Scream Queen Hot Tub Party

As a die hard horror fan, and a Jim Wynorski fan in particular, I can honestly say I never thought I could be so happy. Scream Queen Hot Party was a magical journey of wonder and merriment...In other words, there were breasts and skimpy nighties galore. It's always a pleasure to see these ladies, and before seeing SQHTP I'd already seen pretty much every film each had made. I agree with another reviewer that Linnea Quigley should have been involved, she is after all, the all-time unquestioned reigning Scream Queen, but she DID get her own work-out video, also with breasts and nighties galore, and Scream Queen Hot Tub Party and Linnea Quigley's Horror Workout make quite the double feature.

Having seen Michelle, Brinke, and Monique nude so many times (it never gets old, though), I gotta say the biggest treat for me was Kelli Maroney. I saw Night of the Comet and Chopping Mall (both excellent films) and in Chopping Mall she was the cute, quiet girl, then in Night of the Comet she was the ditzy, take-no-prisoners cheerleader but not a hint of boobies from her in either film...Well, the wait's finally over and they were exquisite. She even wears her cheerleader outfit from Night of the Comet before her big scene. I like cute, quiet girls AND cheerleaders, so I was already a fan, but now I'm an even bigger fan...if you know what I mean...Wait, what was I talking about? Anyway, she's absolutely adorable, as always.

Roxeanne Kernohan was excellent too. The only film I'd seen with her was Not of This Earth, and she was quite funny (and lovely) in that as well, although it was a very small role. In this she plays the goof of the quintet, the butt of every joke. Huh-huh...butt...get it? Sorry...

Anyway, if you're a fan of cheesy comedy/horror films and especially if you're familiar with such films as Nightmare Sisters, Sorority Babes In The Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama, Chopping Mall, Sorority House Massacre II, Hard to Die, Not of This Earth, etc., you'll love Scream Queen Hot Tub Party.

Five gals are summoned to a mysterious house for a seminar. When they arrive the host is nowhere to be found, so they start out playing with the Ouija board in skimpy nighties. Then they movie into the Hot Tub where each gal takes turns discussing a topic from their career. We get a lesson in horror movie showers and some weight lifting as a few examples. There are movie clips featuring the five main stars, as well as clips featuring other actresses.

I own the Blu Ray edition from Retromedia. I would say if you already own the regular DVD release there's no real extras or improvements in the quality of the film to make it worth upgrading.

Michelle Bauer, Brinke Stevens (Slumber Party Massacre), Kelli Maroney (Chopping Mall, Face Down), Monique Gabrielle (Deathstalker II, Bachelor Party) and Roxanne Kernohan (Critters 2) are the gals. I bought this for Kelli Maroney. This was the first time that Kelli Maroney bared any flesh.

I grew up with Cinemax in the house and late night Cinemax was a great place to find these movies. But Scream Queen Hot Tub Party is kinda bad. Took me years to find a copy and when I did I was not impressed. Its a few short cuts of cheap video footage mixed in with clips from much better movies. If you've seen them then you've seen everything you need to and you dont need this movie. It looks ugly and the "plot" is even thinner than the movies it showcases. You'll be happier if you track down the other Jim Wynorski and Fred Olen Ray films & just watch those over a couple weekends. Scream Queen Hot Tub Party adds nothing to the genre and what it has is low quality.

Scream Queen Hot Tub Party (1991)

*** (out of 4)

Scream Queens Michelle Bauer, Brinke Stevens, Monique Gabrielle, Kelli Maroney and Roxanne Kemohan are brought together for a hot tub party. Once all five are in the small hot tub they talk about some of their movies.

As the title clearly suggests, you really shouldn't expect too much plot here as this straight-to-VHS released was simply made to show off nudity. The formula is pretty simple as each of the five Scream Queens talk about certain movies, we then see them naked in that movie and finally they get their own "segment" where they discuss an aspect of being a Scream Queen. For example, when it's Stevens turn, she discusses and shows us the proper way to take a shower in a horror film.

The movie clips include films like THE SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE, SORORITY HOUSE MASSACRE 2 and HARD TO DIE. Again, this thing was shot in one day and was clearly meant for directors Fred Olen Ray and Jim Wynorski to make some quick cash. After all, anyone who grew up renting videos back in the day are well aware of these ladies so the idea of them in a hot tub together was something that was going to be an easy sell. You really can't take this film too serious as it's just cheap fun with a lot of nudity.

This film gave the academy a new direction. It is a visually splendid piece of cinema verite' and has the distinction of being the only documentary in the Eye Candy Hall of Fame. Directed by two unknowns (who oddly enough are names in the Western, "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly") who definitely were apt pupils of the auteurs Wynorski and Olen Ray. This film features three members of the All-Century team who deserve the royalty status: the ever-so-lovely Brinke Stevens, the majestic beauty Michelle Bauer, and the luscious Monique Gabrielle. Like all masterpieces, there is a minor flaw in the casting. We here at the academy wish that Roxanne Kernohan and Kelli Maroney could have been traded for Linnea Quigley. This would have made the All-Century team complete and could boast of having the Fab Four in the credits. Nonetheless, Queen Stevens is an oustanding lecturer who could read the phone book and make it sound erotic (preferably by reading in the nude). Queen Bauer is a delight and could put VIAGRA out of business. Queen Gabrielle, while not a horror legend, has an impressive body... of work and may be responsible for global warming by her performance. All five together in the hot tub bring to mind the making of a fine beer: rich in character, robust, and full-bodied. This is proof there is order in the universe.