Vice Girls

After having read the other reviews, I have to wonder: Is this movie *really* worth spending 83 minutes on? Here's my story: Liat Goodson caught my eye one day from the cover of the "Vice Girls" DVD. Some months later, I found it for a good price and decided to take a chance. I watched most of the movie at 8x speed because the only reason I bought it was to see Goodson. Naked. Which never happened. Sure, she looked fantastic in that red vinyl dress and her accent is killer, but where's the payoff? I guess I should have been more diligent about finding one of those celebrity nudity databases first.

So while I doubt that the comedic value of the movie will offset my disappointment, maybe it's worth another look. Probably not.

Airing only a few times on cable, this funny little movie has a lot going for it. Never taking themselves AT ALL too seriously, the filmmakers are having a blast and it shows (director Richard Gabai plays wannabe filmmaker Quinten Tortalini and writer A. Michael Baldwin plays bogus snuff film producer Tralaine). The three lead actresses are so bad that they are actually good. The plot? Well, three vice cops (Liat Goodson is the only good looking one) chase and catch a killer. It's enough. Many good scenes. And am I wrong or is this movie based on Star Trek somehow? A wannabe (soon-to-be) classic.

Lana Clarkson is Jan Cooper a recently promoted but freshly off the wagon drunk of a cop. She finds herself paired with two other vice girl cops to catch the people who murdered Jan's homeless friends. The acting is atrocious, the plot overly silly, and the 'action' insipid. This film makes "Vice Academy" look like "Vice Squad". Even the plentiful nudity can't save this sorry little film from the trash heaps of celluloid history. ONLY for overly enthusiastic fans of the late Lana Clarkson, everyone else just move along, there's nothing to see here. There I've just saved you your valuable time and money.

My Grade: F

"Vice Girls" opens very promisingly, as vice cop Lana Clarkson chases two thugs on foot, catches up to them, they kick her gun out of her hands, so she proceeds to kick both of their asses in a matter of seconds with a couple of well-placed punches! Unfortunately, I have to report that this is pretty much the ONLY action scene in this entire film (unless you want to count a very brief catfight between the other two cops). What could have been a fun little romp with three strong and sexy women (the towering Clarkson is undeniably the most famous one, but my favorite is actually Liat Goodson) is spoiled by a distasteful plot (serial killer, snuff films, etc.), and some long, shapeless sequences that seem to go nowhere (especially the big party). Oh well, at least "Vice Girls" is still superior to the hard-to-sit-through "Vice Academy" films, so I'll give it ** out of 4.

surprisingly enjoyable pulp, with two female cops using designer-camera-bra's to catch a killer would-be porn-director with a hand-held camera. it even indulges in some pro-female pleasure scenes. it's more enjoyable than many a mainstream movie that takes itself too seriously.