Untamed Youth (1957)

2.0? Come on - it's better than that!, 11 December 2009

Untamed Youth is the story of a couple of sisters headed to California to make their fortunes in show business. Along the way, the pair are picked-up on a trumped-up charge and sentenced to serve 30 days hard labor on a cotton farm. The sisters aren't alone – the farm is teaming with young people who are little more than slave labor for the less than upstanding cotton plantation owner.

This early teen exploitation film is an absolute blast. The IMDb rating of 2.0 is criminally low. It's not perfect, but it is better than a 2.0 rating would indicate. I feel sorry for anyone who can't watch a movie like Untamed Youth and enjoy it for what it is. You can't take this stuff seriously. I suppose part of the reason behind the low rating is that Untamed Youth appeared on Mystery Science Theater 3000. There are far too many people out there who foolishly assume that if a movie appeared on MST3K, it must be bad. That's just not the case. An interesting (albeit predictable) plot, Mamie Van Doren, rock-n-roll, a scandalous subplot involving unmarried pregnancy (racy stuff), the train-wreck of a relationship/marriage between the judge and the plantation owner that's impossible not to "enjoy", fights, dancing, a good baddie (John Russell is excellent), the always cute Lori Nelson, Eddie Cochran (though I admit he does very little for me), a sense of fun about the whole thing – it's one cool movie!

A few other thoughts – first, Mamie can't sing. Every song she belts out sounds just like the one before. Call me crazy, but I don't think she was hired for her vocal talents. Second, what was in that dog food they were feeding the kids? Must have been something good for them – pickin' cotton all day and rock-n-rolling all night. Third, it's hard to believe that Lori Nelson made this AFTER she made Revenge of the Creature. I would have thought that movie might have done more for her career. Third, Mamie in the shower – wow!

7/10