Batpussy (1973)

[bigshot]

I decided to give myself an early Christmas present last night, so I popped on Agfa's Batpussy. Good lord. This is the most baffling film I've ever seen. I can only define what it *isn't* not what it actually is. It isn't porn. It isn't comedy. It isn't satire. It's like ordinary people pretending to make a movie and making it all up as they go along. I can't imagine what audiences were supposed to think about this. Was it something they put on when they wanted to clear the house and shut down early?

It reminded me a lot of the scenes between David Lochary and Mink Stole in Pink Flamingos. I wonder whose idea it was to have the couple bicker like that constantly. If their middle aged paunches and bizarre hairdo isn't enough to put you off, the constant arguing certainly will. It appears that the whole thing was shot in the service bay of an empty gas station. I'm betting Batpussy's lair and the couple's bedroom are at 180 degree angles to each other, so they just turned the camera around to shoot the next bit. I can't believe the director talking over the actors. Most of the time he was blanked out on the soundtrack, stretches of complete silence. But at the end, they got tired of cutting him out and you can hear him clearly. The actors talk under their breath to each other too. "Shove me off... off! off! Shove me off!" My favorite part is where there's a blank part of sound cut off for the director's direction and the lead actor whips around and looks at the camera and says, "Huh? What did you say?" No titles. Just an abrupt cut in at the head and a thump and it stops at the end. What a remarkable film.

I haven't watched the extras yet, but based on the main features, I'll need to brace myself and have a few drinks before I dive back in. It is what it is I guess!

By the way, the bouncing ball music is from Neil Hefti's LP of Batman music. It works better here than in the real Batman TV show.