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It is my assertion that there are subtle political or social ideals that certain exploitation films mask within their cheap and sleazy films. These themes could be more controversial if they had been presented in an audience-respectable film. For example, Gojira managed to comprehensively critique the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima while entertaining American audiences through its edited version titled Godzilla, King of the Monsters. In trying to capture a wider audience, the film had established American critique at its core. Another outlying example is the Cannibal Holocaust, which unlike most people assume goes beyond merely sensationalized lore of South American tribes to provide deep insight into the perils of colonialism, media sensationalism, and the blurred lines between civilization and savagery that many Westerners are reluctant to accept. There are numerous instances across the entire genre of exploitation, so many that there is more than enough detailed content for this topic that I have previously researched.
Putting aside the common social structures Exploitation films are based, it is equally accepted that such movies may decide to not care about those themes and simply bring forth a fast-paced and entertaining film with hardly any deeper meaning. A perfect example of this is the one from 1973 titled The Doll Squad by Ted V. Mikels. The Doll Squad is one of the films that does not have an in-depth theme, yet for some reason, it is quite enjoyable.
This feature is centred around a group of sexy women secret agents who form The Doll Squad, under the leadership of Samantha Kincaid (Francine York). The group of women, regardless of their varying looks, all portray the standard beauty of Hollywood. Additionally, they each have their own specialization that completes them as a perfect unit. Their first mission is to capture a lunatic named Eamon O’Reilly (Michael Ansara), who has been blowing up NASA’s spacecraft, and plans on taking over the world by releasing rats with the Bubonic plague. This is somewhat similar to what the James Bond series has, but instead, with a low-budget female version of the spy. However, it also resembles another major media franchise that came out several years later, Charlie’s Angels, and has often been credited for giving inspiration to Aaron Spelling for his show.
The Deadly Viper Assassination Squad (DeVAS) featured in the Kill Bill movies and The Fox Force Five from Pulp Fiction’s television pilot are just some of the influences that have been truly identified.
As I’ve previously mentioned, The Doll Squad is an exercise in the making of an enjoyable movie. Mikels is not everybody’s favourite person, but at the very least, I appreciate the snippets of work that I have come across, and this one is no exception. He does what he is set out to do like making sure that the pace of the movie is kept and it’s entertaining, but what really makes The Doll Squad work as well as it does is its full embracement of a sort of gonzo style that allows just how absurd everything is to really shine through and become quite endearing. Why would any sensible filmmaker do this? This is a movie that does not want an iota of realism and that is what makes it so much fun. Mikels here is having a great deal of fun with the absurdities of everything and seems to be trying to push the stereotypes that are often used with this kind of Spy fiction during this time to the breaking point. The Doll Squad should not be viewed as a Spy fiction parody through that prism of cleverly crafted jokes, rather, it is the sheer absurdity of it that makes this movie such an eye-sore.
I do not think that this was what Mikel meant to convey. What he attempts to do is elevate the aspects of the genre that are already outrageous to such a degree that it is hard for the audience to believe that it is real. The entire setup, from the ludicrous way the team is assembled to the utter inanity of the team themselves, alongside the villain and the crazy scheme he has, makes for an excellent example of gonzo go-for-broken filmmaking.
While Mikels definitely made his mark in this movie, he was by no means the only one who contributed to its overall effectiveness. Without any doubt, I found Michael Ansara’s portrayal of the villain to be quite compelling. The man seems to possess a certain trait which justifiably projects a great sense of him as a criminal genius whose life’s aspirations involve conquering the planet. Likewise, Francine York also appears to be as brilliant as Samantha, and most impressively, she brings an incredibly intelligent and badass portrayal that’s reminiscent of the more iconic remake action heroines from the 1970s. She also has real expertise in the various gadgets she uses. As for the rest of The Doll Squad members, it’s all exaggerated and absurd, but the wonderful thing is how the actors fully appreciate that and are enjoying themselves with this film. Furthermore, it adds a strong and disturbing sense of psychedelic joy which makes The Doll Squad so much fun. The set design, especially for Eamon O’Reilly’s flat, is also quite nice in a stereotypical rich 70s guy way, and the gadgets used are enough to make Bonders blush.
To put it differently, this film is a film the Torchsong Trilogy saw as the epitome of filmmaking.
And even though it may not be “deep” or of “high art”, The Doll Squad works because it considers the bottom line of what an Exploitation film is supposed to do above all else, which entertains the audience by giving them something they are not able to find inside a regular film. Because of the television which fed it to me when I was young, and the phrase “tired things” which comes to mind when I think of the I Spit On Your Grave hype, I would have to say that the style and approach of The Doll Squad is one of the best edges of Mikels. If that wasn’t enough, this gem also greatly influenced Charlie’s Angels, some of Tarantino’s work and is among the most important gems of the early seventies. Don’t hesitate on this one!
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