Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Dragstrip Riot (1958)


Director: David Bradley

Starring: Yvonne Fedderson, Gary Clarke, Fay Wray, Bob Turnbull, Connie Stevens

More info: IMDb

Tagline: Motorcycle gangs, hot rodders, death, romance and redemption!

Plot: After a run-in with a tough motorcycle gang, where Gary Clarke is blamed when one of the bikers is sent out of control over a cliff, he and his girl are threatened and pursued. On to the beach riot, where the real culprit is unmasked and retaliates with his spear gun.



My rating: 5.5/10

Will I watch it again? Noop.

#7 on 42nd Street Forever Vol. 2: The Deuce (part of the TRAILER TRASH PROJECT)

Put this one in the category of, "The trailer is soooooo much better than the movie.". No joke. DRAGSTRIP RIOT isn't really all that horrible, I guess. I'm sure I would have dug it more as a teen 60 years ago. The hoppin' jazzy score is fun. It reminded me of the score from FASTER, PUSSYCAT! KILL! KILL! (1965). It's a riot. The rest of this teen angst drama, action, biker flick is not. It's routine and by the numbers - exactly what you'd expect from a 68 minute B picture from this era only this one's got Fay Wray (looking very scrummy for being in her 50s) and Connie Stevens. These throwaway pictures aren't a bad way to kill an hour but you can do better. The marketing geniuses behind the poster and trailer deserve a raise.

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