Zalman King prepares to dump the body of a young girl who should never have taken a TRIP WITH THE TEACHER.
into a bad apple when her boy- friend dumps her in favor of a rich girl. Smoking at the break- fast table, talking back to her mother, flipping the bird at her peers and ignoring her home- work, Kim determines to gradu- ate at the top of her class by seducing the faculty. (She also has another much-mentioned goal, to get enough money to find a beach where she can get the world’s greatest tan, appar- ently unaware that Malibu has one of its own.) She seeks to eclipse her romantic rival by get- ting rich as a hooker for local dope dealer Tony (Al Mannino), but finds those dreams more eas- ily fulfilled by mobster Lance (Garth Howard), who pimps her out to a higher clientele but soon puts her sociopathy to profit by turning her into a hit-woman.
It sounds more daring and entertaining than it is; the di- rection is uninspired if not unable, the scripting and dia- logue could pass for the work
of an unexceptional pre-teen, and the camerawork is so flat and rudimentary that Kim’s breakfast scenes with Mom are shot no dif- ferently than her scenes in bed with a mobster, an unbidden wholesome quality adhering to even its seamiest content. Mannino and Howard, both of whom previously worked in Joe Sarno films under different names, give the only competent performances.
Much more captivating, in its own seedy way, is TRIP WITH THE TEACHER, directed by former choreographer Earl Barton (DON’T KNOCK THE ROCK, HARUM SCARUM). In our GRINDHOUSE Round Table Dis- cussion [VW 136:20], Stephen R. Bissette proposed this talky, teasy, truculent road re- venge film as a template-of- sorts for Quentin Tarantino’s DEATH PROOF and, while they are not the same story, his point is well-taken. Friendly cyclist Jay (Robert Gribbin) offers some roadside repair to fellow
biker Pete (Robert Porter) and his semi-comatose, possibly smacked-out brother in Bee- Girl shades, Al (Zalman King). Jay decides to ride along with them for companionship, and to keep an eye on his repairs, not realizing that Pete and Al are ex-cons looking for edgy thrills. They find them when they pass a busload of teenage girls (only four, but all flirting back to them) being taken on a week- end camping trip in the desert flats—“out in the middle of no- where—a whole day’s walk to the nearest boy”—by their teacher (Brenda Fogarty) and a mutton-headed bus driver (Jack Driscoll). When the bus’ fuel pump breaks down, the bikers stop and Al shows some teas- ing aggression but the teacher can’t be choosy and accepts their offer to tow the bus, which they merely relocate to a less conspicuous spot where their revels can begin.
Obviously shot for very little money, the film generates
49
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84
