Candy Land

Truck stop sex workers and their antics versus an evangelical girl, who is a giallo instrument sent to the Kingdom of Heaven. Authorial inspiration from Bava and the realism of Larry Clark’s Bully, successful casting from the young Linda Hamilton in the lead role down to the last unwashed trucker willing to pay an extra 40 bucks for a no-raincoat session, the absence of any attempt at social commentary, and an unexpected survivor of this religiously motivated massacre. I’ll tactfully overlook that some of the dead bodies on the carpet are clearly breathing and that the Montana rest area has 2.5 corpses per square meter without much police interest. By the way, it's fascinating how the Baldwin quartet merges into one shape with the onset of retirement age. (2023.02.14)

After ninety minutes of this horror/thriller, my strongest reaction is heavy disappointment. I didn't expect that the only thing I would find somewhat entertaining would be the rather lengthy introduction to the hygienic shortcomings of a remote workplace in the tourism industry. If I were faint of heart, I would probably find the introduction shocking, but very few things surprise me these days. However, I must admit that the first killing scene did surprise me. It surprised me mainly by how boring it was. There were no surprising twists, the plot moved forward at the speed of a local train on a single track, and the killings lacked invention. I mentally checked off the diminishing characters and rooted for the villain with jagged teeth to finish everything as quickly as possible so that I could leave it behind. / Lesson learned: Some people follow the rule, "Ask first, shoot later," while others swear by the motto, "Shoot first, ask later." When dealing with religious fanatics, I am in favor of "Shoot first and don't bother asking anything at all." It's a slightly militant attitude, but I can't help it. (2023.07.09)

The first sexploitation flick of the year. The story is about prostitutes satisfying horny truckers who are joined by a strongly religious girl from a cult to perform a cleansing. So we have a clash of religion and prostitution, a corrupt sheriff, and the American backwoods in Montana. Visually, it's not as cheap as it might first appear, it's quite skillfully shot, the girls aren't afraid of nudity (showing boobs twice is insufficient given the topic though), and the genre delights are not over-represented. Most of the murders are either out of frame or done in the same style (stabbing in the stomach), don't expect any gore, just some blood, which won't get anyone off their seat these days. There is a gay rape and a creepy priest, which are probably the most interesting scenes. The rest unfortunately offers nothing new and doesn't even cross the boundaries in the genre. It's short and watchable, so it doesn't offend. 5.5/10. (2023.01.13)