It is almost mind blowing it's taken me
this long to review a film that wasn't produced by the immortal Roger
Corman. For those few of you not familiar with the name, he is a
producer who has made a career out of making VERY cheap movies in a
VERY short time, having over FOUR HUNDRED credited to his name and is
still going strong. Although he has definitely helped create some
all-time classics in the form of Death Race 2000, Rock 'n' Roll
High School, and Children of the Corn, he is probably best
known for hundreds of exploitation films featuring everyone's
favourite sex and violence.
One such example is today's film,
1987's Stripped to Kill, a
certified cult classic that RULED late night Cinemax broadcasts back
in the day. With it's awesome tag line of “A Maniac is killing
strippers. Detective Sheehan has one weapon to stop him. Her
body.”, what's NOT to love about that premise? Chosen to play the
title role was Kay Lenz, an actress of minor acclaim in the 1970s and
80s, including a highly memorable spot as the object of Rod Stewart's
crossing the line stalker affections in the 1984 music video for his
hit “Infatuation”.
Helming the director's chair was Katt Shea, an actress turned
director like many of the alumni of the so-called “Corman Film
School”. Stripped to Kill
was her debut film, though she would go on to find much bigger
success in Poison Ivy
and the Rage: Carrie 2.
Stripped to Kill has maintained
an enduring legacy over the years to the point where it was just
released on DVD earlier this month by the MAGNIFICENT distribution
company Scorpion Releasing, who specialize in reviving long
forgotten films that deserve some love. They're even planning a
blu-ray release of this down the road, showing they have a true
understanding of how movies should be done. I think it's high time
to see what Stripped to Kill has done to inspire such a loyal fan
base, so get out your dollar bills and get ready to make it rain with
A Ghoul Versus Stripped To Kill!
