B-Movies in the Barrel House: The Violent Years (1956)
This exploitation flick turns an unflinching eye on a public menace that threatened to rend the very fabric of 1950s USA: TEENAGE DELINQUENT GIRL GANGS!
The original film trailer promises breathlessly: TEENAGE KILLERS FEARING NO LAW! and THRILL GIRLS OF THE HIGHWAY!
A screenplay by an uncredited Ed Wood is a sure sign of the unimpeachable artistic merit of this chilling cautionary tale.
Is it a photo-feminist depiction of the rage fomented by patriarchal oppression? McCarthy-era propaganda employing skewed gender norms to stoke reactionary fervor? Or just pure titillating garbage? There will be plenty of time after the feature for a thoughtful post-mortem. Or just a Shangri-Las dance party!
