Double Feature

Pretty Maids All In A Row

Female students are dropping like flies in the sexy, darkly comedic 1971 thriller Pretty Maids All in a Row. Helmed by Roger Vadim, who’d dealt with prurient material before in …And God Created Woman, and written by Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, in his only feature writing credit, the film concerns itself with finding the killer of multiple comely young students of Oceanfront High School. Telly Savalas is the state police investigator on the case, and Rock Hudson is the prime suspect, a guidance counselor who’s been doing a lot of “extra credit” work with his female charges both during and after school. Angie Dickinson and Roddy McDowall also appear as a very helpful new teacher and the high strung principal of the school, respectively. Loaded with dark humor, Pretty Maids… laid the groundwork for future cult classics such as Heathers and Scream.

Marc Edward Heuck discusses Pretty Maids All In A Row on the New Beverly blog.

Kim Morgan discusses Pretty Maids All In A Row on the New Beverly blog.

High School Girl

Carlo Ponti provides solid production values and an able supporting cast for giallo director Sergio Martino, making one of his first outings here in the Italian sex comedy genre. A youth just out of high school is smitten, suffering the tortures of the damned, when his stunningly sexy teen cousin (Susan Player) is dropped off at his family’s villa by her ne’erdowell father to get her away from the temptations of the big city. Martino skewers the absurd hypocrisy of provincial family values and moral double standards as most of our hero’s kinfolk put up pious, virtuous fronts while indulging in all kinds of lecherous behavior when no one is watching. The breathtaking Rosalba Neri appears in a supporting role as the libidinous family maid. With Riccardo Cucciola, Alfredo Pea and Fiorella Masselli.