PSYCHOTRONICA
VOL. 1DELINQUENT SCHOOLGIRLS (1975)/DREAM NO EVIL (1973)
Directors: Greg Corarito and John Hayes
Kit Parker Films/VCI Entertainment
Kit Parker Films and VCI Entertainment recently established the PSYCHOTRONICA banner upon which to release a number of wildly varying films freshly acquired from the estate of the late John Lamb. Volume One is a curious double bill that features both a softcore sexploitation romp through a girls correctional facility and a psychological mind freak that quite frankly, does not make a damn lick of sense.
Life isn’t easy for the girls at the Oxford Corrective Institute for Young
Woman. Several of the more disruptive students have not been granted permission
to leave for the summer holiday. Instead they are to remain on campus to continue
their studies and indulge in karate lessons and late night badminton. Unfortunately
for the students and staff left behind, they are unsuspectingly in the path
of three sexual deviants. Carl C. Clooney (Michael Pataki, THE BAT PEOPLE) an
amateur impressionist and psychopath, Richard “Big Dick” Peters
(Bob Minor, FOXY BROWN) a former professional baseball player and rapist and
Bruce Wilson (Stephen Stucker, AIRPLANE!) a former award winning dress designer
and psychologically unbalanced homosexual, are on the run after a daring daylight
jailbreak from the State Asylum for the Criminally Insane. After laying low
and enjoying the forced hospitality of local farmer Earl (George “Buck”
Flower, THE FOG) and his wife, the trio stumbles upon the girl’s school
where they will have to run, fight and grope their way through the night if
they are to successfully evade the police.
I
must admit that DELINQUENT SCHOOLGIRLS is a guilty pleasure of mine. The plot
(and I use the term loosely) is admittedly ridiculous and filled with so many
gaps that you're bound to find yourself tripping over one every 10 minutes.
Such flaws are however quickly forgotten when basking in the presence of such
a bounty of beautiful buxom gals. If you can get past Michael Pataki's cringe-inducing
impressions, there’s a lot of fun to be had, as DELINQUENT SCHOOLGIRLS
is one sexploitation film that takes full advantage of its cast of lovely ladies.
Long lingering shots of bouncing bosoms are common place and the filmmakers
taste for large chests and a light bondage fetish are placed front and center.
For the majority of the girls in attendance, this would be their one and only
screen role. There are however a small number of noticeable faces and figures
present. No stranger to exploitation pictures, Sharon Kelly plays Greta, a feisty
redhead who goes toe to toe with “Big Dick” Peters in the film's
final act. Having starred in such films as A SCREAM IN THE STREETS, SUPERVIXENS
and ILSA, HAREM KEEPER OF THE OIL SHEIKS, Sharon would eventually cross over
into hardcore pornography in the 1980s under the pseudonym Colleen Brennan.
Zoe Grant is particularly striking as Miss Crowley, but it is Roberta Pedon
who without question steals the show.
It's hard to separate the fact from the rumor when discussing Roberta, as there
is very little confirmed information about her life. Born in 1954, Roberta’s
real name is still a mystery. Her birth name is often cited as Rosma Grantovskis,
however this may in fact be the name of someone Roberta knew growing up. Roberta
was known to adopt the names of childhood acquaintances, such as Melody O'Hare,
and used several different pseudonyms, eventually favoring Roberta Pedon. Even
Roberta’s measurements are fonder for dispute, as they are sometimes listed
as 36-23-35, and other times as 48-24-34. It is however hard to argue that her
cup size was anything less than DDD. Moving from Ohio to California, it was
Roberta's awe inspiring bust line that helped landed her work as a busty men's
magazine model. It was while modeling for American Art Enterprises (AAE) that
Roberta was giving the opportunity to star in her one and only film role, as
Carla Gray in DELINQUENT SCHOOLGIRLS. A number of models under contract with
AAE would also appear in the film, as the producer took full advantage of many
of AAE contract players. A lot of the misconceptions about Roberta originate
from her role as Carla, as she played the part with a strange foreign accent.
The daughter of Latvian immigrants, Roberta was apparently fluent in Portuguese
but was an all American girl who spoke clear English. Having been bit by the
acting bug, Roberta continued to audition for movie roles, but was never able
to find work outside of modeling. It's even rumored that she auditioned for
Russ Meyer, but unlike cast mate Sharon Kelly, never made the final cut. Roberta's
modeling career would last less than three years, but in that short time she
left quite an impact. While it’s hard to deny that her overabundant chest
is what initially draws you in, fans of Roberta, who often refer to her by her
nickname "Mooschi", see something so much more. There is something
in her eyes and behind that curved smile that is irresistibly captivating and
inviting. She seems approachable and flirtatious, despite her formidable figure.
