Hell's Belles

Hells Belles started off pretty adequately, and as it went along it turned out to be one of the better biker pictures I've seen from AIP. It probably wont be remembered much years from now, and one reviewer who said it's much more like a B-western than anything else was correct (though I've yet to see Winchester 73), but it's a couple of notches above other fare that was offered during the period. It helps that the producer/director, Maury Dexter, was a professional at making this kind of picture, and is actually a pretty decent storyteller given the elements. That he boils everything down to mostly essentials makes the picture work, and while I wouldn't say his work rises the script above its more predictable territory, he does find what he needs to have it not go off the rails.

First of all, this is not some mindless film where the plot is buried under lots of scenes of partying and inane music. If anything, the kind of stubbornness on the part of the two main male characters- played perfectly to type by Jeremy Slate as the cowboy Dan and Adam Rourke as the lead biker Tampa- helps push the film along in a good direction, and rarely does the story flap around in the breeze. The soundtrack is also above average for this kind of ultra low-budget B-movie, where the repetition is neat and well played, with some good beats and rhythms put to the action scenes.

Granted, the viewer will know how this will boil down, in a Western-style show-down between two hard-pressed men wanting each by some kind of pre-destined movie-fate. But there are moments that come up that are unexpected too, little pieces of dialog that are not written poorly or to some low-common denominator. It's not that it's very realistic, either, but little passages are more believable than other AIP movies I've seen. One little moment I liked is right before said showdown, where Rourke has some last words with a fallen biker bitten by a rattlesnake. Or the typical but charming interplay between Slate and leading lady (less than great) Jocelyn Lake.

Hell's Belles, in the end, is really not totally the typical biker movie- there's not a lot of drugs, not much of the bikers hassling the locals (minus the gas station scene, one of the funniest in the film), no cops, and lots of open Arizona desert adding to the enclosed/open atmosphere. It doesn't really aim for much, but then the filmmakers and the cast now that well enough for it to be a good show, and a very respectable B-side to the Midnight double-feature DVD release (the A-side being the Wild Angels). Lots of bikes, cool fights, simple supporting cast, not bad at all.

A 1969 B remake of Winchester '73. Jeremy Slate wins a race and receives a new bike as the prize. He wants to sell it for cash but of course, it's stolen. His personal quest to "get my bike back so I can buy a ranch" is the plot.

3 reasons to watch this curio:

1) If you're into bikes.

2) Filming locations all in Arizona 3) Jocelyn Lane!

After Tickle Me with Elvis, I feel for Jocelyn having to put up with low grade projects. She's the best part of this film.

Film has its moments with some nice Arizona desert locations shots. Have I mentioned Jocelyn Lane though? My goodness she's easy on the eyes.

I missed this when it originally played, but 30+ years later seeing it for the first time I'm very impressed. This is a biker film that anyone could enjoy, despite one's feelings about that genre. Imagine an old western where Bob Steele or someone like that wins a horse race on a horse that he has raised from birth and devoted his life to. After the race, a crook with a lot of money who came in second in the race offers to buy Bob's horse, but Bob won't sell at the ridiculous price offered. So the crook steals Bob's horse, and then Bob goes on a mission to get the horse back (wait a minute, that IS the plot of an old western serial from 1934, LAW OF THE WILD, I thought is was familiar). Transplant that plot into a biker realm, with Jeremy Slate in the lead role, and you've got HELL'S BELLES. His nemesis is played by the late, great Adam Roarke (who actually steals the bike from the guy who stole it from Slate!). Slate is always convincing, here taking what could be a two-dimensional character and turning him into a complex, three dimensional man with a fascinating back-story, someone about whom we care. The same can be said for Jocelyn Lane, as the woman with whom he is involuntarily teamed. They hate each other for much of the film, so in a way you have a biker version of THE African QUEEN, but once her real story comes out she is quite fascinating. Ms. Lane made a number of fine films in the 60's--TICKLE ME with Elvis, BULLET FOR PRETTY BOY with Fabian Forte, and some European genre films (wow, until looking her up on the IMDb, I didn't even know she was European!!) I'll have to dig out my copy of WAR GODS OF BABYLON. The Arizona photography on this film is excellent, the shots are beautifully composed, and director Maury Dexter has an excellent sense of pacing. His work at AIP in the late 60s is much underrated. MARYJANE is excellent, and YOUNG ANIMALS was very much ahead of its time. I gave this film a "10" rating, which I hardly ever do, because it don't think it could be improved upon. It took me into its world and kept me captivated for 90 minutes. For me, HELL'S BELLES is one of the definitive biker films, even if it is basically a western in biker garb. Highly recommended!!

The late '60s were the era of biker movies. The "Citizen Kane" of this genre was obviously "Easy Rider", while "The Wild Angels" might get called the second-best.

Released on DVD with the latter was "Hell's Belles". The simple plot - a racer's motorcycle gets stolen, so he sets out to reclaim it - holds second place to the sight of Jocelyn Lane in a miniskirt. I guess that she got relegated to potboilers while other actresses of the era got the highbrow roles. Even so, she was certainly a sight for sore eyes.

So, it's nothing special. I understand that the director later directed episodes of "Little House on the Prairie" (which I've never seen). The main thing here is the chance to see Jocelyn Lane looking sexy.

This is one hell of a fun movie, and probably the best motorcycle flick of the '60s after Easy Rider. The is actually an update of the old Jimmy Stewart movie Winchester '73, except a motorcycle is used in place of the rifle. Jeremy Slate, always great in these '60s flicks, is the lead and is supported by a wonderful exploitation movie cast. Les Baxter's score, next to that of Easy Rider is about the best heard in a biker flick, a perfect artifact of the period, and lots of fun.