Escort Girl

While this film is not as sleazy as SLAVES IN BONDAGE or GAMBLING WITH SOULS, two earlier films that featured star Wheeler Oakman as a pimp, ESCORT GIRL is slickly made and well-acted by a wonderful cast, and while it doesn't "show anything", it does have a seedy, dirty feel to it, even though it's not unlike a studio-bound, low-budget Grand National crime drama. Oakman, great as the heavy in so many westerns, gets a meaty role as the co-owner of a sleazy escort service, co-run with Oscar nominee and major star of the silent era Betty Compson. Compson's daughter, who has been attending fancy boarding schools in other states, does not know what business her Mom is REALLY in, and suddenly appears out of nowhere. When Compson and Oakman learn that the daughter's boyfriend (Robert Kellard, featured in some classic serials, and playing the title character in the 1947 Columbia serial TEX GRANGER) works for the District Attorney's office, things start to get complicated. It's a joy to watch two pros like Compson and Oakman work--Compson's monologues about motherhood and the dirtiness of the escort business are delivered as if they were great literature. Also, this film LOOKS great. The VHS transfer looks as if it were shot yesterday. There's an incredible plot complication about two-thirds of the way through the movie that I won't mention, but is amazing, and the drunken "confession" after it is classic. In addition, the great screen drunk Arthur Housman stumbles through one scene, and Rick Vallin is priceless as a gigolo who is stuck with an elderly but rich lady as his date, night after night. It's a running gag throughout the film, and Vallin plays it to the hilt. I've probably watched this film a dozen times over the years. It's not as sleazy as other exploitation films, nor is it weird like a Dwain Esper film--it's VERY competently made. It just has a strange appeal to me. Perhaps it will have a similar effect on you? Fans of Wheeler Oakman or Betty Compson will not want to miss it.

I saw escort girl thinking it was going to be just another sleazy little exploitation film.its really not bad,it features the ever busy b-movie stars Wheeler Oakman and Betty Compson.who made about a bakers dozen of these sleazy b flicks.its about prostitution,way back in the day when they were called escorts.for an old movie its pretty racy,there is a strip tease scene where a dancer bares her breasts. though some parts are covered by pasties.this film is one of the better movies on the cult classics collection from mill creek entertainment.as usual its a film with a message.anyway i know actor Wheeler Oakman as the bad martian from flash Gordon's trip to mars(1938) i thought escort girl was enjoyable though the print is kind of choppy. must be from VHS.i thought the girl that answered the phones at the agency was funny with her facial gestures.I'm going to give escort girl 6 out of 10.

This is a thoroughly dreadful film and the fact that the print is so incredibly choppy doesn't help matters! In fact, it's one of the choppiest prints I have ever seen--and it must have lopped at least five minutes off the film! The movie is about an escort service--in other words, a prostitution ring. A lady is the madame of this agency and has managed to hide this from her daughter--who she has sent away to exclusive schools in order to hide the mother's dirty life. But, when the now grown daughter unexpectedly shows up with her boyfriend (who just happens to be the son of the District Attorney who is investigating this racket!!), things get interesting...or so it should have been had the film been written better. Instead, the film limps along--punctuated with a very risqué striptease scene that really has nothing to do with the film--it's just a chance to see a nearly nude woman. In fact, because of this, the film would not have been allowed to have been shown in many, if not most, municipalities. But, considering how dumb and boring the whole things is, this is no great loss. While it's bad all around, perhaps Margaret Marquis' acting (as the daughter) is the worst in the film---it was THAT bad! Dumb from start to finish.

This film is hilariously bad, with silent star Betty Compson, in her mid-40s (but looking like mid-60s) as an "escort," even though we never get to see her do her thing. Her daughter eventually finds out about her mother, leading to the riveting climax. I won't give away the ending, but let's just say somebody gets shot and someone gets tossed out a window. Ms. Compson isn't in the film enough to make this interesting, even as a curio. The film is made even worse by the condition of the print. The skips cause the dialogue to be chopped to smithereens, characters jump from one position to another, and a gun magically appears in Ms. Compson's hand. At one point, the sound was so bad that Ms. Compson sounded like Porky Pig. The sound disappeared completely for a minute due to the required monthly test by our cable company (I just love when that happens). Arthur Housman has a bit as a drunk, which was an acting stretch for him.

As proprietor of a Hollywood "Escort Bureau", Betty Compson (as Ruth Ashley) procures young men and women for paying customers. The kind-hearted madam has kept her business a secret from fetching young daughter Margaret Marquis (as June Ashley), who spends her time in finishing school. But, things get complicated when innocent Ms. Marquis goes home to live with Mother Compson.

Marquis' good-looking fiancé Robert Kellard (as Drake Hamilton) also arrives. Soon, authorities move in on the racket run by Ms. Compson and partner Wheeler Oakman (as Gregory Stone). Fiancé Kellard goes undercover as a male escort, to investigate the area's illegal trade. Guy Kingsford (as Breeze Nolan) is the ringleader.

"Escort Girl" is a chance to see former silent screen great Betty Compson in a later years role. And, a generous scene features women in various stages of undress. Sporting a figure you won't forget, the dancer in pasties is a titillating highlight. Handsome gigolos Kellard and Rick Vallin are kept fully dressed.

**** Escort Girl (1941) Eddie Kaye ~ Betty Compson, Robert Kellard, Margaret Marquis