Psycho Cop Returns (1993)

In just three years Scream would be released, and you could no longer make a by the numbers slasher movie without being totally self-referential. In these waning years, Adam Rifkin, the guy that gave us the monumentally bizarre and unforgettable Dark Backward, delivered this campy take on the genre.

My Nights with Susan, Sandra, Olga & Julie (1975)

The poster makes it seem like a sleazy skin flick, when it's really a rather dark and well-crafted picture.  Sure, it's still sleazy - but there's a grim and disturbing world that unfolds in this picture - and the movie posters don't do it justice.

Bikini Summer II (1992)

As I mentioned in the Bikini Traffic School review, there was a tidal wave of bikini movies in the 1990s [Bikini Summer (1991), Bikini Squad (1993),  Bikini Med School (1994), Bikini Drive In (1995), and Bikini Academy (1996)] and even more beach movies in the 1980s - Hardbodies (1984), Private Resort (1985), Spring Break (1983), etc.

Let's look at the sequel to Bikini Summer which delivered on all counts, thanks in large part to Melinda Armstrong who returns in this film.  Also starring Jeff Conaway - holy shit this guy fell far from grace, and would you believe he's the writer and director!  Also the notorious Jessica Hahn, and our favorite beach girl, Maureen Flaherty.

Bikini Traffic School (1998)

We all know there was a wave of beach movies in the 1960s, but did you know the 1990s had a similar flood of bikini films?  We here at VZ1 aim to cover them all, rescuing them from the tides of time.

So far, we've covered: Bikini Summer (1991), Bikini Squad (1993),  Bikini Med School (1994), Bikini Drive In (1995), and Bikini Academy (1996).  You could also include the 1980s beach movies  - The Beach Girls (1982) and Fraternity Vacation (1985).

But there are hundreds more to cover.  The eighties beach movies: Hardbodies (1984), Private Resort (1985) and Spring Break (1983), to the nineties bikini flicks - Bikini Hoe-Down (1997) and Bikini Hotel (1997).  With so much left to explore, let's not waste any more time.  Let's check out Bikini Traffic School (1998)...

4 Cheerleaders of the Apocalypse (1997)

This shot on video flick takes place at a South Dakota vocational school - and seems like it was just put together by some teachers just for fun.  There's no nudity, no budget, and no gore; and most of the actors aren't even listed on IMDb.  So why watch this ultra-obscure film probably put together for a few hundred bucks?

First, there is a real sense of place here - as it's clearly filmed in a small remote town in South Dakota, it has a unique feel - like you're actually spending an hour in the town. Second, the director, Ted Roesgen, clearly was an ass man.  He has these actresses constantly bending over and zooming on butts.  An excellent drinking game would be to take a swig for every gratuitous ass shot.

Lastly, without getting too philosophical here, I'll just say that in a day where your megaplex is filled with Disney and Marvel, it's refreshing to just see creativity at work without a trillion dollars behind it.

Ringer (1996)

An ex-prostitute wants to leave her sordid past behind, but a mysterious man in black just won't that happen.  Starring Shannon Whirry, with appearances by Malcolm McDowell and Maud Adams.

Poppea's Hot Nights (1969)

Poppea is runs away from her small town and finds her way up to the highest levels of Nero's Rome. 

The Secret Cellar (2003)

It's often said that horror and comedy are hard to pair up.  Only a few movies have successfully combined the two genres.  You could say the same thing for horror and erotica after the 1980s. I don't know what happened.  The seventies and early eighties were chock full of sexy horror movies - especially coming from Europe.  Then, in the nineties, horror erotica fell off a cliff

So, here we are in 2003 with an erotic horror film - let's see if can conjure any of the mojo from decades past.

Stolen Sex Tapes (2002)

A news anchor gets blackmailed when her sex tapes end up stolen.  Looks to be a typical late-night cable skin flick - but, who knows, it might just be a forgotten classic?  Let's have a look.

