CHATTERBOX! 1977
Candice Rialson (Penelope Pittman), Larry Gelman (Dr. Pearl), Jane Kean (Eleanor Pittman), Arlene Martel (Marlene), Rip Taylor (Mr. Jo), Professor Irwin Cory (himself)
Directed by Tom DeSimone
***WARNING! This review contains images of nudity***
The Short Version: The adorable Candice Rialson stars in this adult fairy tale comedy about a young woman looking for love and becoming an unlikely celebrity because of her talking vagina. Crude sexual humor abounds from Rialson's talking pound cake giving ample opportunities to showcase the actress in various outfits and, mostly out of them. Even at just 73 minutes, porn and cult film director Tom De Simone's bawdily playful showbiz sex farce shows signs of wearing itself out early on. However, a diverse amount of naughty gags and libidinous musical numbers keeps things tantalizingly fresh till the film reaches its satisfying climax.
During a lovemaking session with her boyfriend, Penelope Pittman, a beautiful hair stylist, discovers her vagina possesses a remarkable vocal capacity from singing to mouthing off a catalog of haughty quips. Wrecking havoc in her personal life, Penelope tries to cope with her wisecracking blunt cunt, her new-found fame, and find Mr. Right in the process. Christening her cootchie with the name Virginia, the two take their "act" to television which opens her up to further sexual misadventures.
Arguably the best movie about a talking, singing, sex-hungry vagina, this is the ultimate Candice Rialson movie to boot. Vivacious from the first scene to the last, Rialson is in and out of various sexy and 'barely there' outfits; and she wears that patented pouty look of hers almost as much. But this isn't solely a showcase for Rialson -- she shares the screen with her nether regions (which are never fully exposed). Furthermore, her uncredited genitalia gets all the best lines in a scenario that gives new, less threatening meaning to the legend of the vagina dentata.
The premise wears thin rather quickly, but once the action shifts to Penelope getting "exposure" on television, the film gets kinkier, the gags come quickly, and the film finds its second wind even managing a few sex themed musical numbers. At just 73 minutes, it moves at a brisk pace, too. Overall, the script explodes in an orgasmic display of cock and cunt jokes that reaches passions peak during the riotous final scene wherein Penelope and Virginia end up living happily ever after.
Rialson's acting is about the same as it is in her other movies, but she has an innocence and naivete matching her fabulous frame that one can't help but be mesmerized by (the male members of the viewing audience, that is). There's no lead up to her lower lips' vocal prowess, it just occurs suddenly right at the beginning. From there on out, she's in and out of trouble via Virginia's big mouth till a stint on television briefly gives Penelope a thrill -- successfully (if only momentarily) curbing her desire to lead a normal life and win back the man of her dreams, the bespectacled Ted.
CHATTERBOX! (1977) may go overboard with its near constant deluge of genital jokes and sexual innuendo, but there's a few familiar faces in cameos that will bring a smile to some cult film fans faces. T'Pring herself, Arlene Martel has forsaken Vulcans and taken an interest in Earth women in Tom De Simone's movie. Here she's in a cameo playing a lesbian dominatrix who gets turned on by Penelope after her hot spot jokingly puts a good word in. Taking Penelope's shorter than short working attire into consideration, who could blame her?
Flamboyant Vegas comedian Rip Taylor plays Penelope's equally flamboyant, homosexual boss Mr. Jo in what amounts to the stereotypical effeminate male salon owner. For fans of his schtick, the only prop he whips out is a handkerchief. Still, he's hilarious for his brief amount of screen time. Taylor also pops up in small roles in the box office gong, THE GONG SHOW MOVIE (1980) and in the Cheech and Chong comedy adventure THINGS ARE TOUGH ALL OVER (1982).
Comedic genius and doctor of crudity, Professor Irwin Corey is on hand as an on-air R rated Johnny Carson. He's onscreen about as long as Rip, but he fares better in that he indulges in his own innuendo heavy brand of comedy. The Professors bug-eyed brilliance can be seen in Troma's splendid no budget sex farce STUCK ON YOU! (1982).
Former porn and cult film director Tom DeSimone tackled his first mainstream movie with this AIP release. Reportedly based on an old, unproduced porno story, CHATTERBOX! (1977) was a success and DeSimone and producer Bruce Cohn Curtis joined forces once again a few years later for one of the best 80s horror films, the haunted house/slasher HELL NIGHT (1981). Chuck Russell, who later helmed NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3 (1987), the 1988 remake of THE BLOB and THE MASK (1994), was an AD on CHATTERBOX!, and reunited with DeSimone and Curtis on HELL NIGHT as an executive producer.
