Big Bad Mama

Real women for real trouble.

So, in the past entry we finished reviewing the four movie pack featuring the Roger Corman Nurses collection, today we'll continue with the genius of Mr. Corman, only this time we'll check one of his most "cult level" films ever made. That's right peeps! it's 1974's Big Bad Mama, a film that has aged like wine featuring the gorgeous Angie Dickinson at her best, performing her most exquisite nude scenes ever recorded on film. However, it is important to remember this is a B movie based mostly on other popular Hollywood films, so if you come into it without unrealistic expectations you will find it very amusing. Besides, the film doesn't take itself too seriously, and neither should you. In fact, it edges up toward camp, but backs away. Bill Shatner was, well, Bill Shatner. Angie Dickinson seemed to be a little bit amused about the material throughout. She was gorgeous, though, and this film contains her best nude scenes. (I found it interesting that she made no attempt to bleach or otherwise disguise her dark pubic hair. Apparently a bottle blonde. Eye candy, nonetheless.) Sally Kirkland contributes one, too, as do the actresses (previously unknown to me) who play the daughters. One of these, Susan Sennett, was also very lovely. It was too bad she did not continue her acting career. According to the almighty IMDb, she married some guy named Graham Nash, and hasn't been seen much since.

Doggy Style fucking is not a crime.

Blonde in the head, Brunette in the twat.

Released in 1974, Big Bad Mama was considered as a  crude B film which provided an enjoyable romp for killing a few hours, but was not intended to leave any lasting memories. I was vastly surprised when I saw it listed on Turner's Classic Movies program recently. A Classic! - what was wrong with my recollections of it.? So I decided to watch it again and find out. As I remembered, it was a well made but essentially very bad film, most of which is in very poor taste and was difficult to justify watching. Nevertheless it proved to be a classic guilty pleasure that I kept remembering and drawing amusement from for a long time afterwards, so I found myself again facing the eternal question to be answered by every movie enthusiast - what constitutes a good movie? Does it have to be educational, enlightening or inspirational? Can't it just be lighthearted fun, perhaps in bad taste, but nevertheless welcomed for providing a little real relaxation after a period of hard work? I have always accepted the latter position, so after re-watching Big Bad Mama I am happy to report that, although it is a movie in rank bad taste which deserves only a low IMDb rating, it provides a hilarious and very enjoyable viewing experience that turns it into an instant cult classic, strong enough as to have its own sequel in 1987 "Big Bad Mama 2"...

Fuck her hard.

How about a big pussy rubbin' orgy?

Incest treesome?

Its failures are largely in content, it makes fun of every serious concern it can look at during a relatively short running time of just over 80 min. These are all covered at a cracking pace that leaves viewers with little chance to think seriously about any message. In retrospect I am sure it tackled as many targets as it could possibly cover, but with no objective other than to amuse, certainly with no intention of forcing us to think. Politics, religion, the law, prohibition, misuse of firearms, bootlegging, taxes, burlesque, kidnapping - you name it they were mostly there (although I do not remember any references to race relations, which was probably wise.) Its period was set squarely in the middle of the depression and the location was somewhere in the deep south of the USA (although it was filmed in California) where this was biting particularly severely. The pace was such that each sequence tended to end just a tad too soon, so there was no opportunity for any boredom. Its ending was interesting. As Mama with her daughters escaped from their last shoot out, (apparently) with a minor wound to her arm, she suddenly collapsed and passed out. Her implied death tied up loose ends and no doubt pleased advocates of Hayes Code, morality rules, without prohibiting her eventual recovery to participate in a sequel 13 years later. Bravo RC - too many sequels created recently have been spoiled by illegitimately changing the ending of the original film.

Lemme check your tits sis.

My twat is ready honey.

Cum is over, game is over.

What more should I say? First I should commend Angie Dickinson who has undertaken an incredible range of roles over almost 50 years. Perhaps none were truly memorable, but I can't remember going home unhappy after seeing any of them. This film earns one star for excellent photography, including some extremely enjoyable shots of many delightful 1930 era vehicles, another for Roger Corman's usual impeccable direction - it is incredible how many different genres of film he has made that deserve this comment, and a third for its very acceptable acting - far above what I remember as the standard I used to expect from B movies, especially those seen in Drive-in theatres. Despite its entertainment value; I found difficulty in justifying another star without ignoring artistic quality, but eventually recognised its outstanding and almost unmatched pacing by awarding a fourth. I must also thank TCM for giving me this chance to see it again, and look forward to doing so next time if they decide to give it another spin. If not - with a bit of searching I might find a DVD still available, or perhaps I should suggest the release of a Blue-ray edition.