Switchblade Sisters
Encyclopedia
Switchblade Sisters is a 1975 action
and exploitation film
detailing the lives of high school-aged female gang
members. It was directed by Jack Hill
and stars Joanne Nail, Robbie Lee and Monica Gayle
. A personal favorite of Quentin Tarantino
, the film was re-released in 1996 under Tarantino's Rolling Thunder Pictures
label. This version of the film features a commentary
by both Hill and Tarantino. The film's tagline is "So Easy to Kill, So Hard to Love."
that is essentially run by the Silver Daggers, a rough, hierarchical male gang, and their female counterparts, the Dagger Debs. A confrontation between the Dagger Debs and the "repo man" gets all the female members — and Maggie — arrested. Because Maggie is new, a lecherous lesbian
warden at the juvenile detention center (Kate Murtagh
) threatens to physically abuse her. Maggie fights back and eventually the Dagger Debs join her. Subsequently, Dagger Deb leader Lace (Robbie Lee) decides she likes Maggie. Patch, however, is incensed that Lace shows such affection for Maggie, and starts telling Lace that Maggie wants to steal both Lace's boyfriend, Dominic (Asher Brauner), and Lace's position as the leader of the Dagger Debs. Meanwhile, the Silver Daggers have to contend with the arrival of a new gang, led by the villainous Crabs (Chase Newhart), at the high school. The tensions between the two groups ultimately leads Maggie to devise an ambush on Crabs's men at a local roller rink, but the effort proves disastrous when Crabs' men show up heavily armed, kill Dominic, and brutally assault Lace, causing her to miscarry
the baby she was secretly carrying. While Lace recuperates in the hospital, Maggie assumes leadership of the gang, expels the men and changes its name to The Jezebel
s. She teams up with Muff (Marlene Clark) and her gang of African-American girls from across town to ambush Crabs. All the while, Maggie suspects that someone in her group tipped Crabs off to their plans at the roller rink, but Patch shoots Crabs before he has a chance to squeal. After The Jezebels emerge victorious, Lace and Patch attempt to convince the gang that Maggie, in fact, was the traitor. The members refuse to believe Lace's assertions, however, and Maggie and Lace eventually duel. When Maggie kills Lace, the police burst into the hideout just in time to arrest everybody who admits to being part of the gang. Patch confesses to being a Jezebel, but as revenge for her treachery, the other girls don't acknowledge that she is in the gang or that they have ever seen her before.
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
and exploitation film
Exploitation film
Exploitation film is a type of film that is promoted by "exploiting" often lurid subject matter. The term "exploitation" is common in film marketing, used for all types of films to mean promotion or advertising. These films then need something to exploit, such as a big star, special effects, sex,...
detailing the lives of high school-aged female gang
Gang
A gang is a group of people who, through the organization, formation, and establishment of an assemblage, share a common identity. In current usage it typically denotes a criminal organization or else a criminal affiliation. In early usage, the word gang referred to a group of workmen...
members. It was directed by Jack Hill
Jack Hill
Jack Hill is an U.S. film director, noted for his work in the exploitation film genre. Despite this, several of Hill's later films have been characterized as feminist works.Hill was born in Los Angeles...
and stars Joanne Nail, Robbie Lee and Monica Gayle
Monica Gayle
Monica Gayle is a television news anchor who anchors the 5, 6, 10pm news on Detroit's Fox affiliate WJBK. She previously worked with CBS News, anchoring the news programs Up to the Minute from April 1992 to 1993, and the CBS Morning News from August 1993 to May 1994...
. A personal favorite of Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
, the film was re-released in 1996 under Tarantino's Rolling Thunder Pictures
Rolling Thunder Pictures
Rolling Thunder Pictures was a short-lived film distribution company, set up under Miramax Films by Quentin Tarantino, that was headed by Jerry Martinez and Tarantino. It specialized on releasing independent, cult, or foreign films to theaters....
label. This version of the film features a commentary
Audio commentary
On disc-based video formats, an audio commentary is an additional audio track consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with video...
by both Hill and Tarantino. The film's tagline is "So Easy to Kill, So Hard to Love."
Plot synopsis
Maggie (Joanne Nail) transfers from across town to a new high schoolHigh school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
that is essentially run by the Silver Daggers, a rough, hierarchical male gang, and their female counterparts, the Dagger Debs. A confrontation between the Dagger Debs and the "repo man" gets all the female members — and Maggie — arrested. Because Maggie is new, a lecherous lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
warden at the juvenile detention center (Kate Murtagh
Kate Murtagh
Kate Murtagh is an American actress who has acted in such films as The Night Strangler, Farewell, My Lovely, The Car, Doctor Detroit.- External links :...
