Reviews

Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970 20th Century Fox) - New to DVD

Director: Russ Meyer

Screenplay: Roger Ebert

Staring: Dolly Read, Cynthia Myers, Marcia McBroom, John Lazar and Michael Blodgett

After years of absence on DVD, Fox finally releases the film that they spent
years trying to forget. BVD has arrived on DVD in a wonderful two disc
special edition.

The story.
We join Kelly, Casey and Pet the luscious trio known as The Kelly Affair.
With faithful manager Harris by their side, the band makes the journey west
seeking a portion of the inheritance belonging to Kelly’s Aunt Susan. And
who knows maybe they’ll have what it takes to make the big time as well.
Shortly after arriving in California the group finds themselves at a party
hosted by producer Ronnie “Z-Man” Barzell. Z-Man quickly realizes the
possibilities of the trio, and wastes no time pulling the reigns from
Harris. He christens the group The Carrie Nations and quickly pushes them
into superstardom. Along the way to the top hearts are broken, vices found
and excess rules every waking moment. Will the band be able to get it
together before everything crashes in around them?

It would be nice to say the above summary completely captures BVD. That it
is just a simple melodrama made by the guy who invented the skin flick. But
what lies beneath BVD is so much more. What began as an official sequel to
Jacqueline Sussann’s Valley Of The Dolls became possibly the greatest satire
of all time. An immensely funny film filled with social commentary and wit.
It can play as a drama, comedy, musical or horror film. Filled with some of
the most memorable dialog ever put on paper and that unmistakable Russ Meyer
editing style, what you have here is the granddaddy of all cult films.

A true independent working outside of the Hollywood system for years, Meyer
wasted no aspect of the resources laid before him by Fox. He had been handed
the keys to the studio to do as he wished with this picture and wasted no
time in running full force with those keys. Along with Roger Ebert, he
created something that had truly never been seen before and has not been
seen since. The impact of this film can be seen from Rocky Horror to Hedwig
and the Angry Inch and beyond.

It’s hard to talk about any Russ Meyer film and not mention the women. While
certain assets which are constantly noted shall remain unmentioned. I
believe it safe to say that BVD is filled with the most stunning creatures
to ever appear in a Russ Meyer film. Quite possibly some of the most
breathtaking women to appear in any film. The film has a bounty of beauties
outside of the three leads and if there is one thing the highly underrated
Meyer knew how to do it was capture the female form on film.

The transfer on this two-disc edition contains a beautiful print of the
film. The color is vibrant, and blacks are deep and solid. While the flesh
tones appear natural and warm. The audio is crystal clear and also included
are two audio commentaries to choose from. The first commentary is by Ebert
and he is both informative and found of the movie. The second contains cast
members Dolly Read, Cynthia Myers, Harrison Page, John Lazar and Erica
Gavin. It’s like listening in on a warm reunion with a bit of trivia and
cattiness thrown in for good measure. From this commentary we learn that
the dress Dolly Read is wearing in the first party scene at Z-Man’s is one
of the dresses worn by Sharon Tate in Valley of the Dolls!

Several other goodies await you on disc two of the set. Documentaries and
even a couple of screen tests featuring Cynthia Myers and Michael Blodgett
in one and Marcia McBroom and Harrison Page in the second. The documentaries
are informative while still containing a strong sense of fun. The still
galleries with over 300 photos include shots from some of the deleted scenes
from the film, but alas none of the actual footage survives. It should be
noted that Meyer cut several scenes from the film to try and receive an R
rating, but the violence (and most likely Meyer’s name) left the film with
an X.

Anyone who loves film should rush out and pick up this fantastic edition of
the BVD. And those of you who choose not to may well drink the black sperm
of my vengeance!!9.5/10
-J

Rent Beyond the Valley of the Dolls at Wild and Woolly along with all thing Russ Meyers.

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