Here's a girl gang film where the members wear leather boots and hot pants and pull tricks in their high school bathroom for five bucks a pop. So how can you not enjoy this? Story is about the Dagger Debs that is led by Lace (Robbie Lee) and she and her bunch of gals hang out with a boy gang named The Daggers. These two gangs go to the same high school and patrol the same turf and Lace is dating the Dagger leader Dominic (Asher Brauner) but they hear that another gang is to transfer to their area and conflict is inevitable. Lace and her gang run into a new girl in the neighborhood named Maggie (Joanne Nail) and after testing her Lace is impressed by her toughness. They all get busted at a burger joint and after the lesbian Warden and her guards try to rape Maggie the rest of the Debs get involved and beat them. Later Maggie gets out of juvenile hall and gives Dominic a letter from Lace but he puts the moves on her instead and practically rapes her.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****
Lace and the rest of the Debs get out also and plan on attacking a gang led by Crabs (Chase Newhart) but Lace hears that Maggie and Dominic have been more than friends. After a terrible shootout at a roller rink Dominic gets killed and Lace lands in the hospital but while she is mending Maggie starts taking over the Debs and renames them the "Jezebels". Lace's authority is challenged and she must reclaim her role in the gang as it's leader.
This film is directed by Jack Hill who made a career out of making some of the best exploitation films of all time and helped make Pam Grier a star. Sure this is low budget junk but that's the appeal to these types of films. The dialogue is clumsy like "If you leave me it's going to be bad" and the casting has Lenny Bruce's daughter Kitty playing a chubby gang member named Donut who spends the entire film getting slapped around. But I did take note of the performance by Robbie Lee who has been described by many as "Whining" but I disagree with that and while I won't consider this on the level as Charlize Theron in "Monster" I do think her performance carries the film. Lee reminded me a bit of a female James Cagney with her toughness and the way she speaks through her teeth and there is even a scene where she flips a coin up and down while talking tough with the Warden. A few other familiar faces pop up in small roles like Kate Murtagh and John Voldstad but Monica Gayle as Patch does make an impact in her part and she seems to be secretly in love with Lace. Hill creates a silly but fun film to watch that has a few shots of nudity but the emphasis is strictly on action and melodrama and no matter how far fetched this is this is still a lot of fun to view.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****
Lace and the rest of the Debs get out also and plan on attacking a gang led by Crabs (Chase Newhart) but Lace hears that Maggie and Dominic have been more than friends. After a terrible shootout at a roller rink Dominic gets killed and Lace lands in the hospital but while she is mending Maggie starts taking over the Debs and renames them the "Jezebels". Lace's authority is challenged and she must reclaim her role in the gang as it's leader.
This film is directed by Jack Hill who made a career out of making some of the best exploitation films of all time and helped make Pam Grier a star. Sure this is low budget junk but that's the appeal to these types of films. The dialogue is clumsy like "If you leave me it's going to be bad" and the casting has Lenny Bruce's daughter Kitty playing a chubby gang member named Donut who spends the entire film getting slapped around. But I did take note of the performance by Robbie Lee who has been described by many as "Whining" but I disagree with that and while I won't consider this on the level as Charlize Theron in "Monster" I do think her performance carries the film. Lee reminded me a bit of a female James Cagney with her toughness and the way she speaks through her teeth and there is even a scene where she flips a coin up and down while talking tough with the Warden. A few other familiar faces pop up in small roles like Kate Murtagh and John Voldstad but Monica Gayle as Patch does make an impact in her part and she seems to be secretly in love with Lace. Hill creates a silly but fun film to watch that has a few shots of nudity but the emphasis is strictly on action and melodrama and no matter how far fetched this is this is still a lot of fun to view.