Thursday, October 02, 2014

Movie review - "Maryjane" (1968) *1/2 (warning: spoilers)

Its bewildering to think that AIP made The Trip a year before this one... but then Arkoff and Nicholson were concerned about the former movie being too pro drug so maybe they churned this out to cover their bases. Maury Dexter's handling is generally quite lively and there is some decent enough acting but this is just silly.

Fabian is teaches art and coaches football at a high school gripped by a marijuana plague - gangs of kids puffing weed and driving off cliffs, just like in Reefer Madness. The school is in thrall of a cool kid who runs a gang that deals in grass; one of Fabian's students tries to join the gang to disastrous consequences. (There's an unexpectedly touching scene where this student's father tries to reach out to him but fails).

Fabian gets on the case of the baddies but is hampered by his old employers, who don't like the fact Fabian admits he smoked pot (which does update the movie I guess). It's a little odd seeing Fabian play the teacher; he's alright, but it's a shame this wasn't made a few years earlier when he could have played the charismatic bad student.

Diane McBain (who I always like in 60s films) is a fellow teacher who Fabian romances and who turns out to be the crime king pin  - not very believable but it does give this some sort of ending. And truth be told it's energetically done with some funky music and photography - I just wish the script had been stronger.

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