Beyond the Valley of the Dolls

1970 Russ Meyer movie

Rating: not rated

Plot: The Kelly Affair, an all-gal rock 'n' roll trio, travel to California with the hope of making it big.

I don't know if I'm just missing too much context or what, but I just didn't get this. The flash-flash quick editing style and frequent nudity initially intrigued me, and I liked a montage with some voice-over narration that seemed like a commercial for Hollywood. But really quickly, I just got bored and then irritated and then bored again. Eventually, I stopped playing close attention, my mind wandering enough that I don't really feel comfortable giving this a rating.

Who's seen this? Do I need to give it some time and try to watch it again? Roger Ebert, I know you wrote the screenplay for this, so if there's something I need to know before giving this another shot, let me know. Do you even read this blog, Roger? I really dug Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, so I feel like I should like this Russ Meyer major studio release, too.

1 comment:

l@rstonovich said...

Very similar effect. Seen it a couple times and got bored. Last time I saw it it was late and I was under the influence solo and I liked it a tad more. Every Ebert review I've ever read/seen I always think "this is coming from the guy who wrote "Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls"
Faster Pussycat is amazing, no other Russ Meyer movie has come close.