domingo, 22 de noviembre de 2009

Untamed Youth

Jane Lowe (Lori Nelson) and her sister Penny (Mamie Van Doren) are guilty of vagrancy and are sent to work for thirty days in a farm for head honcho Russ Trapp (John Russell), who picks up young kids and makes them work in a farm instead of going to jail. There, they find hard work and harder lives, and use rock and roll to escape the drudgery of it all. Things get worse when Trapp starts sexually abusing the girls and neglecting their health, and when one of them dies, things start going hardcore, as Jane decides she’s had enough and goes to tell the authorities. But Trapp is no pushover, and his relationship with the female judge might make things harder for Jane and the kids.
This movie is one of the most infamous of the 1950’s rock and roll movies, mostly because of the cast, which is pretty good. Lori Nelson (Revenge Of The Creature, Day The World Ended) is pretty damn good in her role, playing the usual tough-but-sweet blonde girl she always played in her films, while Mamie Van Doren is her usual sexpot self. She can’t really act but she’s good eye candy, that’s for sure. The black and white photography is very grimy and dry, and the settings really look depressing. Thankfully, the movie isn’t depressing at all, thanks to it’s rock and roll soundtrack. Eddie Cochran pulls out a performance of “Cottonpickin’” that is pretty damn good, and the rest of the music pieces are pretty catchy and fun. The third act returns to your typical action/drama as the plot races till the end with no rhyme or reason, and by the time the movie ends you’ll be wishing for another song.
There’s really not much I can say about this film, you’ll either like it or you don’t. I’m half and half about it, personally. Watch the Mystery Science Theatre 3000 version, if you can.

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