) threatens to physically abuse her. Maggie fights back and eventually the Dagger Debs join her. Subsequently, Dagger Deb leader Lace (Robbie Lee) decides she likes Maggie. Patch, however, is incensed that Lace shows such affection for Maggie, and starts telling Lace that Maggie wants to steal both Lace's boyfriend, Dominic (Asher Brauner), and Lace's position as the leader of the Dagger Debs. Meanwhile, the Silver Daggers have to contend with the arrival of a new gang, led by the villainous Crabs (Chase Newhart), at the high school. The tensions between the two groups ultimately leads Maggie to devise an ambush on Crabs's men at a local roller rink, but the effort proves disastrous when Crabs' men show up heavily armed, kill Dominic, and brutally assault Lace, causing her to miscarry
Miscarriage
Miscarriage or spontaneous abortion is the spontaneous end of a pregnancy at a stage where the embryo or fetus is incapable of surviving independently, generally defined in humans at prior to 20 weeks of gestation...
the baby she was secretly carrying. While Lace recuperates in the hospital, Maggie assumes leadership of the gang, expels the men and changes its name to The Jezebel
Jezebel
Jezebel may refer to:* Jezebel, wife of King Ahab*Jezebel, in the Book of Revelation 2:20 a prophetess in the church of Thyatira* Jezebel , starring Bette Davis and Henry Fonda* Jezebel , a blog aimed at women...
s. She teams up with Muff (Marlene Clark) and her gang of African-American girls from across town to ambush Crabs. All the while, Maggie suspects that someone in her group tipped Crabs off to their plans at the roller rink, but Patch shoots Crabs before he has a chance to squeal. After The Jezebels emerge victorious, Lace and Patch attempt to convince the gang that Maggie, in fact, was the traitor. The members refuse to believe Lace's assertions, however, and Maggie and Lace eventually duel. When Maggie kills Lace, the police burst into the hideout just in time to arrest everybody who admits to being part of the gang. Patch confesses to being a Jezebel, but as revenge for her treachery, the other girls don't acknowledge that she is in the gang or that they have ever seen her before.
Production notes
- Though the film depicts an unrealistic world of girl gangs, Jack Hill allegedly interviewed real-life female gang members before filming Switchblade Sisters in order to give small details an air of authenticity.
- While filming, the titles Playgirl Gang and The Jezebels were considered. Hill states in the DVD commentary that he figures not enough people would know what a Jezebel was, however. Thus, Switchblade Sisters was chosen, even though the phrase is not spoken in the movie.
Pop culture relevance
- Hill and Tarantino liken Patch to an IagoIagoIago is a fictional character in Shakespeare's Othello . The character's source is traced to Giovanni Battista Giraldi Cinthio's tale "Un Capitano Moro" in Gli Hecatommithi . There, the character is simply "the ensign". Iago is a soldier and Othello's ancient . He is the husband of Emilia,...
character in the commentary for the film. - As Quentin Tarantino made efforts to have the film re-released, it clearly has affected his work. Most notably, the Elle Driver character in the Kill BillKill BillKill Bill Volume 1 is a 2003 action thriller film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It is the first of two volumes that were theatrically released several months apart, the second volume being Kill Bill Volume 2....
films seems to be heavily influenced by Patch. Both are blondBlondBlond or blonde or fair-hair is a hair color characterized by low levels of the dark pigment eumelanin. The resultant visible hue depends on various factors, but always has some sort of yellowish color...
, one-eyed second-in-commands who become malicious upon the arrival of a newcomer — in this film, Maggie, and in Kill Bill, Beatrix Kiddo. - One of the warden's attendants — listed in the credits as "Matron #1" — is played by stuntwoman Jeannie EpperJeannie EpperJeannie Epper is an American stuntwoman and actress. She has performed stunts in over 100 feature films and television series and is perhaps best known as Lynda Carter's double on the Wonder Woman series. She was featured in Amanda Micheli's 2004 documentary Double Dare, along with New Zealand...
. Epper played the reverend's wife in the first segment of Kill Bill, Vol. 2. Her daughter Eurlyne also worked with Tarantino, playing a tag-along accomplice of drug dealer Lanna Frank (stuntwoman Monica StaggsMonica StaggsMonica Staggs is an American stuntwoman and actress.-Early life:Staggs was born in Boulder, Colorado, the oldest daughter of Thomas Staggs, an architect, and Nova, a teacher. She enjoyed frequent trips to Casa Bonita and developed a lifelong, diehard love for the Denver Broncos...
in the Death ProofDeath ProofDeath Proof is a 2007 American action thriller film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. The film centers on a psychopathic stunt man who stalks young women before murdering them in staged car accidents using his "death-proof" stunt car...
segment of Grindhouse.) - Two of the actresses playing female gang members in this film — Robbie Lee and Janice KarmanJanice KarmanJanice Felice Karman is an American film producer, record producer, singer, and voice artist. She is the co-owner of Bagdasarian Productions with her husband Ross Bagdasarian, Jr....
, who played Bunny — went on to do voicework for children's cartoons. Lee was the voice of several supporting characters in the original Rainbow BriteRainbow BriteRainbow Brite was a character franchise introduced by Hallmark Cards in 1983, with the animated television series starting the following year....
series and Karman provides the voice of Theodore of Alvin and the ChipmunksAlvin and the ChipmunksAlvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...
. - The film also features a young Don Stark, who is today familiar to audiences as Bob Pinciotti on That '70s ShowThat '70s ShowThat '70s Show is an American television period sitcom that centers on the lives of a group of teenage friends living in the fictional suburban town of Point Place, Wisconsin, from May 17, 1976, to December 31, 1979...
. - Donut was portrayed by Kitty Bruce, daughter of Lenny BruceLenny BruceLeonard Alfred Schneider , better known by the stage name Lenny Bruce, was a Jewish-American comedian, social critic and satirist...
. - The film was reviewed by Siskel & Ebert, alongside another well known exploitation film, Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D.Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D.Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D. is a 1990 comedic superhero film directed by Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz and distributed by Troma Entertainment.-Synopsis:...
.
External links
- Switchblade Sisters at Rotten TomatoesRotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
- Switchblade Sisters reviewed by Rick McGrath