HOLLYWOOD CHAINSAW HOOKERS

Or, if you were one of the incredulous video store consumers in the UK during the late 80s/early 90s, HOLLYWOOD HOOKERS.

Yes indeed, this rather innocuous film fell afoul of our moral guardians at the BBFC upon its original British VHS release, when they decided the word "chainsaw" was too violent and suggestive to subject us simple horror fans to...

Now, 27 years after its 1988 inception, the film has been released uncut onto UK blu-ray courtesy of 88 Films. And its title is intact. So, is it likely to corrupt an entirely new generation of psychotronic fanatics...?

Hardly. But it is fun.

It opens with a chain-smoking hooker in a bad blonde wig sitting in a police interview room, being grilled by the cops about her night with a punter. "I went over to the closet and took out a sexual enhancement device" she purrs as the offscreen officer asks her what happened. "And then what did you do?" he unwisely asks. "I'll show you!" she growls as she picks up the chainsaw he's just presented to her as evidence, and revs it into life.

Next, we meet gumshoe Jack (Jay Richardson). He narrates his story in a cool, calm manner a la Philip Marlowe. He even has the hat, the cigarette and trench coat to match his film noir hero. This is Hollywood, after all.

His dry quips lead into his tale, telling of how he got embroiled in a bizarre tale of hookers and murder at an LA watering hole called The West Side Bar.

Cue a cut to the bar, where hooker Mercedes (Michelle Bauer) hits on a visiting construction worker called Bo (Jimmy Williams). "What you need is some TFC - tender fucking care", she tells him. She takes him upstairs to a bedroom and ... well, things get awfully sticky.

A short while later, into the bar saunters Jack. He's been hired to find "runaway teenaged beauty" Samantha (Linnea Quigley), and all leads have led him there. Tales of hookers and chainsaws bring him into contact with Mercedes and, ultimately, enigmatic cult leader The Stranger (Gunnar Hansen)...

The murders continue vignette-style (including one Amy Winehouse-lookalike who bludgeons her pervy photographer John to death with a baseball bat) as Jack gets deeper into the mystery - and eventually finds out the truth as to Samantha's whereabouts...

I used to hate this film. Call me a curmudgeon but I really kicked against the comedic approach applied to a lot of genre output in the late 80s. And HOOKERS is undoubtedly heavier on the comic relief than it is on terror. But, be it nostalgia or just the fact that I've grown more accommodating with age, but I really enjoyed the film this time around.

All performers attack their roles with a theatrical energy totally befitting of Olen Ray's sardonic, clued-up script. Jack's narration spits out one-liner after one-liner, having immense fun with the tropes of the noir detective genre. And Richardson pitches the tone perfectly.

Bauer and Quigley are, of course, at their hottest - and they're joined by a bevy of shapely beauties who are never averse to disrobing for the camera. Full-frontal nudity is a given, so prepare for lots of bush and more perfectly formed breasts than you can shake a stick at. Hansen appears in what is effectively an extended cameo role, but he's game for a laugh too and clearly savours gently ribbing at his iconic Leatherface reputation.

Set design is attractive in a low-rent, cheesy fashion; FX work is minimal but blood splashes amusingly all over the place during the kill scenes (blood on boobs was another BBFC no-no at the time of this film's original release, and there is plenty of that going on here).

Briskly paced, aware of its own ridiculousness and possessing just the right amount of earnestness to carry off its more absurd content, HOLLYWOOD CHAINSAW HOOKERS has actually grown into being a stylish, colourful and camp slice of guilty entertainment - a film that never bores or outstays its welcome, and subscribes to the most basic exploitation principles with expert precision.

The film is presented, as indicated at the start of this review, in its fully uncensored form (74 minutes and 49 seconds). Of course, it's quite tame by today's standards - innocent fun is probably the best way to describe it - but, yeah, it needs to be said that the BBFC now allow UK citizens to watch this without cuts.

The 16x9 widescreen presentation respects the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and looks very good indeed. There are a few vertical lines running down the print occasionally near the start of the show, but they quickly settle down and what we're left with is a surprisingly clean, bright and vivid picture. Presented as an MPEG4-AVC file with full 1080p HD capabilities, it's nice to report that a fine layer of natural grain exists here, backing up the remarkable detail on offer as evidence that this transfer has had a good handle on keeping unsightly noise reduction at bay.

English audio comes in a reliable 2.0 LPCM mix, as well as a keenly separated 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio option. The bouncy soundtrack tunes coming through the mix especially well.

The disc opens to an animated main menu page (more boobies!). From there, pop-up menus include a scene selection menu offering access to the film via 12 chapters.

Bonus features are plentiful. They begin with two entertaining audio commentary tracks.

The first comes from Olen Ray himself, in conversation with David DeCoteau. The director's a good listen, and he's prompted well here. He speaks with an even degree of pride, candour and even modesty - but most of all there is humour here, as well as a lot of insight into the tricks to apply when working within the confines of such a low budget (apparently just $23,000.00).

Justin Kerswell provides the second track, a more trivia-based track which is nevertheless just as listenable.

"Linnea Quigley's Horror Workout Video" is precisely that: the full 60-minute exercise video released Stateside many moons ago, and presented here in its original ropy full-frame form. It begins with a close-up of Ms Quigley rubbing soap into her pert nipples and keeps entertaining from thereon in. What's more, it even comes with an optional audio commentary track of its own, from Olen Ray and Quigley (that was her PARENT'S shower, can you believe?!)!

"Remembering Chainsaw Hookers 27 Years Later" is an excellent new 21-minute featurette including onscreen contributions from Bauer, Olen Ray, Quigley, Richardson ... It's a great retrospective, nicely shot and tightly edited. Most of all, everyone involved speaks really fondly about the production - and they have some great anecdotes to share.

"Fred Olen Ray's Nite Owl Theater" is an archive 5-minute piece of nonsense filmed by (and starring, as himself) Olen Ray as he promotes Retromedia in an agreeably light-hearted fashion. This was originally intended to play as a promotional intro on Retromedia DVDs.

An archival 'Making Of' featurette runs for 23 minutes and manages to still provide fresh titbits of background trivia, against the commentary tracks and new retrospective.

The film's original theatrical trailer runs for an enjoyable 2-and-a-half minutes, and is narrated by Mr Olen Ray himself.

The usual 88 Films trailer reel runs for 22 minutes and includes previews for the likes of PUPPET MASTER, BLOODY BIRTHDAY, and TOURIST TRAP ... you know the drill by now, surely?

Although unavailable for review purposes, this release also comes with a collectors' booklet and double-sided cover artwork.

HOLLYWOOD CHAINSAW HOOKERS is great fun. There, I've said it. The inclusion of Hansen, Bauer and Quigley ensure it's a must-see for horror fans, while the copious nudity and plastered-on splatter come as thick and fast as the smutty gags. It's cheap, it's lurid: it's exploitation of a highly entertaining variety.

88 Films have done the film proud.

Review by Stuart Willis