 |
THE DOUBLE-D-AVENGER:
Variety: Harvey, Dennis
Reviewed
on DVD, San Francisco, Jan. 14, 03. Running time: 73 MIN.
A William Winckler Prods. presentation. Produced
by Winckler. Executive producers, Patricia
Tousicnant, Jim Tousicnant, Elizabeth Sturm.
Directed, written by William Winckler. Camera
(color, digital video), Raoul J. Germain Jr.;
editor, Germain Jr.; music, Don Shore; sound,
Jon Herd; makeup/hair, Miquela Armijo; assistant
dir,
Dezzirae Ascalon.
A cheerfully silly
ode to larger-than-life femininity, L.A. entertainment
attorney-cum-camp auteur William Winckler's "The Double-D
Avenger" reunites three of retired mamploitation master Russ
Meyer's original bodacious starlets--Kitten Natividad ("Beneath
the Valley of the Ultravixens'), Haji ("Faster Pussycat! Kill!
Kill!," "Good Morning--and Goodbye!') and Raven de la Croix
("Up!"). Pushing 60 but still defying nature (especially
gravity), these dames are game for lowbrow laughs, which is all
this vid-shot, deliberately cheesy "superheroine" adventure aims
for. It's scoring one-off rep house dates across the country
while already doing strong tape/DVD biz via Internet sales.
Natividad plays Chastity Knott, a popular pub owner horrified to
learn she's got terminal breast cancer. Her equally out-there
doctor (de la Croix) informs her of rumors of a long-shot cure.
So Chastity ventures to South America in search of the
crockazilla plant and its magical healing powers, deep in the
land of the Amazonian TaTa tribe. She's duly cured, and, what's
more, now has superhuman powers--she can lift a papier-mache
"boulder" with one hand. Such strength comes in handy once strip
club-cum-clip joint owner Al Purplewood (G. Larry Butler)
decides to have his only business rival wiped out.
He dispatches bad-girl trio Hydra Heifer (Haji), Pirate Juggs (Mimma
Mariucci) and Ooga Boobies (Sheri Dawn Thomas) to do the dirty
deed. They succeed in killing Chastity's suitor, Bubba (Gary
Canavello), but the lady herself proves more
resilient--especially in her new masked guise as the "Double-D
Avenger."
As one might imagine, this ain't Noel Coward, and generous
viewer application of beer is advised for enjoying such dialogue
as "Holy hooters!," "I'm double-de-lighted," and the
oft-repeated "Shiver me titty timbers!" Along the way to the
inevitable good-over-evil triumph, we get such diversions as a
lingerie modeling sequence, a montage of Kitten's old pinup
shots and a "sword" fight with vibrating dildos.
Perfs range from the broadly good-humored to the simply amateur;
87-year-old exploitation pic fave Forrest J. Ackerman makes a
frail guest appearance as a wax museum caretaker.
What very few Russ Meyer homages grasp, let alone equal, is the
camera/editing dynamism that made his features unique beyond
their obvious breast fixation. "Avenger" is executed with the
just-adequate low-budget tech savvy of a lesser Troma
production. Still, cult film fans will be satisfied just seeing
these older yet undiminished gals back in bawdy (though never
actually topless, let alone bottomless) action. If Kitten's
equipment looks especially unreal and/or heavily costumed, it's
because she underwent a double mastectomy for breast cancer four
years ago--a fact that lends pica poignant, uplifting (ahem)
subtext. |
