I Spit On Your Corpse
Director Al Adamson and producer Sam Sherman were never ones for subtlety. The original name for this low-budget drive-in action thriller wasGirls for Rent, but according to Sherman (who introduces the film with a few anecdotes) the title was changed when it went to video, and it stuck. And why not? It's an appropriately incendiary title for a violent, raw production. Legendary X-rated star Georgina Spelvin (Behind the Green Door) stars as a hard-bitten hit woman sprung from a Mexican prison by a mob boss with big plans. Her first job is the murder of a blackmailing politician, but when a witness flees in panic Spelvin and tough-as-nails partner in crime Rosalind Miles hit the road to silence her for good. Shot on the cheap by longtime collaborator Gary Graver (who also photographed Orson Welles's last films), it's a lean, brutal film with some unexpectedly affecting moments. Spelvin is awkward with dialogue but makes a wicked psycho killer, cackling with maniacal glee as she murders her way through the California desert. Miles has charisma to spare as the more calculating of the pair. Unlike many of Adamson's productions, it's a coherent film from start to finish with a hard, vicious edge and a nihilistic twist rarely seen in the low-budget action films made today.Sam Sherman's commentary is full of production anecdotes, notably including a "revolt" on the set by the actresses and a pair of lawsuits launched by two of the actors, and once again he gives a tutorial on practical low-budget shooting. The DVD also features a newly recorded introduction, a profile taken from the cable TV seriesSplit Screen, and trailers to this and four other Al Adamson-Sam Sherman collaborations.--Sean Axmaker