Scream and Scream Again (1970)

I think we get spoiled by having nearly movie ever made at our fingertips.  Watching this now, Scream and Scream Again seems like a good, but by no means mind-blowing horror flick.  But when I saw this decades ago, when every grindhouse and exploitation feature wasn't available at the click of a button, this absolutely rocked my world.  It is one of just a handful of films that made me a horror and seventies genre movie fanatic for life.

Prison Girls (1972)

It just doesn't seem right to watch this on a laptop - it needs to be seen on the big screen sporting a pair of 3D glasses with red and green lenses.  But, we'll take what we can get - and give this film, purporting to be the first rated X film in 3-D.  (Keep in mind, films like Midnight Cowboy got X ratings back then - the label didn't necessarily mean you were watching a porno.  Indeed, this film, while definitely sleazy, doesn't warrant an X rating.)

Another interesting aspect of this film is that features a lot of familiar actress from seventies sexploitation: Maria Arnold, Barbara Mills, Uschi Digard, Marsha Jordan, Jacqueline Giroux, Linda York, Candy Samples, and Annik Borel from Werewolf Woman (one of the greatest films ever made BTW).   We just need Sandy Carey and Rene Bond and we'd have just about everyone.

White Slave (1985)

Original Title: Schiave bianche violenza in Amazzonia; supposedly based on a true story.  It was even released as Amazonia: The Catherine Miles Story.  Another release had the title as Cannibal Holocaust 2, which doesn't fit this film at all, and was clearly just riding the gravy train of the original.

Bikini Squad (1993)

A new female director is hired to take over directing a Baywatch type television show.   Interestingly, this bikini film has a female director, Valerie Brelman, - so life imitates "art".  Let's see how it turns out...

Initiation: Silent Night, Deadly Night 4 (1990)

If you haven't seen Silent Night, Deadly Night parts 1 through 3, no worries - this bears no resemblance to any of them.  In fact, they drop the killer Santa shtick altogether.  It's directed by Brian Yuzna, the producer of Re-Animator and From Beyond, a couple longtime faves. I don't know that I've seen anything he's directed before, so was interested to take a look.

The Godson (1971)

There's one reason to watch this film - Harlan Ellison's house.  Indeed, the entire film basically takes place in Ellison's amazing bachelor pad royale - and he even makes a brief appearance (with boobs in his face).

Demon Kiss (2008)

Demonic possession is passed along by kissing.  Spoiler alert - this movie is awful.

Vice Academy Part 6 (1998)

Well, folks, we've made it.  We started with the first Vice Academy (1989) and made it to part six. The series is actually a rather unique achievement in that every one is directed and written by one guy - Rick Sloane. So, it's been interesting to watch his progression across a decade of doing these films.  It started with an ultra low budget film starring Linnea Quigley and Ginger Lynn, which more or less was just Police Academy on a threadbare shoestring budget.

Vice Academy 5 (1996)

Malathion is out of the picture in this fifth installment of the Vice Academy series, and replaced by another super villain - the Virtual Hooker.

Vice Academy 4 (1995)

Ginger Lynn is gone, but the series continues.  In this episode, Malathion takes center stage and things get even crazier.

Vice Academy Part 3 (1991)

Ginger Lynn is back as Holly Wells in the third installment in the Vice Academy series.

Vice Academy Part 2 (1990)

Linnea Quigley and Ginger Lynn continue the series where they must battle against the evil Spanish Fly, with the help of BimboCop.  Enjoy.

Vice Academy (1989)

Linnea Quigley, Ginger Lynn and Karen Russell are recruits at vice academy, and they must arrest ten people in order to graduate. It has the distinction of winning USA Networks' B-Movie Awards for Best Picture and being their highest-rated late-night film when it first aired on cable television.  This is the first of six (!) Vice Academy movies.

Student Affairs (1987)

A Chuck Vincent film about the behind-the-scenes drama during filming of a 1950s Porky's type movie.

Voyeur (1985)

Our tour of Chuck Vincent continues.  As mentioned, this guy was all over the place in the eighties, directing every B-movie genre imaginable.  Some were hits, some... not so much.  While some of his work could be pretty tame (such as Preppies and Young Nurses in Love), let's not forget Vincent started as a porno director. In Voyeur he goes back to his roots - doing a Hitchcock style movie, but for adults only.

