Bury Me an Angel (1971)

Genres - Action  |   Sub-Genres - Biker Film  |   Run Time - 85 min.  |   Countries - United States  |   MPAA Rating - R
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Review by Paul Gaita

When her brother is murdered, female biker Dag (Dixie Peabody) and two slow-witted male pals take to the open road in search of his killer. As the trio closes in on the suspect, a terrible secret regarding Dag's relationship with her brother is revealed. This crudely made exploitation picture has coasted on favorable reviews for decades thanks to the notion that it's a feminist tract by virtue of its tough female lead and woman director. The idea, however, is a crock; there's nothing in Dag's personality or dialogue that indicates she's on equal footing with any of her knuckle-headed male screen companions, except perhaps that she's louder and more prone to violence. If anything, her character is simply a stereotypical male biker with a sex change. Furthermore, director Barbara Peters shoots the Juno-esque Peabody with the same leering, unflattering angles as those used in any of parent company New World Pictures' softcore "student nurse" or "cheerleader" titles. Dark, grimy, and riddled with inappropriate, tone-killing moments of humor, both intentional (a ridiculous bar fight) and otherwise (the dubbed voice of the pot-laced, stew-dealing hippie woman). The film's theatrical trailer is a more enjoyable experience, if only for its legendary copy and poster tagline: "A howling hellcat humping a hot steel hog on a roaring rampage of revenge!" Peters, one of the few female directors to emerge from New World chief Roger Corman's training grounds (along with Stephanie Rothman and Katt Shea Rubin), later helmed the equally downbeat Humanoids From the Deep (1980).