If you enjoyed Paul Bartel's EATING RAOUL (1982), you'll likely want to swing with CHATTERBOX! as well. Both films have a similarly raw, quasi pornographic comedic aura. Bartel's movie is the trashier of the two while DeSimone's movie is dirty minded, but playfully skirts around its subject matter without ever getting too graphic. 1988s ME AND HIM was a male version of this story. For fans of Candice Rialson, this tale of talking private parts is a no-brainer. There are relatively few knee-slapper moments, but its barrage of bawdiness will likely keep a smile on your face throughout. You'll never think about the song 'Beautiful Dreamer' the same way again.
AN AMERICAN HIPPIE IN ISRAEL 1972 aka THE HITCHHIKER
Asher Tzarfati (Mike), Lily Avidan (Elizabeth), Schmuel Wolf (Como), Tzila Karney (Francois)
Directed by Amos Sefer
"...World, you're so full of shit..."
The Short Version: Mike the Hippie's rage against the machine that is industrialization and the war in Vietnam ultimately overflows with bitter irony and contradiction by the time this dubbed Israeli film comes to its delirious close. The barely there plot concerns the title hippie attempting to cultivate an isolated culture of free love and passivity with other hippies that doesn't go as planned. Occasionally preachy and heavy-handed, Amos Sefer's bizarre (to put it mildly) movie is bereft of budget, but gets high on social subtext; and a way-out, if poverty-stricken visual style. More ROCKY HORRIBLE than ROCKY HORROR, HIPPIE has recently become a minor cult phenomenon in its native Israel after years of being on the shelf. Recommended only for 70s curiosity seekers, hippie enthusiasts, and lovers of obscure movies few have heard of and even fewer have seen.
Mike is a former soldier in Vietnam who has resigned himself to wandering the world in search of a place to form a hippie commune free of rules and modern contrivances. Following him on this journey are two mysterious, top hat wearing, zombie-like characters dressed in black. Eventually Mike finds his island paradise, but this magical utopia ends up being a false vision.
One of the fascinating aspects of 70s cinema is the sheer number of films produced; and the variance in quality and audacity. There was a ferociousness in many movies (particularly of the low budget variety) that has never been duplicated no matter how hard today's filmmakers try to recreate that feeling. It was an angry decade and hundreds of films oozed hate and violence often used as an excuse to make a political statement. HIPPIE is one of those movies; at least it wants to be one of those movies.
The violence in the film (among other things) is sloppily rendered, and at times, laughably exaggerated. It's difficult to tell from one minute to the next if this disorderly approach was due to financing, or done intentionally as an artistic touch. The brutality -- such as it is -- is limited to two sequences. The rest of the time, the film revels in sex, drugs and folk music -- hammering home the dissatisfaction with Vietnam, corporations, government and those who actually work for a living at regular intervals.
The director's message is ultimately stamped 'return to sender' during the last twenty minutes. He designs characters symbolic of the typical 'love generation' variety, but exposes their latent hypocrisy during the literally neolithic conclusion. This perceived existence free of life's constraints proves to be nothing more than a mirage. Prior to that, Mike and his growing commune plan to strut their way on over to some isolated island where they will live their lives outside of society's burgeoning dependence on materialism and the financial splendor of capitalism.
However, the shadow of industrialization and progress follows Mike wherever he goes; represented by two sinister, yet comically adorned men in black with pale complexions who carry machine guns. At approximately seven minutes in, we see the first of a few appearances of these two silent characters who remain in constant pursuit of our title traveler.
Embittered by what he saw, and was forced to do during the Vietnam War, Mike merely wants to lose himself in his rock and roll and drift away. The irony of all this is that Mike, nor none of his followers ponder the possible outcomes or consequences that turning their backs on modernity will bring. The conversation of how they will survive when left to their primal devices once they reach the alleged island paradise is never broached. But they never actually plan on completely severing ties with modern day conveniences anyways.
Needless to say, only four of the naive happy-go-lucky bums make it to the barren atoll during the climax. Earlier during a hippie shindig, the two silent assassins gun down the room full of slackers and spongers in what is possibly the directors interpretation of a flower child My Lai massacre.
"I killed with my bare hands. I was like an animal. That's the way I was taught to behave... I was ordered. I was forced to do things I didn't want to do. They turned me into a murdering machine."
It's during this final stop on the hippie itinerary where the artistic flourishes are most glaringly apparent. Not long after reaching the island, the raft they used to get there inexplicably disappears (the last scene reveals what happened to it). The raft was their last vestige between the modern world and this new primitive one. Adding to this problematic situation, hungry sharks make their presence known, successfully preventing them from swimming back to shore. Bear in mind there's no sign of vegetation -- only dirt and rocks. From this point forward, a noticeable change in the personality of the four societal outcasts takes hold.
