The Student Nurses

I was in Grade 9 when this movie came out in 1970. I always remembered it, as the ads in the local paper featured a pouty young nurse with her uniform falling off her shoulders. Pretty hot stuff for a junior high school student in Western Canada in 1970! Naturally, I couldn't go see it, as it was rated "restricted adult", and in the years after the ardour faded and I never got around to viewing it until recently.

Thanks to good ol' cable and their willingness to screen almost anything, I finally got a chance to view this 'hot' artifact of my adolesence. The result, a chance to drift down memory lane and view a classic early 70's youth flic.

The plot needs not be repeated here, as the title basically says it all. The student nurses are young, attractive, rebellious, and, of course, sexually liberated. Various turgid plot devices keep things going between romps in bed. Sundry nude scenes help remind us how actresses looked prior to the era of breast implants. Everybody is groovy, everything is cool, except when 'the man' representing adult authority rears his ugly head.

In spite of the above, though, I couldn't help but like this film. Perhaps it's my age, but it personifies an era that seems so much more innocent and fun than the slasher flics or hard edged teenage exploitation films of today. Soft drugs, unprotected sex, and a basic 'nice' approach to life personifies the earnest strivings of the Student Nurses, and captures a side of the late '60's and early '70's that actually did exist for a few years. I was too young to participate, but I witnessed it, and like many boomers, I mourn it's passing.

See the flic if you get a chance. If you're over 40, it'll bring back memories. If you're under 30, you'll get a chance to see the warmer, softer side of the 60's that your parents remember.

5 out of 10 for nostalgia.

I rented a copy of this from my local Blockbuster expecting nothing much but the usual amount of T & A and sex. But after I watched it, I was surprised by how thoughtful it was, that it was about something after all.

I'm not going to go into the plot, because I think it's more effective if you enter into this film cold, knowing nothing about it.

This was the first film produced by Roger Corman's New World Pictures. Knowing Corman, I had figured that it would be low budget, but look like it cost more. I was right. Filmed on a budget of 150,000 it looks like it cost 1 million dollars.

The video box makes this film look like a sex romp. Anyone watching this film for sex alone is bound to be disappointed. This is a smart, sensitive film that deals with serious issues such as abortion, protests, independent living and moral conflict. One possible reason for this is "The Student Nurses" was directed by Stephanie Rothman, a woman. Therefore, it ends up being less sleazy and exploitative than if it had been directed by a man. Most exploitation films are sleazy, no brainers. It's great to see an exploitation film that makes you think when you finish seeing it.

In about 1984 this movie was re-released under the name Young L.A. Nurses. It's the same movie with the title changed.

This movie is rated at about 5 our of 10. I think the people doing the rating are being very generous. It's pretty bad.

Still, the girls are pretty. And I guess there is somewhat of a story.

This first movie in a set of five "Nurses" films, starts with four young women living together and working at a local hospital with the expectation of becoming nurses in the near future. Even though "Lynn" (Brioni Farrell) is almost raped by a patient she maintains her compassionate attitude towards those less fortunate and as a result eventually becomes involved with a militant activist which seriously threatens her career. "Sharon" (Elaine Giftos) also has great empathy and this leads her to develop feelings for a terminally ill patient. "Phred" (Karen Carlson) on the other hand is more self-involved and knows exactly what she wants. Unfortunately, she has a strict set of rules which may tend to cause obstacles for her. Last, but not least, is "Priscilla" (Barbara Leigh) who I think is the prettiest of them all but unlike Phred seems much more Bohemian and as a result she finds herself getting mixed up with a drug dealer who cares only about himself. This causes problems, not just for her, but for her three roommates as well. At any rate, rather than reveal any more of this movie and risk spoiling it for those who haven't seen it I will just say that this was an interesting "sexploitation film" which manages to portray a period in American history which was both odd and short-lived. Additionally, although it may have been marketed as being a bit risqué when it first came out the fact is that, while there is certainly some nudity, this film is relatively tame by today's standards. Now that's not to say that this film is appropriate for a general television audience by any means. However, those expecting something really explicit or on the cutting edge may be somewhat disappointed. I rate it as about average and recommend it to those who enjoy films related to the counter-culture movement during the 60's or drive-in exploitation films in general. Followed a year later by "Private Duty Nurses".

... but still not really very good. The idea with this series was to weave together a story of young professionals trying to succeed amid the temptations of the swinging early 70s and within a fairly rigid institutional setting. The very attractive cast of unknowns included striking Playboy regular Barbara Leigh and former Miss Arkansas Karen Carlson, both of whom got quite a bit of work throughout the rest of the 70s, 'bouncing' from one TV show to another. The actresses acquit themselves pretty well despite the limitations of time and budget and their own comparative inexperience. The script also occasionally tried to work in a serious issue. For instance, one of the girls becomes pregnant at a party and has to go through a rather humiliating interview with an unsympathetic medical establishment to get approval for an abortion. This is quite a good scene and fits well with the strong anti- establishment tone of everything.

Mostly though, this was just an exercise in soft-core titillation, with the camera following attractive young women in their tight uniforms along hospital corridors, and then off to parties where they take off their tops, smoke dope and have sex. The script cross-cuts from one character's tribulations to another, but once each girl's central issue has played itself out, nothing really comes together. Movie does not have much of an ending. It just tapers off and stops.

Writer-director Stephanie Rothman tried her best to make the proceedings relevant and the dialogue probably sounded fairly hip at the time (or maybe it didn't) but it is pretty laughable now, as are the attempts to make the party scenes seem exciting by using a lot of way out psychedelic camera angles and edits (spins, tilts etc.). That stuff was a few years old by the time this movie was made and almost becoming clichéd.

The movie was a big drive-in hit at the time, of course, mostly thanks to a sexed-up ad campaign that promised more than the movie delivered.