The Flesh Merchant

Fascinating story about prostitution in the 1950's. Joy Reynolds is sweet and really sexy. Lisa Rack gives a performance that would have won her an academy award if this had been a big studio film.

What is funny is the antiquated morality. Joy Reynolds really seems to be enjoying herself as she enters the "dirty" world, quickly graduating from nude art school model to high priced escort in less than a day. Sure a client actually attempts to kiss her (horrors!) but after two minutes of soul searching, she decides that the diamonds and mink coats are worth it.

Except for a brief scene of a man beating a woman for about 20 seconds, the film has no sex or violence. It would probably be rated PG13 today.

Watch it for some great acting by Joy Reynolds and Lisa Rack and some cute witty dialogue.

"The Flesh Merchant" (or "The Wild and Wicked") is fairly typical of 50's exploitation cinema in that it denounces a moral evil (in this case, young, innocent girls who are tricked into prostitution under the guise of becoming models) while at the same time titillating the audience with scenes of scantily clad women (and even a quick flash of bare buttocks). That being said, "The Flesh Merchants" is one of the more interesting films in the grindhouse genre. This is largely due to the acting, which is above par for most films of its kind. Lisa Rack, who plays the prostitute sister of the young innocent ingenue, is especially good. She infuses her dialogue (and a couple of sizable monologues) with a lot more fire and expression than entire casts of other low-budget films, and makes you sit up and take notice (even though a lot of the dialogue is pretty laughable). It's a shame that she doesn't seem to have any other film credits, because she certainly could have gone places.

All in all, this is one of the more watchable "Adults Only" films of the 50's. You can certainly do worse. I know I have.

Naive Nancy comes to Hollywood from her dull small town to visit her glamorous sister in hopes of becoming a model. Her sister tells her its no life for her, but Nancy is determined. In less than 48 hours Nancy ends up working at a high priced house of prostitution! In an incredible coincidence, she works at the same house of ill repute as her older sister. Nancy decides selling herself for money is not for her but the mobsters who run the place won't let her go.

THE FLESH MERCHANT is a no budget "exploitation" picture with bad acting, silly dialogue, and a script loaded with coincidences. There is also some very brief nudity. There is one really weird character called "Joker", who plays the mobsters all around "go for." He has a Brooklyneese accent and delivers malaprops ala Leo Gorcey, but physically resembles latter day Bowery Boy Eddie Leroy. There is one funny line when one of the "older" girls starts giving trouble. The boss says he going to send her to work at the "hotel" in the city. When she protests, he says "Hey! Even winos need a few thrills."

Joy Reynolds, who plays Nancy, is quite an eyeful if may say so myself.

Those who enjoyed Dance Hall Racket, Gun Girls, and the like should enjoy this early 50's L.A. exploitation film about prostitution. This isn't as sleazy or exciting as the above-mentioned films, but it's got the same hard-boiled dialogue, high-school play level acting, flat lighting, and static camera you expect from these gems, and it's also got an uncomfortable, "dirty" feeling throughout, which is an acceptable substitute for the lack of nudity. You'll recognize some of the cast and the canned music from Phil Tucker's Broadway Jungle, and it's directed by W. Merle Connell, veteran of countless exploitation and burlesque features. If you like a hard-boiled, sordid film that plays like a bus-station sleaze paperback, this is it. Enjoy! I did...

i wondered if i was watching the same movie shown here, since on the back of the "Cult Classics Collection" (Mill Creek, 2006) the run time is listed as 90 minutes (its really 60, as IMDb correctly shows). In addition, on IMDb, the title is Flesh Merchant, with the subtitle Wild and Wicked. The acting is just hideous, the sound is iffy, the photography not bad. This was directed by Merle Connell, who incidentally, directed Test Tube Babies, also on the Cult Collection. A young girl comes to the big city to visit her sister and be successful. Right off, she lands a job as a nude model, quite willingly, where they convince her to go to "The Colony"....where the rewards are even better, and her roommate is called "Easy".... This was the only acting gig for most of the cast, and we can see why. It has the feel of a really low budget John Waters movie, but without the fun characters and plot. Whenever the star says her name "Nancy Walker", I can't help but think of the real Nancy Walker, who would have been 34 when this movie came out. The real Nancy had made four films by 1956, so i have to think she had the name first, since her birth name was "Anna Myrtle Swoyer", and appears to have changed it by 1943. Producer Dan Sonney must have made big bucks off this flick, since he sure didn't spend it on actors or location. He also was the producer for "Knockers Up", "My Tale is Hot", and "Daughter of Fanny Hill" in the 1960s. Gotta love it. Will make a fun rental ,but I sure wouldn't spend more than a dollar or two to see it.