Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Overlooked sex & psycho flick, THE RAVAGER (1970) Reviewed!


   The sexploitation genre of the 1960's and early 1970's is a bizarre one, and one that caught my attention years ago. In the days before hardcore porn was legal, filmmakers had to find a way to tie their nudie and soft core flicks together. Thus, the sexploitation genre was born! Now, these films could be comedies, westerns, melodramas, basically anything you could think of. Any type of plot line to tie together their sexy scenes, which is what was packing in the audiences. Without the ability to use hardcore sex as the payoff for their audiences, some of the sexploitation filmmakers of the day took to using another exploitable element of the era: graphic violence. With that decision in the early 60's, films like 1963's Scum of the Earth directed by Herschell Gordon Lewis, and 1965's The Defilers directed by Lee Frost, the "roughie" was born. And it should be made apparent, both of those films were produced by the lovable and ever-prolific David F. Friedman, who is arguably the creator of the whole Roughie genre.
   Now, these sexploitation films were the true grindhouse flicks of their day, and they played the theaters across the country that by the mid-70's would mostly be dedicated to porn. They were not meant for the mainstream public, and video was not even thought of, so to the uninitiated these are shockingly bizarre, perverse, and flat out strange pieces of film. These were cheap, quickly-made exploitation flicks that are full of flaws but retain the ability to enthrall audiences due to what I like the call the, "What The Fuck?!" factor. The sheer audacity, perversity, and sickness of their subject matter and scenes keep one interested, even though they are quite shoddily executed most of the time.
   1970's The Ravager definitely does not veer far from this assessment. It's a rather inept, cheapjack, yet highly entertaining slice of exploitation pie. And once again, most of it's entertainment value comes from it's, "I cannot believe they're doing this," plot.
   Joe is a demolitions expert fighting for the United States over in Vietnam, who gets separated from his platoon. While stuck alone he witnesses the horrifying sight of two Viet Cong stripping and raping a Vietnamese peasant woman...and then blowing her up with a stick of dynamite afterwards. Needless to say, this fucks up our hero's head quite a bit, so much so that by the time he gets back to the United States, he is hellbent on two things: Rape and blowing up lovers with dynamite.  That's the plot line of The Ravager. See what I mean about "What-The-Fuck" cinema?
   Now, obviously, that plot line sounds like pretty strong, sick stuff. And it is in content, but definitely not in execution. The insane overacting of Pierre Gaston as Joe had me chuckling throughout, but he occasionally hits notes of total believability. The rest of the actors are suitably crappy, they show up to get naked and then blown up. the only other standout is Jo Long as the Landlady, whom was so obnoxious I cheered when she finally got TNT'ed.
   The sex scenes are quite clumsy, of course, but feature some attractive women in late 60's/ early 70's attire (as well as out of it), and plenty of aloof, stoned boyfriends who are dynamite fodder. The rape scene at the beginning, in particular, is quite laughable since it's a common case of the "dude-keeps-his-pants-on" sex scene that was common in soft core and sexploitation pictures.
   I know it seems like I'm focusing on the negative aspects, but be advised, I am absolutely recommending this movie! It is a highly entertaining, very weird relic of a bygone era. They don't make movies like this anymore, and probably never will. The narrative voiceover ALONE is worth the price of admission, as the over the top, melodramatic lines delivered are absolutely hilarious.
   Most cult movie fans have probably at least dipped their toe into the shallow end of sexploitation films and roughies, and if they liked it, I sincerely propose they cannonball into the deep end and check this flick out. If you're new to the genre, this is most likely NOT the place to start, as it's quite out there. But for those that already have a love for this type of stuff, you're in for an absolute treat.
   I saw this movie via Something Weird Video's Download service, and they also have it available on a hard copy. I encourage you all to pick up a copy from them if this sounds up your alley, and even if it doesn't, go check them out, you'll find something you want/need.

- Ehren Von Sleaze

1 comment:

  1. Something Weird has some amazing films--this sounds like a must see! THE GODDAUGHTER was a riot, arguably one of the FIRST softcore films to mock the title of a popular film!

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