One of the best films i have seen

A Brilliant Conflict

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

Fantastic encapsulation of the Russ Meyer style with an over the top story, hilarious satire, and great songs! Super fun and tremendous to watch again and again.

Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)* 1/2 (out of 4)Kelly MacNamara (Dolly Reed) and her two female friends head to California where they plan to turn their rock band into the next big thing. Upon arriving they find themselves invited to one big party after another but soon the sex and drugs lead to violence.As much as I don't like this movie, there's no question that it's got an important part in film history. Director Russ Meyer had been making big money with his "naughty" pictures but when the studio system started to have trouble they were taking more chances with young directors or more risqué pictures. This allowed Meyer and screenwriter Roger Ebert into the studio system where they turned out this X-rated mix of sex, drugs and rock and roll.VALLEY OF THE DOLLS was a hit in novel form as well its film version but this here isn't a sequel but instead it's just a take-off. Clearly Meyer and Ebert wanted to go further than any other mainstream studio film had at the time and I guess in some ways they succeeded at that. If you're just looking for some hot women getting naked then there's plenty of that here. The problem I have with the film is that it's all style and no substance. That there is a little shocking since Meyer's earlier films really didn't have too much style yet it's all on display here.The film tries very hard and succeeds at capturing the mood and look of the late 60s. The film really does benefit from some terrific set designs and there's no question that the cinematography is great. Meyer has created a very good looking picture but that's where the compliments end for me. I thought the screenplay itself was decent but not much is done with it. Meyer certainly never makes you care or like any of these characters and there's really no drama or comedy in this soap opera. I'd also say that the film runs out of gas around the hour mark and this leads the second half to take forever to get over.Reed is certainly charming enough in her role and I guess you could argue that the supporting cast are good enough in their parts. As I watched the film I could understand why some people love the picture. It's certainly a product of its time but to me BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS is just really bad.

Yeah...it's atrocious, but immensely watchable. One sits there dumbfounded trying to determine what exactly Russ Meyer's intentions were. Was he really trying to butcher the memory of Jacqueline Susann's sleazy VALLEY OF THE DOLLS (which in itself was nerve-numbingly bad) or was the soft core king simply making another of his lame-brained un-erotic erotic epics, albeit one with a rather large budget. In any event, what's here is so goofy and so hyperactive that you can't help but enjoy it. The acting is lousy all around and the editing is done with a dull razor. When Meyer isn't using endless dissolves over endless montages, his camera appears to be on a broken dolly. The script is credited to Roger Ebert, which is even more perplexing as he's become so well known (rightly so) as such a wonderful writer. His script here is a square's version of a dirty movie. Marcia McBroom, Dolly Read, and Cynthia Myers play the leads...rock stars of the Josie & the Pussycats ilk. They're awful. The colorful supporting cast includes Michael Blodgett, Edy Williams, Erica Gavin, and Phyllis Davis.

I didn't know much about this movie going into it, except what kinds of films Russ Meyer was known for. The story is about an all girl rock group and their rise to stardom. Although it's been said that this movie was meant to be a parody, it seems to play it straight for most of the duration.The central character would probably be the lead singer, who has a powerful Joplin-like voice. Her entrance to the big time begins with discovering her long lost aunt, who brings her to a party where she meets the right people. Everyone involved quickly let things get out of control, until everyone's lives are turned upside down.There is a bit of 60's counterculture involved with lots of drugs and pills and swinging parties. The dialog is very hippie-dippy, and the ending was very heavy handed. If it was meant to be a satire, I would consider it a failure in that nothing about it struck me as satirical. Taken straight, I still don't find much to recommend. 4 out of 10.