Bonnie's Kids

I've been watching quite a lot of arty-farty foreign flicks of late... so what better way to chill out and take out a break from all the pretentious posturing, than to take on the sort of movie that would have had the drive ins packed 40 years ago. You have a couple of gorgeous babes, senseless violence throughout, casual racism, rampant homophobia, a ramshackle story which goes in every direction and gratuitous nudity as a given. What more could you ask for?

Well, perhaps an ending which will p*ss a lot of people off... GUARANTEED. And maybe they could play the one tune they have on the soundtrack slightly less than every other scene. Other than that, you'll get what you expect. A passable time waster, but don't expect it to be too distracting when y'all smooching with ya babe in the front seat. Don't forget to brush your teeth!! Or at least chew minty gum...... 5/10

It may be a bit hard to fathom why this is called "Bonnie's Kids" when the mother character "Bonnie" is dead before the movie even starts and does not appear at all, even in flashbacks. But this is no doubt a reference to the movie "Bonnie and Clyde" which this film at times certainly resembles. Two sisters are living with their drunken, brutish stepfather after the death of their prostitute mother. The older sister (Tiffany Bolling) catches the stepfather trying to molest the younger sister(Robin Mattson) and shoots him dead. The two go on the lam and end up at the home of an uncle, who owns a fashion magazine, but (rather incongruously) is also a vicious gangster on the side. The older sister goes to pick up a "package" for the uncle from a dimwitted private detective. They fall for each other and when they discover the "package" is a large amount of cash, they flee with it with two of the uncle's dangerous associate (Alex Rocco, Timothy Brown ) in hot pursuit. Meanwhile, the younger sister is seducing practically everyone in her uncle's household from his studly gardener to his lonely lesbian wife. The ending makes the finale of "Bonnie and Clyde" seem positively cheery by comparison.

This movie has a real early 70's atmosphere of bleak pessimism to it, much like "The Candy Snatchers", another cult film of that era starring Bolling. It isn't just the downbeat ending though, but the fact that ALL the characters are totally amoral and unsympathetic, even the supposed heroines. The two sisters are more than willing to use their sexy bodies to get what they want and they seem completely untroubled by morals or basic human feelings. After convincing him to steal the money, the older sister is perfectly willing to betray her private detective beau and run off with a lecherous traveling salesman to save her own skin. The younger sister, meanwhile, is even more callous: she drives one of her lovers to suicide and then just laughs when she discovers the body. In the end, she doesn't even seem to care about the fate of her older sister.

These sexy but totally unsympathetic heroine roles were pretty much the specialty of Tiffany Bolling. So, not surprisingly, she's pretty good here. This is one of Mattson's first movies, but she would go on to a brief exploitation career (i.e. "Candy Stripe Nurses"), and a much longer career in American television. In way she almost manages to "out-Bolling" Bolling here. She was still pretty young when she did this role, but nevertheless men (and lesbians) everywhere will no doubt be thankful that they don't have a malicious temptress like THIS for a stepdaughter. Director Arthur Marks, who also produced "The Candy Snatcher" would go on to do a couple influential "blaxploitation" movies ("Detroit 9000", "J.D.s Revenge"). I can't say this movie will fit everyone's taste, but one things for sure--they don't make 'em like this anymore.

I do love a good sleazy seventies crime flick, and Bonnie's Kids is certainly a very good sleazy seventies crime flick! The main reason this film works so well is because everything about it is absolutely spot on - writer-director Arthur Marks creates a real gritty and sleazy atmosphere that fits his plot brilliantly, while lead actresses Tiffany Bolling and Robin Mattson both manage to pull off performances that are sexy and tantalising as well as being deceptive and as far away from 'innocent' as you can get! The film makes best use of its elements and what we end up with is pure drive in gold! The plot focuses on two girls, Ellie and Myra, the daughters of deceased town tramp "Bonnie". After their no good stepfather tries to rape the younger daughter, the older one blows him away with a shotgun and the two daughters decide to go and stay with their only relative, Uncle Ben, in his lavish mansion in El Paso. The two get involved with their new lives, and soon enough the older daughter is asked to run an errand for her uncle, but when a chance to steal a load of money presents itself; she takes it...

The plot of this film is great in that we get a basic premise and from there it's never clear where it's going to go. Arthur Marks' script has plenty going on in it; the main story always revolves around the girls, but there's enough going elsewhere and with other characters to ensure that it's always interesting and the 105 minute runtime is certainly not packed with filler! The film is also good in that it's clearly a product of the time in which it's made - everything about the film clearly sets it in the seventies; the fashions, the music, the cars, houses etc are all exactly what you'd expect from a film like this. There's a real lot of themes that are common in seventies exploitation that made it in too, from sex and shooting to lesbianism and teenage angst. The fact that the film is not predictable is carried on all the way to the end, and the climax really does come as a big surprise and was not what I was expecting! Overall, this might not appeal to all tastes, but for my money, Bonnie's Kids is an out and out drive in classic and should not be missed by anyone who considers themselves a fan of films like this one!

Drive-in exploitation movie that is teeming with unlikable characters. I would say that Alex Rocco is the most sympathetic person I could find, and he is a hit-man just trying to do his job. Rocco also provides far and away the best acting in "Bonnie's Kids". The story of manipulating sisters, Tiffany Bolling, and Robin Matson, often bogs down with meaningless small talk and titillating sexual teasing. 105 minutes running time seems excessive, but the story is way above average, and several catchy tunes are memorable. There are also some moments of dark humor thrown into the mix. Not exactly the "classic" others may think it is, but still quite entertaining. - MERK

In the world of B cinema, they don't come much better than BONNIE'S KIDS...the few unavoidable shortcomings of its low budget are equalized by a seamy pulp narrative which is briskly paced and sexy as hell. Ambitiously played by a cast of highly capable lower-tier performers, all of whom should have been better utilized in Hollywood, this unassuming little offering stands as one of the crown jewels of 70s drive-in fodder.

Noir-ish story involves two young sisters who ice their lecherous stepfather and beeline to the Los Angeles home of their wealthy mob-boss uncle. Indurated by their difficult upbringing, but fiercely determined to get ahead, the girls are quick to realize the prepotency of their supple young bodies. One of them seduces their closet-lesbian aunt, while the other ropes-in a hard-luck private dick who's been hired by some shady suits to intercede the transit of a "special package". What ensues is a gritty, violent crime story with more flurried excitation, concupiscent titillation, and shifty maneuvers than a Crisco coated Naked Twister marathon.

On a scale of 1-10, BONNIE'S KIDS gets a solid 8.5...right up there with its theatrical release co-feature THE CANDY SNATCHERS. Both films are B classics which approach dispiriting subject matter with an edgy, sardonic tongue-in-cheek. Recommended.