Stripped to Kill
| Stripped to Kill | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Katt Shea |
| Produced by |
Mark Byers executive Roger Corman |
| Written by |
Andy Ruben Katt Shea |
| Starring |
Greg Evigan Kay Lenz Norman Fell Pia Kamakahi Tracy Crowder |
| Music by | John O'Kennedy |
| Cinematography | John LeBlanc |
| Edited by |
Zach Staenberg Bruce Stubblefield |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 88 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Stripped to Kill is a 1987 erotic thriller/sexploitation film, it was directed by Katt Shea, and stars Greg Evigan, Kay Lenz & Norman Fell.[1]
Plot
The movie is about a female detective who is forced to go undercover as a stripper in order to investigate a murder.
Production
The film was inspired by a visit Katt Shea and her husband and writing partner Andy Ruben made to a strip club.[2]
"I didn't want to go because I felt it was humiliating to women," recalls Shea. "But I finally got myself there. I sat down and began watching these acts and they're performing as if they really cared."[3]
Shea later elborated:
Before I did STRIPPED TO KILL you had never seen a girl dancing on a pole, no one had ever seen that in a movie, to my knowledge. Girls swinging around on a pole--that had not been done yet. So I think that was spectacular; it was crazy, it was wild. This is how it happened. I went to a strip club for the first time in my life and I saw a girl swinging around on a pole and I thought, ‘Oh my god this has got to be in a movie!’ I mean, nobody knows this goes on except a bunch of guys with dollar bills, so it just had to be exploited, I guess. I thought they were very artistic and I just loved the girls, they were real artists and they were just using this particular venue to explore their art.[4]
She took the idea to Roger Corman for whom she had made a number of movies as an actor. Corman says he liked the basic idea but questioned the believability of a scene where a man went undercover as a stripper. Shea brought in a female impersonator to see Corman and had him describe to the producer who to pretend to be a stripper. "He [Corman] turned every shade," recalls Shea. "He was purple by the end. But then he said yes."[3]
Criticism
Kay Lenz complained publicly about the film's editing and "exploitative" ad campaign aimed at the print media.[5]
Reception
The film was a hit and led to a sequel, shot on the same set as Dance of the Damned. The sequel was also directed by Shea who took her name off because of Corman's editing interference.[2]
References
- ↑ A Conversation with Katt Shea
- 1 2 Chris Nashawaty, Crab Monsters, Teenage Cavemen and Candy Stripe Nurses - Roger Corman: King of the B Movie, Abrams, 2013 p 199
- 1 2 How 'Poison Ivy' Got Its Sting: The studio wanted a teen-age 'Fatal Attraction.' Katt Shea's movie may be more than that. 'Poison Ivy': Art or Exploitation? By LAURIE HALPERN BENENSON. New York Times (1923-Current file) [New York, N.Y] 03 May 1992: 70.
- ↑ "Director Katt Shea talks about her 1980's Roger Corman produced films" TV Store Online 3 Feb 2015 accessed 21 April 2015
- ↑ With reports from Stephen Galloway., Frank Swertlow. "HOLLYWOOD FREEWAY - KAY LENZ UPSET ABOUT CORMAN'S 'DECEPTION'." Daily News of Los Angeles (CA) 9 Jul. 1987, Valley, L.A. LIFE: L20. NewsBank. Web. 23 Feb. 2013.