Possessing by far the best known title of any adult film besides DEEP THROAT, the shrewdly alliterative DEBBIE DOES DALLAS has received more than its share of unfair criticism and facile snide remarks over the thirty year period since it first packed porno palaces to the rafters. Too often treated like the ultimate guilty pleasure even by those that do go public about liking it, the movie has been taken to task by "serious" critics and connoisseurs alike for being poorly made, pathetically acted and disparagingly low brow in its broad bathroom humor.
Like THROAT, DEBBIE's basically a single (dirty) joke premise stretched out to feature film length. Very much unlike THROAT however, the movie's ambiance is disarmingly sweet-natured and as close to outright wholesome as skin flicks ever got. Another aspect naysayers conveniently if unforgivably overlook is the infectious enthusiasm of its cupcake cast, virtually overflowing with certifiable carnal superstars and unsung fan favorites.
Now director "Jim Clark" – actually, former Screw magazine co-editor Jim Buckley – revealed himself as a bit of a one trick pony, his basic plot outline invariably consisting of dim but willing schoolgirls employing their natural charms to raise funds for a party, road trip or whatever. Such serviceable ploy effectively carried him through TEENAGE PAJAMA PARTY, LITTLE DARLINGS and YOUNG, WILD AND WONDERFUL, variations all on a very simple theme that nevertheless proved particularly resonant to the Middle American male psyche if their healthy box office receipts and subsequent VHS sales numbers are anything to go by ! Nothing could touch DEBBIE though, in a manner of speaking, which took the widely held cheerleader fantasy to unprecedented heights of popularity.
Elusive starlet Bambi Woods, who only did this and two sequels and whose present day whereabouts remain an active topic of wild guessing all over the worldwide web, heads the band of high school honeys who, with touching solidarity, need to make a whole lot of cash real soon if they're going to accompany their best friend, whose mean unseen parents refuse to stump for bus fare (boo !), as she's heading for the Lone Star State to try out for the "Texas Cowboy Cheerleaders" ! Buckley cannily removed all references to the Dallas Cowboys to avoid legal repercussions (it didn't work,proving there's no such thing as bad publicity) yet still stressed Woods' supposed status as one of their legit cheerleaders though she only got to audition, failing to make the team.
The girls soon pick up on the fact of life that men will pay through the nose to cop a feel of underage female flesh. Debbie gets a job at a sporting goods store run by horny Mr. Greenfield, played with eye-rolling relish by dependable Robert "Bolla" Kerman, but holds out till the end, effectively saving the best for last.
Thankfully, her loyal gal pals prove more forthcoming. Wide-eyed Christie Ford presides over the candle shop threesome with proprietors Mr. and Mrs. Hardwick, pretty cute as puns go, portrayed by stalwart "Mr. Nice Guy" Eric Edwards and future late night cable hostess Robin Byrd.
Rambunctious Rikki O'Neal, who played naughty to Annie Sprinkle's nice in Chuck Vincent's JACK 'N' JILL, turns up with endearingly awkward Jenny Cole (also in THE LAST SEX ACT with Erica Havens) to wash cars in the rain, only to be rear-ended by owner David Pierce, best remembered as positively vile "Mr. Sweet" from Roger Watkins' mesmerizing HER NAME WAS LISA.
Perky Merle Michaels tenderly blows impatient boyfriend Herschel Savage in the school library, inconveniently interrupted by dotty old Mr. Biddle (porn's resident senior citizen Jake Teague) who administers a sound spanking for the transgression. Gorgeous Georgette Sanders, Georgina Spelvin's nubile niece from Ron Sullivan's BABYLON PINK, has been playing doubles with tennis pro Peter Lerman ("Peter Morrison" on Buckley's GOOD GIRLS OF GODIVA HIGH) and that's exactly what she receives in the steam room, orally servicing both her employer and his buddy Ben Pierce, the cowboy from the group sex center piece in Chuck Vindent's BAD PENNY.
Sanders also lends a helping hand to shy inexperienced Arcadia Lake, the lovely exotic starlet who sadly passed away from an overdose in the early '90s, at the record store whose owner (lanky Tony Mansfield, the alluring cross-dresser with Sharon Mitchell in Gerard Damiano's ODYSSEY) has been pursuing her ever since she agreed to work there. For the record, the performers in the opening shower group grope, a rare non-pay for play set-up that's just the girls and their significant others, are Ford, Savage, David Morris (Marilyn Chambers' deflowering gardener from Stu Segall's INSATIABLE), ravishing redhead Kasey Rodgers from Bill Milling's BLONDE IN BLACK SILK, plus one shots Steve Marshall and Debbie Lewis.
Pretty people who seem genuinely hot for each other, that's what this movie has to offer in spades, which might seem like a primitive recipe for anyone unversed in adult entertainment but the bottom line for the genre's ardent aficionado. At a time when porn was making its bid for mainstream acceptance, generally toning down genital close-ups and cum shots, DEBBIE defiantly directed the audience's gaze back to crotch level with explicit, in your face monster shots, colorfully captured by cinematographer "Billy Budd", taking his pseudonym from Herman Melville's famous anti-hero.
Leavening this relentless cavalcade of carnality with admittedly (and intentionally) silly humor has rendered the whole endeavor surprisingly palatable – to the point of inoffensive – even for viewers who only occasionally dip into dirty moviedom. In a stroke of presumably insouciant genius, Buckley came up with THE brand name for "real world" reference to porn's halcyon days, the title turning up in casual conversation as well as movie dialog, spawning sequels, remakes – not to mention, sequels TO remakes ! – and
a celebrated off-Broadway stage musical ?! Thumbing her nose at detractors, Debbie's clearly still going strong, having achieved both notoriety and immortality. You go, girl !
2 out of 3 found this helpful.
Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink