Malibu Express

Last updated

Malibu Express
Malibu Express theatrical poster.jpeg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Andy Sidaris
Written byAndy Sidaris
Produced byAndy Sidaris
Starring Darby Hinton
Sybil Danning
Art Metrano
Shelley Taylor Morgan
Brett Clark
Niki Dantine
Michael Andrews
Lori Sutton
Barbara Edwards
Kimberly McArthur
Lorraine Michaels
Lynda Wiesmeier
John Brown
Richard Brose
Suzanne Regard
Abb Dixon
Busty O'Shea
Randy Rudy
John Alderman
Robert Darnell
Peggy Ann Filsinger
Robyn Hilton
Peter Knecht
Ruth Stamer
Les Steinmetz
Jeanine Vargas
CinematographyHoward Wexler
Edited byCraig Stewart
Howard Wexler
Music by Henry Strzelecki
Production
company
Malibu Bay Films
Distributed byMalibu Bay Films
Release date
  • March 1985 (1985-03)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Malibu Express is a 1985 American action film starring Darby Hinton, Sybil Danning, Lori Sutton, and Art Metrano. It was directed, written, and produced by Andy Sidaris and is the first installment in the Triple B film series. [1] The film features 1980s Playboy Playmates Kimberly McArthur, Barbara Edwards, Lorraine Michaels, and Lynda Wiesmeier in its cast, as well. In it, Danning "cinched her image as B-budget bad girl". [2] Regis and Joy Philbin cameo as talk-show hosts. [3]

Contents

Plot

A wealthy playboy/private investigator named Cody Abilene is hired by a government intelligence operative to investigate a lead into who is selling computer technology to the Russians. While investigating rich socialites, amorous naked vixens, and an ex-con with a penchant for blackmail, and keeping it all from his sexy lady cop friend Beverly Mcafee, Cody puts himself in the crosshairs of the traitorous tech spies who will gladly kill to stay in business. The scope of the conspiracy is revealed after Cody and Beverly make love at a suspect's beach house, only to find a pair of hitmen gunning for them as they get dressed. Gunplay, car chases, and races ensue.

Cast

Production

Filming

Exteriors were shot in Beverly Hills, around Los Angeles such as Sunset Boulevard, Willow Springs Raceway and the Mojave Desert. [4]

Soundtrack

The film's music was composed by Henry Strzelecki, with Ronny Light producing the soundtrack which featured Strzelecki on bass, Bucky Barrett and Tommy Jones on guitar, Bobby Thompson playing guitar and banjo, Weldon Myrick playing guitar and Dobro, Barry Walsh on piano, Dale Morris on fiddle, Terry McMillan on harmonica and percussion, and Kenny Buttrey on drums. [5]

Releases

The film was first released in March 1985, then on DVD in 2002. It then appeared in two DVD collections, Andy Sidaris Collection, Vol. 1 (of six discs) in 2003, and Triple B Collection, Vol. 1 in 2005. [6]

Reception

Malibu Express is described as a "routine erotic spy tale" by Eleanor Mannikka of All Movie Guide. [7] The Video Movie Guide 2001 rated the movie with a single "turkey", amazed that the movie got an "R" rating, "since it's clearly soft porn". [8] TV Guide gave the film two stars. [9] Barbara Edwards' appearance in the hero's shower is cited as "one of the hottest topless lesbian shower scenes in the long and hot tradition of lesbian shower scenes". [10]

Connections to other films

The material from the film was reworked from a previous Sidaris film, Stacey (1973). The role of Stacey Hanson (Anne Randall) was divided into two new characters: private detective protagonist Cody Abilene (Darby Hinton) and his girlfriend June Khnockers (Lynda Wiesmeier). [11]

The openings of both films depict their respective female race car drivers in the finish of a practice race. Both films then have them getting out of uniform. Stacey is the protagonist, though, while June serves mostly as the source of a recurring joke in her film: "Knockers with an "h"?". June can still reliably drive a high-performance race car, but Cody performs most of Stacey's functions in the film. [11]

The discreet homosexual nephew John (John Alderman) turns into Stuart (Michael A. Anderson), a drag queen, in the second film. In both films, the detective follows the character into a gay bar. The difference is that in the first film, John wears regular clothes, while in the second, Stuart is in full drag. Cody laughs while dictating notes into a recorder, but still admits that Stuart has great legs. Stuart is more of a cartoonish gay stereotype than John. [11]

