master's wife

The Black Cat
$2.99

Common Law Wife / Jennie Wife-Child
$9.98
As my first foray into the real of "White Trash" films I was expecting this double bill from Something Weird to represent the dregs of exploitation cinema. But what we have here are some rather entertaining bad movies and this DVD actually has four movies not two, so you certainly get to double what pleasure there is to derive from these films.

The first film is actually two films edited together in 1963. We have Larry Buchanan's "Swamp Rose," which was spliced together with Eric Sayer's "Common Law Wife." Good thing there is a commentary track by the late Buchanan (helped along by Nathaniel Thompson) to help you figure out what was shot for which movie before they put the two together. Ironically, most of what you now see is Sayer's footage, so no wonder we are easily confused. Linda (Annabelle Weenick as Anne MacAdams) is shacked up with rich codger Shugfoot Rainey (George Edgely), who is tired of her, even though he gets to throw darts at her when she is sitting in her chair. He ways his niece Jonelle, a.k.a. Baby Doll (Lacey Kelly) to take Linda's place. But Linda is able to trump Shugfoot by getting declared his common law wife. This is one of those films where people are going to end up dead and it is just a question of who will start the fun and how they are going to end up doing it.

The trailer makes it clear that "Common Law Wife" is an "educational" film. They do not show any scenes out of deference to anyone with young ones, but emphasize that it is important to know the law and how you can end up getting married without saying, "I do," all because of "a depraved climax." If you do not know the law in your state, well, I guess you should. Not knowing the law leads to "uncontrolled lust and passion." Besides, this is not a movie for kids, which, by default, should make adults want to see it.

However, if you come to this DVD expecting lot of neked women you have to go to the Unethical Extras, where in addition to the trailer for "Common Law Wife" and the "Gallery of Roadshow Exploitation Art with Audio Oddities," there is the extra added attraction, "Moonshine Love" (originally released as "The Sod Sisters"). This 1969 film from director Lester Williams starts with a robbery in which Tom (Tim E. Lane) double-crosses his partners and gets out of town with the cash. But he bangs his head, gets amnesia, and ends up doing chores for a moonshiner and his two daughters. Tom takes a liking to the blond, Jeannie (Genie Palmer) who decides a real man might be an improvement over a carrot. I have to say that I would vote for the carrot. Most of the action is back in the hills except for the scene of the topless go-go dancer that serves no real narrative purpose (believe it or not). Breege McCoy is Lil, the relatively boring brunette sister. To find the Easter Egg you have to go to the Special Features menu and go right to get to the moonshine jug for the trailer for "Child Bride."

The second feature, 1968's "Jennie, Wife/Child" (a.k.a. "Tender Grass") has to be the best photographed "White Trash" exploitation film in the history of the world because the cinematographer was William Zsigmond, who made "The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies!!?" and this film before he went back to being called Vilmos Zsigmond and winning as Oscar for "Close Encounter of Third Kind" and being nominated for "The Deer Hunter" and "The River." Talk about dressing up a sow's ear, there are some really nice shots in this film.

The music is pretty good too (there was a soundtrack album on Tower Records apparently), including Don Epperson singing "Please Mrs. Peckingpaw" during the credits, Lydia Macelle's "Birthday Suit" being sung while Jennie is skinny dipping, and Epperson back to sing "Revenge" while Mr. Peckingpaw is digging himself a pair of graves for his wife and her lover and "Gonna Have a Good Time" for the finale. I have seen so many exploitation flicks where the music was so lame, it was nice to see songs that fit what was on screen and were at least somewhat catchy.

The story? Young Jennie (Beverly Lunsford) is married to old Albert Peckingpaw (Jack Lester), but has the hots for farm hand Mario Dingle (Jim Reader). Tired of doing her wifely duties with her husband, who has a heart condition, Jennie eventually seduced Mario, not knowing that Albert has seen them in the barn. It is just a question of what Albert is going to do to take his revenge on the young lovers and how Lulu Belle (Virginia Wood), figures into the equation. The ending of this is probably not what you expect, which is certainly a plus.

My only real complaint with this Something Weird DVD is that I was expecting the usual collection of trailers specific to the exploitation genre of the feature films (I assume the trailers will usually be a lot better than the films). "Common Law Wife" is a three stars and "Jennie, Wife/Child" is a four, even with the title cards, mainly because of Zsigmond's photograph and the ending. We round up on this one because of the "Carrot Cake" scene in the bonus feature. Join us Saturday night for out next double feature, "King of the Zombies" and "Revolt of the Zombies," a pair of pre-WWII horror films.

I Saw A Man And He Danced With His Wife
$0.99

My Wife's Master: and other erotic tales
$14.99
THE STORIES WERE VERY EROTIC. THE WRITERS GAVE YOU SOME PEOPLES DIFFERENT LIFE STYLE CHOICES AND HOW THEY MAY TURN OUT.