Blu-ray review: ED WOOD'S "THE VIOLENT YEARS"

THE VIOLENT YEARS
Written by:  Edward D. Wood Jr.
Directed by:  William Morgan
Distributed by AGFA & MVD Visual

  When I saw the name of this film was ED WOOD'S "THE VIOLENT YEARS", I was assuming he directed the film.  It turns out, Ed Wood was the writer for this film.  The movie was directed by William Morgan, which probably explains why the film was not nearly as bad as I was expecting it to be when I was assuming Wood was the director!   Don't worry though, if you are a fan of Ed Wood's awful films, this one will still be a hit with you!  Here is the synopsis from the MVD website:

'I shot a cop -- SO WHAT!' So say the girl gang killers in THE VIOLENT YEARS! Written by Ed Wood (PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE), this is the story of teenage hellcats who live for gas station hijackings, pajama party orgies, and murder! From Wood's deranged dialogue to the scene where the girls perform a 'man attack,' this is an essential expose on crime, gender politics, and sweater-stealing.

 Well, first off I have to mention that I know this isn't really a horror film.  So what's it doing on horror website you might say?  Well, as mentioned above it was written by Ed Wood, and that's a good enough reason for me.  Wood is known for directing some awful films, but I have to tell you, he's not much of a writer either!  Ha!   In fact, the dialog is one of the best things about this film.  It's really bad, but in a "so bad, it's good" kind of way.  I knew I was in for a treat when a group of men were talking about the violent spree the  group of girls were on and one said "When will these kids learn"?   The other man's response was "These aren't kids, they're morons"!   Ha!  Classic Ed Wood dialog right there!  

Another thing I loved about this film were the effects, or lack thereof.   Anytime someone got shot, there was no blood or even a bullet hole, they would just hold their hand over where they had apparently been shot and fall to the ground.   It was confusing at times because I didn't know if they had actually been shot or not, but I just took their word for it!  Ha!  This movie is no masterpiece by any means, but it does have a certain charm to it.  It kept me entertained the entire running time, so that's good.  Although I must note the running time in only 65 minutes, so I'm not sure if I could have made it if it was any longer!  

  THE VIOLENT YEARS is available now on Blu-ray from AGFA and MVD Visual and contains the following Special Features:

*  New 4K scan from the original 35mm camera negative
*  Commentary track with filmmaker Frank Henenlotter and Ed Wood biographer Rudolph Grey
*  Gutter-noir trailers from the Something Weird vault
*  Memorbilia Scrapbook
*  BONUS MOVIE:   "Anatomy of a Psycho" -1961 presented in a new 2K scan from an original 35mm theatrical print


CLICK HERE to watch the trailer
CLICK HERE to purchase the Blu-ray