Sometimes Aunt Martha Does Dreadful Things

Ordering movies by odd titles has always been a thing with me. Imagine my surprise when I got this one in the mail! You're never really sure at the beginning if Abe Zwick is supposed to be a man or woman. Then when he answers the phone at his house he says in a soft, feminine voice, "hello?" He repeats it once more. Then his face contorts into a frown and in a deep, bass voice says, "STANLEY!" (Stanley being his boyfriend who always ends up hooking up with women, even though he's gay). That scene sets the tone for the film and it's the two leads, Paul and Stanley who set the energetic tone of the film. This is a must see for any lover of bad films. On an interesting side note, Paul (played by Abe Zwick) looks a lot like a young Andy Kaufman.

The idea of this film seems interesting enough. Paul and Stanley are two gay jewel thieves. Paul dresses up as "Aunt Martha", Stanley's supposed aunt. This is done to evade authorities, as it happens to be they are wanted for murder. Stanley is also a big time hippie who drives a colorful van, picks up the girls and does a lot of coke. Paul hates it when Stanley brings home girls and goes psycho each time, killing the female guest. The premise is original and entertaining enough to be a classic yet the movie misses it's mark. It's not really the fault of the cast, they do a good job. It's the screenplay and the development of the plot, after the initial set up, the film falls a little flat and fails to live up to it's potential. I would still recommend this one though, if you enjoy obscure strange films.

"Sometimes Aunt Martha Does Dreadful Things" is a guilty pleasure, pure and simple. While in some ways a terrible film, it is nevertheless fun to watch and enjoyable...provided you are a bit twisted!

Paul and Stanley are lovers and to the outside world they are Aunt Martha and her nephew, Stanley. What?! Well, it seems Paul is a homicidal maniac and is wanted by the police for his many atrocitites. Yes, Paul is an angry guy who has the bad habit of murdering any lady who pays attention to Stanley...because Stanley is his. As for Stanley, he's not homicidal but he is a bit of an idiot. Together, you know that sooner or later the law will catch up to them.

The acting is often cheesy and the production looks like it was made for next to nothing. Yet, inexplicably, it is funny in a strange way...almost like a John Waters film. Worth seeing IF you are an oddball...like me. Otherwise, you'll probably find it all pretty sick and stupid.

By the way, if you want to see it, understand that there is a fair amount of nudity in addition to all the killing...so it's NOT a film I'd recommend to kids or your mother.

Very strange, and quite funny little movie about a gay couple hiding out, one of them wanted for murder, which the other one is responsible for. One is a coke snorting hippie, the other one a Psycho killer in drag, mayhem and b.movie weirdness follows. Give it a chance if you like obscure 70´ movies.

The working title was: "Don't Spank Baby".

Wayne Crawford went on to become a successful producer, films like Valley Girl, Night of the Comet and others, even though he wasn't too terrific in this little Gem. And little known Abe Zwick should have gotten tons of work from this film but didn't. Filmed at Moberly Studios in Hollywood Florida, on the same lot the early Tarzan movies were filmed. This film is definitely for those who appreciate the abstract. The movie was originally shot with much more bloody graphic slasher scenes. For reasons only known to Tom Casey the Director, the bloody slasher scenes were given a tab of LSD, and replaced by Flash Editing. Even though this version is worthy of a look for those so inclined, in my opinion the original version would have packed the punch needed to make this a full on Slasher 70's Cult Classic.