Peace and love give way to war and hate. Dialog is dispensed with, replaced by grunts and groans. The four split into two groups and rather quickly regress to a caveman mentality. To paraphrase Mike from his fourth wall speech, buttons are pushed and everybody turns into murdering animals. This was the sort of savage, detestable human behavior they proclaimed to abhor and desire to escape from. Turning on each other, they next turn their attention to the lamb they bought earlier at an outdoor market. The innocent animal tragically ends up as a literal sacrificial lamb once the four crush it to death while battling over who gets to eat it.
On the whole, Sefer's quasi arthouse endeavor is a relatively poor movie. Dialog is frequently clunky, and there are long stretches that are painfully padded with scenes of hippies walking, singing and dancing. It does have some nice photography. Some of the 'in the moment' sections of the film add much to the pictures local flavor. Its strongest suit are its predilection towards making a statement; and particularly its revelation at the end that a hippie utopia is little more than a pipe dream.
The new Blu/DVD three disc set from Grindhouse Releasing is a staggering achievement for such an obscure motion picture. There's an incredible amount of extras found here. It's entirely possible more money was spent on this magnificent presentation than was spent on the movie itself.
After a decades long shelf life, AN AMERICAN HIPPIE IN ISRAEL (1972) has now become a midnight movie cult hit in its native country. There, it's lovingly referred to as the worst Israeli movie ever made. Seeing it on these shores it's quite evident it's not a technically good movie, but it has curiosity value for lovers of rare films and vintage 70s curios. The amount of attention afforded its US DVD debut will likely entice new viewers to see whether the film is ready for local cult status, or be resigned to a digital desert island akin to the one the hippies lay claim to in the film.
This review is representative of the Grindhouse Releasing limited edition 3 disc Blu/DVD combo.
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Arguably the best movie about a talking, singing, sex-hungry vagina, this is the ultimate Candice Rialson movie to boot. Vivacious from the first scene to the last, Rialson is in and out of various sexy and 'barely there' outfits; and she wears that patented pouty look of hers almost as much. But this isn't solely a showcase for Rialson -- she shares the screen with her nether regions (which are never fully exposed). Furthermore, her uncredited genitalia gets all the best lines in a scenario that gives new, less threatening meaning to the legend of the vagina dentata.
The premise wears thin rather quickly, but once the action shifts to Penelope getting "exposure" on television, the film gets kinkier, the gags come quickly, and the film finds its second wind even managing a few sex themed musical numbers. At just 73 minutes, it moves at a brisk pace, too. Overall, the script explodes in an orgasmic display of cock and cunt jokes that reaches passions peak during the riotous final scene wherein Penelope and Virginia end up living happily ever after.
Rialson's acting is about the same as it is in her other movies, but she has an innocence and naivete matching her fabulous frame that one can't help but be mesmerized by (the male members of the viewing audience, that is). There's no lead up to her lower lips' vocal prowess, it just occurs suddenly right at the beginning. From there on out, she's in and out of trouble via Virginia's big mouth till a stint on television briefly gives Penelope a thrill -- successfully (if only momentarily) curbing her desire to lead a normal life and win back the man of her dreams, the bespectacled Ted.
CHATTERBOX! (1977) may go overboard with its near constant deluge of genital jokes and sexual innuendo, but there's a few familiar faces in cameos that will bring a smile to some cult film fans faces. T'Pring herself, Arlene Martel has forsaken Vulcans and taken an interest in Earth women in Tom De Simone's movie. Here she's in a cameo playing a lesbian dominatrix who gets turned on by Penelope after her hot spot jokingly puts a good word in. Taking Penelope's shorter than short working attire into consideration, who could blame her?
Former porn and cult film director Tom DeSimone tackled his first mainstream movie with this AIP release. Reportedly based on an old, unproduced porno story, CHATTERBOX! (1977) was a success and DeSimone and producer Bruce Cohn Curtis joined forces once again a few years later for one of the best 80s horror films, the haunted house/slasher HELL NIGHT (1981). Chuck Russell, who later helmed NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3 (1987), the 1988 remake of THE BLOB and THE MASK (1994), was an AD on CHATTERBOX!, and reunited with DeSimone and Curtis on HELL NIGHT as an executive producer.
If you enjoyed Paul Bartel's EATING RAOUL (1982), you'll likely want to swing with CHATTERBOX! as well. Both films have a similarly raw, quasi pornographic comedic aura. Bartel's movie is the trashier of the two while DeSimone's movie is dirty minded, but playfully skirts around its subject matter without ever getting too graphic. 1988s ME AND HIM was a male version of this story. For fans of Candice Rialson, this tale of talking private parts is a no-brainer. There are relatively few knee-slapper moments, but its barrage of bawdiness will likely keep a smile on your face throughout. You'll never think about the song 'Beautiful Dreamer' the same way again. 