The youthful niece Pamela (Cristina Raines) turns into the bit older niece Liza (Lorraine Michaels) in the second film. Liza has her own sex scene with the houseboy Shane (Brett Clark). The difference in age was probably decided to allow this sex scene and more nudity than would be acceptable from a teenager. [11]

The second film adds a character with no counterpart in the original: Contessa Luciana (Sybil Danning). Contessa has a romantic night with Cody, before he moves into his next assignment. The relationship to the family is unspecified, but she turns out to have murdered Shane. She is beyond the reach of the law and suffers no ill consequences for her murder. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stuart Whitman</span> American actor (1928–2020)

Stuart Maxwell Whitman was an American actor, known for his lengthy career in film and television. Whitman was born in San Francisco and raised in New York until the age of 12, when his family relocated to Los Angeles. In 1948, Whitman was discharged from the Corps of Engineers in the U.S. Army and started to study acting and appear in plays. From 1951 to 1957, Whitman had a streak working in mostly bit parts in films, including When Worlds Collide (1951), The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), Barbed Wire (1952) and The Man from the Alamo (1952). On television, Whitman guest-starred in series such as Dr. Christian, The Roy Rogers Show, and Death Valley Days, and also had a recurring role on Highway Patrol. Whitman's first lead role was in John H. Auer's Johnny Trouble (1957).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Austin Green</span> American actor (born 1973)

Brian Austin Green is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of David Silver on the television series Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990–2000). Green was also a series regular on television shows Freddie (2005–2006), Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008–2009), Wedding Band (2012–2013), and Anger Management (2012–2014).

<i>The Streets of San Francisco</i> American crime drama television series

The Streets of San Francisco is an American television crime drama filmed on location in San Francisco and produced by Quinn Martin, with the first season produced in association with Warner Bros. Television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Hamilton (actor)</span> American actor (born 1939)

George Stevens Hamilton is an American actor. For his debut performance in Crime and Punishment U.S.A. (1959), Hamilton won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for a BAFTA Award. He has received one additional BAFTA nomination and two Golden Globe nominations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bel Air, Los Angeles</span> Neighborhood of Los Angeles, California

Bel Air is a residential neighborhood on the Los Angeles Westside, in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains in the U.S. state of California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gloria Stuart</span> American actress and painter (1910–2010)

Gloria Frances Stuart was an American actress, visual artist, and activist. She was known for her roles in pre-code films, and garnered renewed fame late in life for her portrayal of Rose Dawson Calvert in James Cameron's epic romance Titanic (1997), one of the highest-grossing films of all time. Her performance in the film won her a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role and earned her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laird Hamilton</span> American big-wave surfer

Laird John Hamilton is an American big-wave surfer, co-inventor of tow-in surfing, and an occasional fashion and action-sports model and actor. He is married to Gabrielle Reece, a former professional volleyball player, television personality, and model.

<i>Shrek the Third</i> 2007 film by Chris Miller

Shrek the Third is a 2007 American animated fantasy comedy film loosely based on the 1990 children's picture book Shrek! by William Steig. Directed by Chris Miller and co-directed by Raman Hui from a screenplay by Jeffrey Price, Peter S. Seaman, Miller, and producer Aron Warner, and a story conceived by Andrew Adamson, co-director of the previous two installments, it is the sequel to Shrek 2 (2004) and the third installment in the Shrek film series. The film features Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas, Rupert Everett, Julie Andrews, and John Cleese reprising their voice roles from the previous films, along with new additions Justin Timberlake as Arthur Pendragon and Eric Idle as Merlin. In the film, Prince Charming is plotting to overthrow Shrek and Fiona, who have inherited the throne following King Harold's death. Shrek has no interest in ruling the kingdom and attempts to convince Fiona's underachieving 16-year-old cousin Artie to reign instead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Great Movie Ride</span> Former ride at Disneys Hollywood Studios

The Great Movie Ride was a dark ride located at Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, United States. Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering, the attraction employed the use of Audio-Animatronic figures, practical sets, live actors, special effects, and projections to recreate iconic scenes from twelve classic films throughout motion picture history. The attraction—which debuted with the park on May 1, 1989—was located inside the park's replica of Grauman's Chinese Theatre, one of Hollywood's most famous movie palaces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhonda Fleming</span> American actress and singer (1923–2020)

