Des filles à moto

I am a fan of Sixties motorcycle flicks, and I've seen many (but not all) of them. This is certainly one of the lesser efforts. The plot bears more than a few similarities to SATAN'S SADISTS (q.v.). In this case, it's Shayne, the psychotic female leader of The Mini Skirts (Diane McBain and her hair-do) stalking the innocent young couple along with her flunkies. It seems that the man she's after used to be "her guy," but he got wise, dumped his rodeo/biker buddies and married some hot brunette wimp from the local bank. But such treachery could not stand! First the couple is stalked, then assaulted, and the whole thing just escalates from there until finally Molotov cocktails enter the picture, leading to one of the ubiquitous gags where a stunt man wears a fire suit and runs around the desert while flaming away.

Most of the actors were totally unconvincing. I found myself thinking "these aren't real bikers, these are bourgeois middle-class Hollywood types just playacting." They didn't seem threatening at all. These chicks wouldn't have time to menace society as maintaining their giant hairdos and false eyelashes probably required a lot of effort. Yes, Harry Dean Stanton is in this, and he exhibited his usual sleazy charm. The character of the wife was annoying. I know she was supposed to be a little flitty hummingbird, but her whining became like fingernails on a chalkboard almost immediately. Plus, what real biker gang rode TRIUMPH MOTORCYCLES?! Yeah, right! I can only recommend this highly if you have a burning desire to see hot Sixties chicks in mini-skirts, go-go boots and huge hair.

Look, you people need to get way down the list of biker movies before this one comes up. Start off with THE WILD ANGELS, try HELL'S ANGELS '69, or THE CYCLE SAVAGES. SHE-DEVILS ON WHEELS is also a good pick. THE TORMENTORS is probably the most outrageous and entertaining one, if you can find it.

I forgot how many of these drive in types were turned out in the 60's & 70's, but this is one no one could remember but the actors' families. What an embarrassment, especially for someone like Harry Dean Stanton, who turned out to be such a remarkable character actor, who in this film is the only "character" of note.

Diane McBaine is miscast badly. Yet, note that she allowed her hair to get messed at least once & to have a dirt smudge, of all things(!), to be placed on her face in the final chase scene.

If you are bored & need a good laugh & want to remember the old biker movies, rent this. But, if you then feel you've wasted your buck, don't say I didn't warn you!

Actress Diane McBain plays Shayne, the leader of a group of female bikers, who call themselves the Miniskirt Mob. Shayne's ex-beau, rodeo star Jeff Logan (played by John Wayne clone Ross Hagan), dumps her to marry another woman. Crazy with jealousy, Shayne is hellbent on harassing Jeff and his new bride. And she enlists the help of her motorcycle gang, which includes her younger sister, to accomplish this.

This film is brimming-over with campy, late-60s energy. The women in the Miniskirt Mob, all wear the shortest of miniskirts, that women wore back then. They all have drop-dead gorgeous bods, and wear mile-high hair-sprayed 'dos, go-go boots, and heavy facial make-up. These women look more like 60s Vogue models, rather than tough biker chicks. Their boyfriends, who are allowed to ride with the gang, are all one dimensional oafs. These dudes drink copious amounts of beer, belch, and generally act like crude goons.

Diane McBain as Shayne, is the only cast member that truly conveys a menacing personality. The other characters seem milquetoast by comparison. Ross Hagan as Jeff Logan, gives a particularly stilted performance. Patty McCormick as Shayne's sister Edie, does gives a decent performance. She really makes the toxic sibling rivalry between Edie and Shane, seem credible. The only other cast member who gives an interesting performance, is Harry Dean Stanton. Harry plays the dim-witted cowboy, called Spook. He infuses Spook with a haunting, pathetic, yet smarter-than-he-looks quality.

The scenery in the film is gorgeous, but the lighting is a bit garishly bright. There's lots of vivid color contrasts, which gives the film quite a visual punch. The viewer can really get a sense of how uncomfortably hot the characters felt, as they sped down the highways on their bikes in the scorching, southwestern sunshine. There's also plenty of panoramic camera angles. Especially when the characters are racing around hairpin curves, while biking along deserted back roads.

This film is hilarious at times, and can also be downright annoying in some scenes. The camp factor is definitely there though, for those who like these sorts of 60s B movies. Overall, it's an entertaining film, and definitely worth a watch, especially for Diane McBain fans.

"The Mini-Skirt Mob" is no classic (which, given that title, should come as no surprise) but it delivers enough action to make it worthwhile. Diane McBain stars as the leader of a female motorcycle gang, who is determined to punish the guy who jilted her. With the aid of her companions, including biker film veteran Jeremy Slate and future cult actor Harry Dean Stanton, she proceeds to harass both her ex-boyfriend (Ross Hagen) and his mousy new bride (Sherry Jackson). Along for the ride, and good in a sympathetic role, is ex-child star Patty McCormack, as McBain's little sister. The photography is excellent as is the color, and the movie doesn't take forever to make it's point. McBain is terrific as "Shayne". Very watchable. Incidentally, McCormack sang the title song, but, on the ''MGM Midnite Movies''DVD, her vocals have been re-dubbed by an unknown male vocalist. Nevertheless, picture and sound are both excellent, and the companion feature ''Chrome And Hot Leather'' (1971) while not as good a film,looks and sounds fine, too. And since it's soon to go out of print, now's the time to grab it!.

The name of the production company - whose product nowadays regularly features in Incredibly Strange film festivals - alone should be enough warning as to what to expect in this silly, unintentional parody. "The Mini-Skirts" consist of four girl bikers, the brevity of whose skirts is compensated by the length of their eyelashes - plus, it seems, an equal number of chromosome-challenged boyfriends. The plot mostly consists of them "terrorizing", with varying degrees of enthusiasm, the pack leader's ex-boyfriend because he is now on his honeymoon in a caravan with another gal. Much of it naturally is an excuse for shots of the females riding around the wilds of Arizona on their Triumph motorbikes. Hmmm. Wouldn't it be rather cold dressed like that, how long would those hair-do's last? You also get regular glimpses of panties. As Leonard Maltin says in his movie guidebook, those who like the title should like the film.