7/10
A Hottie For All Seasons
5 November 2020
The fact a sexpot from Roger Corman women-in-prison flicks (directed by Jack Hill) could hold more power and importance over Andy Robinson and Keenan Wynn is proof that the seventies were far from over... In fact, racy drive-in vehicles from the infamously dirty decade were going through an awkward and contrived mid-life crisis...

That same summer, 1975, a giant shark named JAWS was devouring audiences in record-breaking numbers. Because of this "bigger boat," it was up to smaller theaters to suit those embarrassed to frequent porno houses: Sitting on the fence were a pileup of R-Rated wannabe X's, and most were pretty bad: Enter Judith Brown, star of THE BIG DOLL HOUSE and WOMEN IN CAGES when she was billed as Judy (whose name seemed to change with a haircut), playing the title character with a title that's exploitation enough: A WOMAN FOR ALL MEN...

The basic though tangled plot has the usual grouchy millionaire marrying a young beauty. In this case the rich dick is Kennan Wynn, who owns a construction company where his two sons, played by "The Scorpio Killer" Robinson and blue-eyed oddball Peter INGLORIOUS BASTARDS Hooten, work hard outdoors without cozy office jobs, providing enough frustration in what's already predictably forced into the overall Film Noir template...

Soon enough, oldest son and dad's trophy wife hook up and, like TAROT starring Sue Lyon and Gloria Graham a few years earlier, it's the heart-of-gold housekeeper (a respectfully aged Lois Hall) who begins figuring things out: along with dad's only-daughter played by Patty Bodeen, a blue-eyed, round-faced, pouting beauty who should have been in a lot more of these kitschy thrillers... Her melodramatic gusto really fits when needed: And with more dialogue than action, anything spontaneous is welcome to wake things up: Especially since Brown, usually the "straight woman" of Corman films, has to remain firm and one-dimensional in the lead role.

The suspense builds nicely but it's almost too late once the viewer gets lethargically captured. Then again, random twists and turns occur too soon for the essential "boiling point" to amount to anything beyond a reason for square-jawed Brown to shed her clothes (in an ongoing homemade film within this film).

And yet, with recognizable actors Don Porter as Wynn's lawyer and Alex Rocco as the inevitable snoopy cop, this WOMAN is better than one might think. Perhaps those who had served in classic crime heaven (the likes of THE GODFATHER, THE MECHANIC and CHARLEY VARRICK) lacked the usual guilt while reigning in this sizzling perdition of super-low-budget fare.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Recently Viewed