I would relate her to a common remark often heard when discussing the photos
or short loops of Bettie Page; no matter what the situation or set up, she looks
like she's having fun. Sadly, having dealt with alcoholism, health issues and
drug abuse, Roberta died in the summer of 1982. A biography of Roberta is currently
being written by confidant Charles L. Smith with a tentative 2009 release date.
Originally
titled CARNAL MADNESS, DELINQUENT SCHOOLGIRLS first found its way onto the home
video format through B-movie specialists Vestron Video. While its DVD debut
may be far from ideal, those lucky enough to still be holding on to there old
VHS copy should consider the upgrade, but I’d hold on to those tapes for
posterity. Presented widescreen in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, the picture quality
is to some extent improved, with colors a bit clearer and night scenes (such
as the scene of Roberta rolling around in the mud in a little white t-shirt)
are slightly brighter. The print is still dingy with frequent specks of grain
and is definitely showing its age but in comparison to the VHS copy, it’s
a step up. The audio is also an improvement, as music and dialogue are cleaner
than the previous Vestron release, if just slightly.
An optional audio commentary with star and stunt man Bob Minor, moderated by
filmmaker Elijah Drenner, is a welcomed addition. Having been filmed over three
decades ago, Bob still remembers the shoot fondly and how could he not considering
all the ladies he gets to fondle throughout the picture? While the commentary
is somewhat sparse, it’s never dull and considering the thin amount of
information available on the cast and production, it’s still informative.
It's funny to hear Bob openly worry about any of his friends or colleagues accidentally
stumbling upon the film on cable in the near future. You shouldn’t be
ashamed Bob, some of us would gladly trade places with you.
Michael
Pataki shows up again, looking an awful lot like Harvey Keitel, for DREAM NO
EVIL, the second feature on the first volume of the PSYCHOTRONICA collection.
Grace MacDonald (Brooke Mills, THE BIG DOLL HOUSE) is coping with some severe
daddy issues. Ever since she was abandoned at an orphanage she has deluded herself
into thinking that one day her poppa would return to reclaim her as his daughter.
Having grown into a beautiful young woman, Grace finds herself as an assistant
to traveling faith healer Rev. Jesse Bundy, played by Pataki. As the Rev. Bundy's
assistant, it is Grace's job to dress up in a form fitting swimsuit and perform
a high dive act during revivals, a performance piece that is meant to represent
the fall of sinners into the fiery gates of hell. Hell is of course represented
by a large inflatable pillow. One day, moments before her performance, Grace
opens up to her boyfriend, and the Reverend’s brother Patrick (Paul Prokop,
THE GLORY STOMPERS) that she is dropping everything to find her father once
and for all. Tipped off that her father has been residing in a hotel for older
gentleman, Grace high tails it to the hotel where, while inquiring about her
father, is approached by a man (Marc Lawrence, KEY LARGO) who mistakes her for
a prostitute stepping in on his turf. It turns out that the man is a pimp by
night and an undertaker by day, who has recently embalmed Grace's father. Grace
follows the man to his basement mortuary to finally come face to face with her
father where, to her surprise, daddy (played by Edmond O'Brien, FANTASTIC VOYAGE)
gets up and kills the embalmer. The family, finally reunited, find themselves
at an isolated farm house where Grace quickly discovers that she is going to
have her hands full trying to keep her father’s murderous tenancies under
wraps.
This DVD presentation of DREAM NO EVIL opens with a statement that the film
was originally shot for an R rating, but later edited and released with a PG
rating. The version seen here is obviously the edited one as there is nothing
present that would remotely constitute a rating harsher than “Parental
Guidance Suggested.” The film is sporadically narrated by an unknown male
whose sole purpose seems to be to catch the viewer up to speed between the intermitted
editing. It is possible that the original, R rated cut of DREAM NO EVIL resembled
a movie, but in its present form it doesn’t even come close. At least
with DELINQUENT SCHOOLGIRLS you can sit back, laugh at ridiculous dialogue and
enjoy the eye candy. DREAM NO EVIL is the very definition of random. One minute
Grace is in a seedy motel full of passed out octogenarians, in the next she
is dressed like Ann of Green Gables dancing an Irish jig while her father plays
the accordion. Nothing makes any sense. 
Presented
widescreen in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, the opening scene with young Grace suffers
from a persistent green line that wavers back and forth across the screen, an
obvious scratch that thankfully is limited to the first reel. Otherwise the
print source is surprisingly free of dust and grain. However, there must have
been some issues when the film was re-edited for a softer rating, as cuts are
often foreshadowed by a discoloration in the print. When ever the screen become
suddenly awash in yellow or brown, count to three and get ready for a random
cut to a scene that probably has no juxtaposition to the one preceding it. Audio
is merely sufficient, with dialogue often garbled and muted.