Cleo/Leo (1989)

Say what you will about Chuck Vincent's films, the variety of output from the director during the eighties is pretty impressive.  From sword and sandal fantasy (Warrior Queen) to action thrillers (Thrilled to Death) to screwball comedies (Preppies) to Women in Prison (Slammer Girls) to Airplane! style satire (Young Nurses in Love) to sex comedies (Hollywood Hot Tubs and Sex Appeal), the list goes on... this from a guy who did pornos in the seventies!  Let's check out another flick during Vincent's golden age - a body swap movie called Cleo/Leo.

Thrilled to Death (1988)

Chuck Vincent has directed a wide variety of B-movies in the eighties including Hollywood Hot Tubs (1984), Preppies (1984), Sex Appeal (1986), Warrior Queen (1987), Young Nurses in Love (1989), Slammer Girls (1987). Prior to that, he directed a bunch of adult films

You would think that a former porno director would make his films extremely sleazy, but they're usually pretty tame, with just a few nude scenes (often courtesy adult film actresses he'd worked with back in the seventies, namely ).  Preppies, for example, certainly has some hot scenes, but I don't recall any nudity whatsoever.

To be honest, I haven't really enjoyed any of Chuck Vincent's work thus far (besides Preppies, which was great).  But with such an extensive resume in VZ1-type films, I figured we needed to give ol' Chuck another chance.  So let's check out Thrilled to Death...

Sex Appeal (1986)

A socially awkward loser takes advice from a self-help book and turns into a ladies man... well, not quite.  Featuring Penthouse Pet Tally Chanel (on the cover) and several adult film actresses, as well as the killer from Killer Workout. Let's have a look.

Naked Avenger (2008)

 From the writer of Hell Comes to Frogtown (1988). Jill Kelly is abducted by sex slavers; with only a gun and a pair of hiking boots, she must escape her captors and enact her revenge.

Witchcraft 8: Salem's Ghost (1996)

Whatever you may think of the Witchcraft series, there must be something here to spawn this many sequels starting all the back to 1988 essentially unabated.  Interestingly, this episode was actually filmed before part 7, and released simply as Salem's Ghost.  It did so poorly and sucked so bad, they re-released as a Witchcraft sequel.  It isn't a good sign to be sure, but let's have a look nonetheless.

Thank-you... Granny (1975)

Another entry in the Edwige Fenech marathon.  This one features the Italian beauty as... a grandmother.  Needless to say, when she's introduced to her family - they're met with something unexpected.

The Lady Medic (1976)

Original Title: La dottoressa del distretto militare (1976) - Another Italian sex comedy starring Edwige Fenech and Alvaro Vitali.

The Family Vice (1975)

Original title: Il vizio di famiglia. An ex-con lands in the middle of a wealthy family's tug-o-war over a count's inheritance.  Starring well-known faces from seventies Italian cinema: Nieves Navarro, Edwige Fenech, and Renzo Montagnini.

The Schoolteacher Goes to Boys High (1978)

We just took a look at the Italian sex comedy The School Teacher in the House from the same year, and it was a blast. Let's see how it stacks up against yet another School Teacher movie starring the same group - Edwige Fenech, Alvaro Vitali,  Renzo Montagnani, and Lino Banfi.  We've covered a few of these [see The Soldier with Great Maneuvers (1978), The Nurse in the Military Madhouse (1979), and My Sister in Law (1976)] but there were many more - we've only scratched the surface in the world of dumb sex comedies from Italy. 

The School Teacher in the House (1978)

Original Title: L'insegnante viene a casa.  Another Italian sex comedy starring the usual suspects - Edwige Fenech, Alvaro Vitali and Lino Banfi.  This is third in the schoolteacher series.

Bizarre Lust of a Sexual Deviant (2001)

There is an unexpectedly large number of films about psychopathic photographers - and my aim is to see them all, and bring them to VZ1.

