Las Vegas Hillbillys

In a sense, LAS VEGAS HILLBILLYS is worse than most of the worst horror films. First of all, this movie(an obvious rip on the BEVERLY HILLBILLYS)is so lame, so dreadfully photographed and directed that one feels bad for the audience who paid to see this in the theater. Second of all, one must wonder how desperate Mamie Van Doren and Jayne Mansfield were to get a paycheck to be in this film.

We open with some backwoods moonshiners, including Ferlin Husky, blow up their still accidentally. Then, news comes from Las Vegas that Ferlin has inherited a casino. So Husky and his pals pack up their things and move to Las Vegas. Nevada, that is. Washed-up movie stars, untalented country-western singers. Now all that's missing is Mrs. Hathaway and Jethro.

And some humor. This so-called comedy is so painfully unfunny that I wished I was watching one of those dumb Ernest movies again. Jayne Mansfied shows up as the manager of Husky's casino, and Mamie Van Doren is all but unrecognizable. (although not as bad as she was in THE NAVY VS THE NIGHT CREATURES) And the endless bumpkin music made me nauseaus.

I disliked LAS VEGAS HILLBILLYS because, in the end, you realize how much contempt the makers had for their audience.(By the way, who was the audience for this mess?)

Ferlin Husky, along with Joi Lansing, made a semi-sequel to this film the next year, HILLBILLYS IN A HAUNTED HOUSE. That film is just as dull, pointless, and filled with poor music. If you like one, you're bound to like the other, just for pure awfulness. All others beware, this film is UNCEASINGLY BAD.

Mamie Van Doren is so attractive, this silly film is worth the watch with the added bonus of Jayne Mansfield. Nothing to write home about, this goofy romp with songs is a strange combo of Beverly Hillbillies humor and rockabilly-type music. Ferlin Husky as the slow-witted lead and a whole slew of strange character actors.

A 4 out of 10. Best performance = Mamie Van Doren. The color is this is very strange and there many skin-crawling performances, but Mamie as Boots Malone is terrific. It's hard to describe this, but it's a fun time if you like Gilligan's Island. Jayne Mansfield had sure come down a lot in her career, but people have to work.

One of the worst movies ever made and released. The best redeeming quality of this movie is Mamie Van Doren who has admitted she only did it for the money which was well earned for having to play the love interest to Ferlin Husky (I think I'm about to lose my lunch). Speaking of Ferlin, having to watch him croaking out the same song from the side of his contorted mouth and for no reason kicking his leg up while performing is just unwatchable. Jayne Mansfield looks like a bloated drag queen who raided Mae Wests' boudoir. I also wonder who let her behind the wheel of a car even to operate for 10 or so feet. She was already a trainwreck looking for a place to happen, fortunately that wreck was confined to her performance. Billie Bird, What an immediately endearing character NOT. She looks like a pot belly pig and squeals like one. The sets, sound, scenery and songs also start with "s". The country songs and performers are alright except for Del Reeves who with all his mugging and pseudo yodeling comes in second to Ferlin Husky in the unwatchable category. Oh, and that biker gang. I guess they left their Bigwheels at home. The taxi that drops Aunt Clem off turned in a good performance, I believed it was a taxi. Does this review contain any spoilers? No. You can't spoil something that is already rotten.

Hilarious and lovable this is the real bumpkin deal from the mid 60s....and the DVD I have here in Australia is just perfect, folks! LAS VEGAS HILLBILLIES is exactly the type of fun the movie industry forgot how to make (the big ol' cinemas were demolished and the drive ins went broke after video came in). The color is fantastic and the extras look like the real Tennessee dentists and supermarket managers and real estate agents who financed this film. No doubt a big fat money spinner in drive ins and lovely old small town cinemas (like the ones we see re created in Back To the Future streetscapes) LAS VEGAS HILLBILLIES hails from the days when someone with a few local business contacts (like Arch Hall's dad) could make a movie, show it in a few states (and in a few States) and make some money back....and there was still a few lovable Hollywood has beens willing to appear in spangled caftans to earn a few bucks to fend off the sheriff from their rented fibro home in Malibu. The reason why this was made and the way it was made is as honest on the screen as the story here. Just love it and show it to your friends. I did and they came back for more. This is Pettycoat Junction Big Time. Maybe we here in Oz still have a sense of humor. You should too. If all else fails, shock some 21st Century teenagers with it. ha-ha.

"Las Vegas Hillbillys" (1966) is quite the movie. It features about twenty minutes of plot and sixty minutes of country singin'. I guess in the days before "Hee Haw," rednecks had to have some way to get their country music fix.

The movie is actually somewhat entertaining if you overlook the atrocious acting (with a hilarious scene featuring Jayne Mansfield talking on the phone), inane story, and thoroughly unimaginative camera-work. If you really enjoy classic country music, you may enjoy this film. If you generally enjoy cult films, you'll probably find this film fun and even somewhat endearing. But if you're not a fan of either of those two genres, steer clear, pardner!