Rhonda Fleming was an American film and television actress and singer. She acted in more than 40 films, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s, and became renowned as one of the most glamorous actresses of her day, nicknamed the "Queen of Technicolor" because she photographed so well in that medium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sybil Danning</span> Austrian actress

Sybil Danning is an Austrian–American actress, model, and film producer. She is best known for her frequent appearances in B movies during the 1970s and 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Sidaris</span> American filmmaker and actor (1931–2007)

Andrew William Sidaris was an American television and film director, producer, screenwriter. After a pioneering career directing televised sports beginning in the 1960s, Sidaris wrote and directed a successful series of action B-movies from 1985 to 1998—dubbed the "Bullets, Bombs, and Babes" series—that featured Playboy Playmates and Penthouse Pets in starring roles. In 2014, Paste magazine named one such picture, Hard Ticket to Hawaii, the best B-movie of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Art Metrano</span> American actor (1936–2021)

Arthur Metrano was an American actor. He was noted for his role as Lt./Capt./Cmdt. Mauser in Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment and Police Academy 3: Back in Training.

Daryn Hinton is an American former child actress who was reared in the Hollywood entertainment industry in the 1950s and 1960s. Hinton had a spiritual conversion and left the Hollywood to pursue her newfound faith.

The 20th Youth in Film Awards ceremony, presented by the Youth in Film Association, honored outstanding youth performers under the age of 21 in the fields of film and television for the 1997–1998 season, and took place on March 6, 1999, at the Sportsmen's Lodge in Studio City, California. The hosts for the ceremony that evening were Jena Malone, R.J. Arnett, Roland Thomson, Justin Thomsom, Selwyn Ward and Tracy Lynn Cruz.

<i>Stacey</i> (film) 1973 film by Andy Sidaris

Stacey is a 1973 exploitation film directed by Andy Sidaris. Half the budget was provided by Roger Corman for New World Pictures; the rest was raised by Sidaris. It was re-released in 1975 as Stacy and Her Gangbusters.

<i>Liz & Dick</i> 2012 biographical film

Liz & Dick is a 2012 American biographical drama television film chronicling the relationship of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. It was directed by Lloyd Kramer, written by Christopher Monger, and produced by Larry A. Thompson. The film stars Lindsay Lohan as Taylor and Grant Bowler as Burton. It premiered on Lifetime on November 25, 2012.

The Triple B Series is a franchise of twelve films that focus around the DEA agents based in Hawaii and later the secret activities of a secret U.S. spy agency known as L.E.T.H.A.L. Because of the spy agency acronym, the series is sometimes referred to as the L.E.T.H.A.L. Ladies series with the final two films in the series carrying the L.E.T.H.A.L. Ladies name above the title in some territories. All but two films in the franchise are directed by Andy Sidaris. Although some of the films feature returning characters, some actors appear throughout the series in different roles and there is little effort to maintain series continuity between instalments.

References

  1. Coffman, Jason (2012), "The Early Films of Andy Sidaris", Cashiers du Cinemart Issue 17, Impossibly Funky Productions, ISBN   978-1300351405
  2. Brode, Douglas (2003). Boys and toys: ultimate action-adventure movies, Volume 2002. Citadel. p. 194. ISBN   978-0-8065-2381-1.
  3. Tracy, Kathleen (2001). Regis Philbin - The Unauthorized Biography . ECW Press. p.  69. ISBN   978-1-55022-439-9 . Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  4. Dollar, Rob (July 7, 1984). "Former resident immortalizes Cerulean Springs in new film". Kentucky New Era . p. 1A. Article written during production, quoting co-producer Bill Pryor.
  5. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089539/fullcredits/?ref_=tt_ov_st_sm [ user-generated source ]
  6. "Malibu Express DVD releases". allmovie.com. All Movie Guide. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  7. "Malibu Express". allmovie.com. All Movie Guide . Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  8. Martin, Mick; Porter, Marsha (2000). Video Movie Guide 2001. Ballantine Books. p. 677. ISBN   978-0-345-42095-4 . Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  9. TV Guide v. 40, pg. 522. Triangle Publications (1992). 1992. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  10. Mr. Skin (2004). Mr. Skin's Skincyclopedia: The A-to-Z Guide to Finding Your Favorite Actresses Naked. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 163. ISBN   978-0-312-33144-3 . Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Coffman (2012), p. 23-26