Switchblade Sisters

After directing some outstanding Pam Grier films like Coffy and Foxy Brown, Jack Hill brought out one of the best exploitation films I’ve ever seen with Switchblade Sisters.

The title and poster say it all. Quentin Tarantino has rereleased the video on his Rolling Thunder imprint, and the DVD full of cool stuff, including a fun audio commentary with QT and Hill.

Great cheezy 70s outfits, and action sequences that include a hilarious shootout in a roller rink make this movie a special treasure.

According to the IMDB, “when Hill was interviewed at the 1996 re-release of the film, pointed out that it did have some authenticity – he interviewed girl gang members and rewrote the script. “But the idea of doing a realistic movie about street gangs with beautiful blondes in hot pants was preposterous, so we tried to make it a wacky fantasy.”

If you like Women in Prison style films, you can’t go wrong with this gem. Robbie Lee, who plays the gorgeously cleavage-freckled leader of the gang, went on to do the voice of Q*bert’s girlfriend in the short-lived Saturday morning cartoon, as well as several characters in Rainbow Brite. Lenny Bruce’s daughter, Kitty, plays a donut eating fat girl named “Donut” in this gem, and you might notice Don Stark, who plays the big afro’d dad married to Tanya Roberts in “That 70s Show”, too. This film is clearly the most star-studded career launching pad since Meatballs 2.