Girls Town

Already on probation for a series of petty crimes, Silver Morgan (Mamie Van Doren) is facing time in juvenile detention after being accused by a witness of pushing her boyfriend off a cliff. Fortunately for Silver, Mother Veronica offers to take her in at Girls Town - a Catholic home for troubled young women. Silver doesn't want to fit in and has trouble with the other girls from the moment she arrives. But when her kid sister gets into trouble, it's these very same people she turns to for help. Can Girls Town save Silver - and her sister?

If Silver Morgan is 16 years old, then I'm a teenager myself. My goodness but Mamie sure could fill-up an outfit! Curves galore! And what kind of name is "Silver"? Sounds like a stripper name to me! But even though this is low-budget 50s-style exploitation, Mamie gives a surprisingly decent performance. It's not award worthy or anything, but I enjoyed it.

Beyond Mamie, another "highlight" of the movie has to be the fight scene between those two imposing specimens of masculinity, Paul Anka and Mel Torme. That's right - Paul Anka and Mel Torme in a fight! It's one of the absolute funniest things I've seen in a long time. I mean Mamie's bra is tougher than these two. Still, it's a moment that made the movie for me.

Realistically, Girls Town isn't anywhere near as good as my rating would indicate. But as I've said before, my ratings are based on the entertainment value I find in movies regardless of a lot of other factors. If I watch a movie and enjoy it and have fun with it, it gets a good rating. And unlike a lot of other reviewers, I had a blast with Girls Town.

I watched the Mystery Science Theater 3000 version of Girls Town and loved it. The riffs were dead-on and hysterical. I've got no problems rating episode #601 a 4/5 on my MST3K rating scale. This is one any fan of the show should seek out.

Mamie Van Doren was more than a face, figure and cotton head. She had a ton of charm, could sing, and was a competent comedic actress. Unfortunately, she rarely got to show anything but her curves.

Sit back, enjoy the visuals of Mamie and laugh at the camp.

P. S. You won't recognize Elinor Donahue.

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This movie is a great trash fest. Sometimes there is nothing better than when Hollywood of the 50s and 60s attempts to have teens portrayed by aging icons. This one goes straight thru the stratosphere when they make Mel "the velvet fog"Torme a gang leader of sorts. Mamie van Doren is way sexy. I'm surprised she didn't make the ranks of a major sex symbol. I've always found her to be hotter than Jayne Mansfield. If you don't believe me, check out High School Confidential; teenage boys would kill for an aunt this sexy. It's great fun no matter what, but even though MST3K cut out some scenes for their version, their great snotty comments are priceless. Get a hold of it, if you can!

Yes, I know that Albert Zugsmith's films are low budget trash. But they are all so entertaining! My favorite part of this one is the casting of Mel Torme as a tough gang leader. Could there possibly be worse casting? And then there's Paul Anka. During the film, bad Mel has a fight with angelic Paul. I always wondered what that was about! Was this supposed to be some Zionist statement or did Mel object to Paul's out of tune singing of "Ave Maria"? Maybe Mel wanted to sing it in Yiddish or use it as a vehicle for a scat solo! But, I digress. Like all the Zugsmith films, this one is both intentionally and unintentionally funny. Director Haas' fast paced direction never lets the film get boring, even though the acting is as horrible as usual. It's in the same class with "High School Confidential", "The Big Operator", "College Confidential" and the greatest of them all, "Sex Kttens Go to College". Thank you Mr. Zugsmith! Don't miss this camp classic.

How do you get so much talent together and have something so awful? Just look at the cast...Mel Torme, the "Velvet Fog" in leather and corduroy...Paul Anka and two sons of the greatest comedians ever...how could they go so wrong here? The paper thin plot is hoked up with a lot of the not-so-great 50s songs, a bad driving scene that is supposed to hold us breathless, and a lot of views of the L.A. River. Is it any wonder that Arch Hall Jr. thought he had a future in the business after seeing stuff like this cranked out by a MAJOR STUDIO?