Retro Raunch Revisit

This month marks the 45th anniversary of BLONDE AMBITION (1981) opening in XXX theaters. Sugar & Candy Kane are easily the worst podunk variety show sister act to come around in... oh... let's say forever. Performing in a dive bar, they are whisked away to New York by a millionaire who promises them a shot at the show biz big time. The sisters believe they are truly Broadway bound but instead end up starring in a xxx version of GONE WITH THE WIND which ends in an uproarious shambles, but not before dalliances with different men, mystery involvement with expensive stolen jewelry, a couple whose whole apartment is an ice rink, and the climax of a Greenwich Village leather bar drag show (a deliberate move by the filmmakers who were a pair of gay brothers). BA is filled with goofy gags, corny zingers, some song & dance numbers inspired by Hollywood musicals, and sex scenes that (while limited and not as explicit) do still rise above being straight trashy. Yes, it is glaringly low budget, features a body double in a blonde wig (both amusing & annoying), bad British accents and an early appearance from a young Herschel Savage, but the freewheeling fun of the cast all hamming it up makes BA an off-the-wall comedic romp which is rather quite entertaining.