So far, we've seen Dark Room (1989), Whirlpool (1970), Fatal Images (1989), Blood Harvest (1987), Click the Calendar Girl Killer (1990), The Photographer (1974), and my favorite Double Exposure (1983).  I expect this film will be a quick review as there's not much to it, but I do want a 2000's flick to add to the list.

Nightmare in Badham County (1976)

Nightmare in Badham County follows your typical Women in Prison (WIP) plot - girls are thrown in prison for crimes they didn't commit and are abused by wicked wardens.  The difference here is that this was a TV Movie! God I love the seventies.

It was successful and earned Deborah Raffin an Emmy nomination.  It also stars some recognizable names including Chuck Connors and two Sherwood Schwartz alumni - Robert Reed (Brady Bunch) and Tina Louise (Gilligan's Island). How can we not check this out?

Rats: Night of Terror (1984)

A post-apocalyptic biker gang strolls into a town inhabited by mutant rats.  Bad things happen.

The Sex and Violence Family Hour (1983)

The Sex and Violence Family Hour was a Playboy Channel produced sketch comedy film.  The initial intent was to have a regular TV series - like an adult version of Saturday Night Live - but I presume it never panned out.  So, the skits were combined into a film resembling something like Kentucky Fried Movie.  It's noteworthy in that it features Jim Carey - hamming it up years before In Living Color.

The Harem Bunch (1969)

Three Israeli women are recruited for a dangerous mission into Arab territory to deliver a secret message.  Featuring Monica Gayle from Switchblade Sisters.

Not Like Us (1995)

It's like 3rd Rock from the Sun, but not quite as funny, and with boobs and blood.

Escape to Passion (1970)

From James Bryan, the director of The Dirtiest Game from the same year - a film that blew my mind.  It's a film about a bank heist that goes wrong. 

Restless Souls (1998)

Parapsychologists with super powers are hired to rescue a bride who's become Satan's sex slave. 

Spirits of the Dead (1968)

Three stories by Edgar Allen Poe adapted by directors Roger Vadim, Louis Malle and Fellini, starring Jane Fonda and Brigitte Bardo, and others.

Linnea Quigley's Horror Workout (1990)

Sure, it's mostly highlights from Linnea's greatest hits and long workout numbers - but it stars everyone's favorite eighties scream queen, so is definitely worth a watch.  Let's pop this tape in the VCR and press play...

The Beast That Killed Women (1965)

True confession: When I first joined Netflix - very close to when the company first started - this and The Case of the Bloody Iris were the first discs I received.  Almost twenty years later, and I'm giving it another look and comparing it to a more contemporary version of the “monster versus nudist” story, Monster of the Nudist Colony (2013).

Monster of the Nudist Colony (2013)

We'll be looking at The Beast that Killed Women (1965) soon, another movie featuring monster vs. nudists. I'm pretty confident the 2013 version will be much worse, so I figured I'd start with this, rather than end on a low note.  So, let's have a look:

Lover of the Monster (1974)

Klaus Kinski made a career out of behaving like a madman.  No one could portray a brooding psychopath or raving lunatic with such flair.

In Lover of the Monster, Kinski keeps it subtle (if you can even comprehend) except when he turns into his Hyde persona, when goes full apeshit. This makes for a startling contrast, but also a rather boring movie - who wants to spend an hour seeing Kinski playing it subtle?

Deadly Weapons (1974)

You can tell right off the bat we're not dealing with a Merchant-Ivory film here.  Still, it's directed by Doris Wishman and stars Harry Reems and a woman with grotesquely huge boobs... so, it may be worth a look.

Devil in the Flesh (1986)

Your standard Italian romance - except it became notorious for a particular scene (we'll get to that).  Starring the gorgeous Maruschka Detmers.

Danish Pastries (1973)

It's another Danish sex-romp.  As per usual, it's a fairly big budget, thoughtfully conceived picture - yet they would often cross the line into hardcore.  Like the others, it stars Ole Søltoft, and has an astrology theme.  This was perhaps the first in the series, to be followed by - In the Sign of the Gemini (1975), In the Sign of the Lion (1976). Agent 69 in the Sign of Scorpio (1977) and  Agent 69 Jensen in the Sign of Sagittarius (1978).