Review of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970) by Andrew P — 19 Jan 2008
How Russ Meyer ever managed to steer this film through a major studio (20th Century Fox) is nothing short of miraculous. It's an hilarious, ultra-camp, rags-to-riches soap opera about a girl-group trying to break into the music scene in L.
A. Of course, it's pretty tame by modern standards but its nudity, drug references, violence and general perverseness must have been startling in its day. The fashions, music and language of the movie are hysterically dated now, but that only adds to the charm.
Acting honours go to John LaZar as Z-Man, Cynthia Myers as Casey, the disillusioned lesbian, and Duncan McLeod as Porter Hall, the slimy lawyer. Russ Meyer made some great independent movies but "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" is a fascinating glimpse of the mainstream career he never had, and of the subversive masterpieces he might have made within the studio system.
This review of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970) was written by Andrew P on 19 Jan 2008.
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls has generally received positive reviews.
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