Russ Meyer holds the distinction of the only director to have 2 movies in my Top 10 favorites of all time, Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! & Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls. While the camp, awkward dialog & gorgeous black & white photography of Faster, Pussycat wins me over every time, the thing that makes Beyond The Valley stand as champion is the unbelievably high levels of melodrama that the film possesses. Add to the mix the razor-sharp wit of Roger Ebert's script (yes, that Roger Ebert) & the slick-as-hell directing & lightning fast editing of Russ Meyer, & a future cult smash is in the making. I use this movie as a lithmus test of sorts when I first meet someone to gauge their tastes/tolerances in films. I noticed one odd thing; of the men I've shown it to, about 70% really like it & 30% hated it, but with women it is unanimously well-received. I've yet to figure out why that is.
Synopsis:
A hip and happenin' all girl rock group head to LA to claim lead-singer Kelly's inheritance and make it (and make it) in LA. They immediately fall under the spell of rock'n'roll Svengali, the 'Teen Tycoon' of rock Ronnie 'Z-Man' Barzell, and other rapacious Hollywood party types as lustful porno actress Ashley St Ives, ravenous lesbian Roxanne and shady lawyer Porter Hall. Soon the girls fall into a morass of drugs and deceit as their recording success soars. It takes several tragedies to make them stop and think... but is it too late?
BTW, definitely check out the trailer as well...
"It's all here. Love, rape, murder, dope, grass, abortion, suicide. Somethin' for everybody. Now hold it, man, don't close you mind. This is what living is all about."
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