitation fans.

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Part WIP, part female biker movie, part sub-Bondian action flick, and all insanely entertaining – there's never been another film quite like Ackyl Anwari's astounding VIRGINS FROM HELL (1987).

Get this: Two attractive young Indonesian women are forced to watch as Mr. Tiger, the mustachioed leader of a drug syndicate, murders their parents and steals their shag-carpeted family castle (and adjoining caverns). In order to exact their revenge, they recruit a gang of biker babes in multi-colored leather hot pants and go-go boots to take on Mr. Tiger and his machine gun-toting army. Unfortunately, their attack is a failure and they are captured. Locked up in a convenient dungeon, they are abused, tortured, forced to pick coconuts and used as guinea pigs in experiments aimed at producing an aphrodisiac drug that will turn the world's women into helpless sex slaves!

What can I add? If you didn't pick it up from the synopsis above, VIRGINS FROM HELL is a psychotronic joy ride of the highest order, with one utterly absurd situation after another, adding up to 94 minutes of the most bizarre exploitation action you've ever seen.

Mondo Macabro brings this Jakarta jaw-dropper to DVD in a glorious, colorful 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer with Dolby Digital Stereo sound. The picture looks surprisingly pristine for an Indonesian movie almost 20 years old, and the hysterical English dub is clear and strong.

The first disc of this two-platter special edition includes the uncut feature film, the original theatrical trailer and a text background article on the WIP genre. Disc 2, Destination: Jakarta, contains another great Mondo Macabro documentary on Indonesian exploitation films and 70 – count 'em, 70! – minutes of mind-blowing Indonesian movie trailers.

Buy this disc and show it to everyone you know. You'll thank me.

That's it for this time. I'm working hard to have another column ready for next week. See you then!

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