Raquel Welch. Roller derby. If that doesn't sell you on Kansas City Bomber, maybe the trailer will. It's right below, and I hope you've already watched it. Welch learned to skate for the movie, and she got pretty good at it. Not good enough to do her own stunts, as it's all too easy to tell, but she wasn't bad.So what does this movie have going for it besides Welch and some great '70s haircuts? Well, there's the plot, which isn't all that great, and of course the trailer does give away the ending, not that you won't see it coming from about ten minutes into the movie. Welch has left K.C. for Portland, Oregon, and she's signed up for the Portland Loggers roller derby team. The owner, played by Kevin McCarthy, is a manipulative sort who has plans for Welch. Just what those plans are isn't quite clear, although we catch on before the end. So does Welch. That's pretty much the plot right there, but you get a lot of skating and a lot of fighting and yelling. Welch is very good, and her rival, played by Helena Kallianiotes got a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
The movie's not bad, and it's a nice time capsule if, like me, you watched roller derby back in the old days. When Judy and I lived in Austin in the late '60s, we watched every week for a while, so the movie brought back some pleasant memories.
3 comments:
I used to watch roller derby on television too, and I remember seeing this. But for a better roller derby movie (IMHO), try Ellen Page in WHIP IT, Drew Barrymore's first movie as director.
In keeping with my current roller derby theme, I might do WHIP IT next week if I can remember.
Does Raquel skate with her arms hanging straight down? (Seinfeld joke)
A.S.
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