Rare film made interesting by locations, but that's about it
This is a hard film to track down, seeing as it is unavailable on home media platforms and potentially was never released on DVD. However, given my work on another film with "Ski Bum" in the title, I felt compelled to seek it out and give it a watch. I waited until ski season which ended up being a good decision: I watched it with my dad who knew all the filming locations in Vail, Colorado, and so it turned into a fun nostalgia trip adjacent to the actual quality of the movie.
Let it be known this is a B movie closer in line with exploitation cinema than a traditional movie would be. It's trippy but not in a characteristically fun way. The lead actor, Zalman King, plays Johnny, a ski bum fed up with the yuppie affluence around him. But he plays with little charisma, mumbling his way through the whole runtime, and the film does little to enhance itself cinematically. There is no plot to speak of, the film follows Johnny as the world around him engulfs him and he rejects it in slacker fashion. Mixed in with some cool ski action, great locations, trippy sound effects, and electronic music.
The most recognizable actor in the film is Charlotte Rampling in her bombshell days. But despite second billing, she's not given much to do. There's some thin plot about her relationship with Johnny, but the majority of the film is situations where Johnny is unhappy in the ski world. Doesn't make for a great story. But it would've been a very fun film to work on.
There's a big moment that probably ensured this film would never receive a major release: a 12-year-old girl attempts to seduce Johnny in a scene that really doesn't hold back on that premise considering the taboos (and legal dilemmas) involved. The fact that there's no written controversy about it implies that the movie probably never got a major release, therefore never caused a stir. It cements it as a film for grindhouse audiences, not the mainstream theaters, despite an otherwise tame picture.
Ultimately, this is a great time capsule of Vail circa early 1970s, but beyond that a poor film even for ski fans or even exploitation fans.
Let it be known this is a B movie closer in line with exploitation cinema than a traditional movie would be. It's trippy but not in a characteristically fun way. The lead actor, Zalman King, plays Johnny, a ski bum fed up with the yuppie affluence around him. But he plays with little charisma, mumbling his way through the whole runtime, and the film does little to enhance itself cinematically. There is no plot to speak of, the film follows Johnny as the world around him engulfs him and he rejects it in slacker fashion. Mixed in with some cool ski action, great locations, trippy sound effects, and electronic music.
The most recognizable actor in the film is Charlotte Rampling in her bombshell days. But despite second billing, she's not given much to do. There's some thin plot about her relationship with Johnny, but the majority of the film is situations where Johnny is unhappy in the ski world. Doesn't make for a great story. But it would've been a very fun film to work on.
There's a big moment that probably ensured this film would never receive a major release: a 12-year-old girl attempts to seduce Johnny in a scene that really doesn't hold back on that premise considering the taboos (and legal dilemmas) involved. The fact that there's no written controversy about it implies that the movie probably never got a major release, therefore never caused a stir. It cements it as a film for grindhouse audiences, not the mainstream theaters, despite an otherwise tame picture.
Ultimately, this is a great time capsule of Vail circa early 1970s, but beyond that a poor film even for ski fans or even exploitation fans.
- Hint523
- Jan 3, 2021