Pep Squad

With Pep Squad receiving an average of 4.7 on IMDb.com, no wonder Steve Balderson slanders this website so. But the fact is that Pep Squad is a poorly crafted "black" "comedy" (both words in quotation marks for a reason). It's a movie full of over-acting (Cherry, Beth's Mother), coupled with a couple of lethargic performances (Beth and Julie's boyfriend). A movie where you can follow cars from twenty feet away in a gaudy red Jeep and never be noticed. A movie chock full of not-so-appetizing cleavage and nudity shots that make you wonder, "Does the director think this is funny? Or clever?" Most of all, the characters are so paper-thin and poorly developed that the film becomes quite unpredictable, but probably not on purpose. Pep Squad can't decide whether to be a comedy, or a drama, or a satire (patriotic music, I get it...). The movie fails at being serious, because the idea of killing for any school position (this being Prom Queen) crosses the line into insanity (not to mention shots of flag burning and drive-by shootings, a poor attempt at being controversial and edgy), and fails at being a comedy, for all the forced and awkwardly placed jokes (big butt mama, "funky" black principal, and excessive cussing delivered poorly by the principal cast). Watching the documentary "Wamego: Making Movies Anywhere" only made this film more cringe-worthy, with praise lauded towards it by... the director and the director's father... hmmmmmm. Not a black comedy, or anything for that matter. I guess Kansas will have to wait.

I saw this film at the AFM after seeing the trailer -- which by the way was an equally marvelous piece of work. Most everything works in Pep Squad -- music, cinematography, editing, acting, story. Sure, there are some wooden performances. That comes with low budget indie fare. But it never detracts from the overall flow. In fact, when I think back to my viewings of Carnival of Souls (which I think is another Kansas product) and other films considered cultish, Pep Squad holds up very well, indeed.

Special mention needs to be made of three elements. Brooke Balderson as Cherry is amazing. She not only made what could have been a single dimensional comic book character seem real and multi-dimensional, but she even created a wierd form of sympathy for the character. Betty O., playing the part of the principal who replaces Lester the Molester (yes, this is a strange story) adds just the right amount of zest to the overall mix of characters and story. Finally, the score, by Concrete Blonde frontwoman Johnette Napolitano, was perfect. I saw the film in a theater with full stereo sound and the impact of the music with the imagery was fantastic. I imagine that a lesser sound system would certainly detract from the overall experience. (In fact, I recently saw a screener video of the film and, though good, the TV speakers were really inadequate.)

If you're a Concrete Blonde fan, if you're between 16 and 28, if you ever were in high school and felt like killing the principal (figuratively if not literally), if you are/were ever tired of having to mindlessly just accept what those in power impose --- then you'll have much fun with Pep Squad.

Balderson's first effort was obviously a first effort. I must admit that I think the version of this film I saw was a pre-release, being that I saw it sometime in '97 or perhaps earlier. The acting in this film was inconsistent, some scenes being quite believable and others not even close. This is understandable given that this film was most of the cast's first. The plot in this film is not even close to realistic. Again, understandable for the same reasons. When I met Steve and some of the other members of the cast and crew during filming (I used to live in Manhattan, KS, near where it was filmed), they were all genuinely excited about the project, but it was obvious they were not seasoned actors and crew members. I didn't like this film, but must concede that it was a valiant first effort. I look forward to Balderson's next film with Dennis Hopper!

This totally made me think of all those great 80s movies - only, with David Lynch or some sicko remaking them with some guns and lots of bad language. I think the F word was the only one in the script. Except for the genius DIE TERRA DIE part... And the GYNOCOLOGIST remarks.

This is up there is my TOP 10 fave movies of all time. And the music is awesome.

Brooke Balderson and Amy Kelly have more energy than any other actress in their age group. Seriously, it comes bursting through the screen. I haven't ever experienced viciousness like that. In any movie. EVER. This is one piece of work!

Slick production values and insanely great performances from Brooke Balderson and Amy Kelly elevate this film far above 'b-grade;' but the director also manages to maintain a camp sensibility throughout that's tantalizingly reminiscent of John Waters at his best. This would make an outstanding double-feature with "Female Trouble"!