The Walls Have Eyes

I saw the 30 minute version included on the "Blood Freak" DVD. It involves a motel run by Bill Turner (William Henry) where people can meet and have sex. It's popular with studly Jack Owens (Steve Hawkes). Connie Martin (Jody Baby) goes there, strips in front of a mirror and masturbates for about 15 minutes. Unknown to her Bill is filming this all through the two way glass of her mirror. She calls Jack. He comes over and they get it on. (No male nudity though...only female) Then Bill shows her the film and demands money.

Boring, badly done with lousy acting and a terrible music score. The frequent female nudity is hardly exciting and I was basically bored silly. This was cut by about 30 minutes...I can only imagine how terrible the uncut version must be! On the upside Hawkes and Baby DO look good and have nice bodies but you can see better looking people and more explicit sex online. Don't bother.

What the heck was going on in the Miami film world in the 1960s. During this decade some of the worst movies in film history were produced in Miami-Dade County. Of course Frank Sinatra made some outstanding local movies-Tony Rome, Lady in Cement, and A Hole in the Head. But, for the most part they were turkey's like this one. The only reason I can think of to see this really foul-smelling "Z" film, is to see the beautiful and sexy Jody Baby. If my memory serves me correctly, Jody Baby was a local Miami star attraction at the strip-clubs, and Go-Go bars in Miami; the Castaways, Club Pigalle, and Jilly's. I think Jody Baby made a few other movies, but can't recall their names or cast. I may be mistaken, but I believe she knew or was friendly with Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack.

THE WALLS HAVE EYES is a self-described "Skin Noir" flick brought to us by Steve Hawkes. It's a bizarre, droning tale of a woman doing naughty things in a motel and videotaped against her will in a strange blackmail scam. Having given that brief summary, let me say that there is nothing worth watching in this short film! Even the nude scenes complete with "masturbation" are dull and pointless. The music is somewhere between underwater organ and fever dream, and succeeds only in making the viewer feel disoriented and somewhat ill. My advice to the viewer is: if you have the opportunity to watch this trainwreck, run! Run as fast and as far as you can!

The five or so previous reviewers of this film on IMDb have a homework assignment: get the SWV standalone DVD-R and re-watch the entire film. That's your punishment, because THE WALLS HAVE EYES is a full-length, 55-minute feature, not the 28-minute "extra" you've all so knowingly commented upon.

Besides fixing the running time for IMDb, I have also submitted the correct release date, 1969 not 1964. The film has plenty of full frontal nude scenes, verboten in '64. Before the plot really takes hold, there is endless lesbian-sex footage, which is probably the most interesting part of the film, de-emphasized in the excerpt. Filmmakers play equal time -first presenting a white lesbian couple and then a black couple. Latterday unintended joke has one of the black lesbians named Grace Jones (!).

The musical score was my most pleasant surprise. Over 40 years ago I used to play Jimmy Smith's Verve LP "Monster" quite frequently on my stereo at college, but haven't heard it in ages. Several tracks, including his take on the theme from "The Munsters" (!), are included over the action here, and they dominate the rather listless sex-tease visuals. "Monster" was recorded by Jimmy in 1965, putting to the lie this movie's erroneously assumed 1964 date.

Even at twice the length, there's not much meat on its bones, but EYES has an odd quality stemming from its amateurism. You just can't recreate to order the gritty, sometimes ugly in a stag film way, black & white photography here, serving the most basic of porn plots, voyeurism. Exterior "highway driving" scenes are so poorly shot, and the film is so clumsily constructed right down to the lousy sound editing and dubbing (it was definitely an MOS shoot) that it's hard to take seriously.

What let me down the most is the constant cheating of the viewer. The premise is simple enough: although we see some set up scenes of various marks heading for the motel to check in, the lion's share of footage is that shot from sleazy hotel manager William Henry's hidden hand-held camera's point-of-view. He later projects the incriminating films to scare and blackmail his victims, leading to a predictable grim conclusion. Needless to say, the violent fight scenes are staged and executed with 100% ineptitude.

The cheating comes in when director Steve Hawkes (using the pseudonym Gene Martyn) varies the perspective with reverse shots and different setups that bely Henry's spot for filming, hiding behind a mirror. He even shows us the other half of the conversation when horny heroine Jody Baby calls boy friend (played by Hawkes) to get him to come over to the hot-sheets-motel and service him, pronto. A better film would have almost claustrophobically attempted to confine us to the strictly voyeur point-of-view, but for this team any old slop would do.

I'm a fan of cult-actor Steve Hawkes. Felt bad for him when he was burned-up in a film and his movie career ended. And even felt worse when his prize-tiger was shot and killed. However, this movie rates as his worst! It is the major pits. A stinker among stinkers. Not as classically bad as Plan 9 from Outer Space, but it gives Ed Wood's film a run for its money.

Veteran bit-actor William "Wild Bill" Henry, who acted in minor parts in over 100 or more films, looks embarrassed to be seen in this mess. At least the-majority of his other roles were in first rate movies with top flight stars. But, Henry is most remembered being associated with this complete bomb.

Sexy Jody Baby, famous for her role in Hot Pearl Snatch, looks sexy and beautiful, but the poor girl can't act a lick. She seems to be a stripper or something, and quickly vanished from the "B" movie scene in the mid-1960s; most likely married a millionaire and is living in Palm Beach.

I think that viewers should be paid to see this mess. Better yet, let them keep their money and rent a decent film.