Gore Gore Girls [DVD] [1972] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

Ladies and gentlemen! H.G. Lewis, the Godfather of Gore, proudly presents an amazing shockfest of striptease slaughter! Released in 1972, the "Gore Gore Girls," a stomach-churning and brain-twisting follow-up to Lewis's infamous "Wizard of Gore," is one of the first horror films ever to be rated X! While assembled upon a generous budget of $63,500, "The Gore Gore Girls" is a cult masterpiece of blood, black humor, and burlesque. With its smart dialogue, laughable acting, and plenty of bare exposure, this movie will entertain and nauseate even today's audiences. Best of all, despite the slightly crude subject matter, the overall content manages to stay risque without excessive raunch.
Actor Frank Kress adapts the role of Abraham Gentry, a snobbish and arrogant private eye who is offered $25,000 to investigate a series of gruesome murders. He's hired by an attractive Globe reporter named Nancy Weston (Amy Farrell), who will do anything for a scandalous story. Thinking that Nancy is merely a novice in solving crimes, Kress doesn't want anything to do with her, and he doesn't make that obvious just by whipping his cane around. Thanks to his charms, poor Nancy spends the entire second half of the movie drunk on zombies and tequila shots (not to mention the winner of an amateur strip contest). Still, the two manage to travel from one strip bar to another. Audiences will be given the pleasure of watching several voluptuous women in their tassels and pasties...up, close, and personal. Eventually, Abraham and Nancy gather enough clues to target four suspects:
Joseph - a shy student who was seduced and jilted by the killer's first victim, Suzy Creampuff.
Grout - a sadistic ex-marine who crushed and disfigured the faces of several Viet Cong soldiers.
Mary - a radical feminist who thinks that topless dancers are degrading to women.
Marlene - a fuming barmaid who was once a famous female wrestler, only to have her perfect figure horribly disfigured in a fire.
A lot of dark and sexual comedy is laced in the plotline. Viewers will especially enjoy how Abraham's bon mots test the patience of the Police Department's hotheaded Lieutenant. Not only does Abraham refuse to provide accurate information to the Lieutenant, but he even tricks him into thinking that the killer is a devout Christian! And, of course, let's not forget the outrageous stand-up comedy of Henny Youngman, who plays the ambitious club owner Marzdone Mobilie.
Meanwhile, the mysterious psychopath is killing the dancers one by one, slashing their throats and mangling their bodies beyond recognition. Like "The Wizard of Gore," this movie makes the art of mutilation the main attraction. Even before the opening credits appear, the murderer grabs Suzy Creampuff by the hair and smashes her face against a glass mirror! From there, each victim's demise gets more grisly than the last, and the seemingly cheap effects will make viewers cringe to this day. In the film's latter half, Lola, a ditzy lady with false eyelashes, is attacked by the unnamed psychopath, who then bludgeons her buttocks with a meat tenderizer! The final two murders are perhaps the grossest ones ever to be filmed. The sick assailant burns one woman's face with an iron. Then, he/she has the other victim's skin sizzled in a pot of cooking oil!
If you are a fan of H.G. Lewis's lurid legacy, "The Gore Gore Girls" is worth buying. But, it's not for the easily squeamish. In fact, once you see this movie, you will never want to eat french fries again!

This has got to be the most outrageous gore flick I have ever seen and by far the funniest. The gore effects in this movie are so outlandish that it is actually not frigthening at all but extremely humorous (for those of us with a taste for black humor). A movie like this could only have been created by the "Godfather of Gore" Herschell Gordon Lewis. Known for his mix of sex and extreme gore, Lewis out does himself in this one as Go-Go girls at a nightclub are hacked to pieces one by one. A hot iron is used to melt the face of one helpless victim, another has her face fried in french fry oil, still another has her rear end turned into hamburger meat and of course the infamous scene where a girl has her nipples cut off (the left bossom spews out whole milk while the right spews out chocolate milk!). Faces are mutilated, eyeballs are squished, and even the killer appears to have a dark sense of humor (a lit cigarette is found between the toes of one dead girl and the word "OK" is written on her leg in blood). There is even a cameo by the "King of the one-liners" Henny Youngman (who denies ever having been in this film to this day). After making this film, Lewis retired from the film making business and went on to become a successful investor. That is untill 2002 when he is coaxed back into the director's chair for "Blood Feast 2: All you can eat". Gorehounds will LOVE this flick...most others will be repulsed by it but then again, that is the point of the movie.

This is my first and, so far, only Herschell Gordon Lewis movie I've ever seen, much less put in my DVD collection. I must say that, as a connoisseur of fine cheeses, this one is quite delectable.

Being the last film made by Mr. Lewis in 1972, it's mainly tongue-in-cheek, while you can keep one in your head. But don't worry; if you're not an early-seventies stripper working in Chicago, you're safe. With names such as Suzie Creampuff, Candy Cane, and Lola Prize, these groovy go-go gals weren't being very modest, which kind of made them large targets for this particular killer.

Right off the bat, I must strongly agree as to how much Frank Kress, who played the hero, Abraham Gentry, private investigator par excellence (as he so modestly announces every five minutes), resembles Allan Arbus, who appeared several times in M*A*S*H as Dr. Sidney Freeman, psychiatrist. His character is kind of a throwback to the thirties. I was oh-so-slightly projecting Nick Charles' picky, arrogant, yet nattily-attired and gentlemanly nephew onto Mr. Gentry.

Said Mr. Gentry is wooed into helping Nancy Weston, girl-cub-reporter, to solve the case of the Chicago Stripper Killer And Creative Mutilator. There's a "spirited" mob scene in one of the clubs, meaning that they all looked to be three sheets to the wind at the time. Strippers are dispatched, french fries, cucumbers and chocolate milk are served, and the sleazy food chain is established. A few hangover-free Zombies later, Miss Fancy Nancy finds herself entered into a stripping contest hosted by the owner of the local strip joints, Marzdone Mobilie, played by Henny Youngman (!). I must admit, Henny did a good job in this. Later he chose to absolve himself of ever appearing in this film. Such a pity.

One of my favorite parts of this DVD is Something Weird's promo of some of their other juicy celluloid tidbits. It had me cracking a wide smile the first time I saw it. It also reminded me of John Waters' Serial Mom, the scene where one of its characters is watching a Chesty Morgan movie. Plus, there's a clip from a movie featuring some wild women and a most hapless blond guy who's about to spill his guts to them.

If you never thought you'd meet a stripper talented enough to work to Strauss' Radetzky March or My Old Kentucky Home, this movie will set you straight, pickle!

Okay, having said all that, I have one question...in the very beginning of the movie, where the Hell did Mr. Gentry put his pretty black cat? Was that a cat door? I hope it was.