CHEERLEADERS WILD WEEKEND

title: CHEERLEADERS WILD WEEKEND
year: 1977
cast: Jason Williams, Kristine DeBell, Anthony Williams, Leon Isaac Kennedy
rating: **1/2

Originally (and more fitfully) titled THE GREAT AMERICAN GIRL ROBBERY, here’s a low-low budget 70’s exploitation that’s one of a kind… make that two of a kind. Featuring Kristine DeBell and starring, written and produced by FLESH GORDON’s Jason Williams, here’s a nearly forgotten flick about three rival cheerleader squads, who, while on their way to a wild weekend, are kidnapped by terrorists: an eclectic group led by Williams as a has-been football player joined by his passive brother and a tough lesbian. But it’s Anthony Lewis as an African American bully who really takes charge, in one scene threatening to show his “Salami” (pronounced “Soul-ami) to any girl willing or unwilling. The screaming vixens writhe around on the floor, making up most of the film: naked, frantic cheerleaders in a claustrophobic cabin (except DeBell, who refused to do nudity and only shows up when the plot – as it were – thickens). One scene involving Williams having a football flashback while scoring the ransom is actually creative, and the acting’s better than most movies of this ilk. Williams and Lewis make worthy antagonists while DeBell, on the verge of a real career in movies like MEATBALLS, is more than just eye-candy. And PENITENTIARY icon Leon Isaac Kennedy plays a DJ used as a patsy to make sure that something happens concerning the plot, which, when stuck in a film about sweaty cheerleaders being held hostage, doesn’t matter anyway. (And join The Official Kristine DeBell fan page on Facebook, which includes photographs, videos, and more.)