Kansas City Bomber (1972) User Reviews

Raquel Welch proves that she is more than just a sex symbol

[gridoon · 6/10 · 22 November 2007]

Legitimate sex symbols like Raquel Welch have always had to face the (sexist) prejudice of the "since they're so beautiful, they can't act" variety (of course, this often extends to male stars as well - Richard Gere, for example). But Raquel gives a fine performance in "Kansas City Bomber" - quiet when it needs to be, spirited when it needs to be. And she was not the same type of sex symbol that Marilyn Monroe was: she was highly athletic, and in this movie you can see her roller-skating, punching, kicking, headlocking, elbow-dropping, jumping, ducking, taking bumps, rolling around on the ground (including a memorable catfight right next to some train tracks!), etc. It's a physically challenging role, and Raquel is more than up to the challenge. The movie does feel aimless and repetitive at times, the ending doesn't really resolve much and Kevin McCarthy is not exactly the most believable romantic partner for Raquel, but her fans, as well as fans of movies about women in sports, will probably find enough of interest here. (**1/2)

* Another recommendation: the pro-wrestling film "All The Marbles".

Raquel Welch giving it her all...

[JasparLamarCrabb · 5/10 · 12 January 2013]

Not bad. Raquel Welch gives it her all living through the trial & tribulations of a professional roller derby queen. Exiled from Kansas City, she's drafted by sleazy derby owner Kevin McCarthy to play in Portland. She runs afoul of most of her team-mates (particularly star player Helena Kallianiotes). Welch is fine, giving a surprisingly good performance and Kallianiotes is dynamite. McCarthy is suitably nasty. Jeanne Cooper is excellent as a tough as nails coach. It's unfortunate that Jerrold Freedman's direction is so lackluster, the only real excitement occurs on the derby rink. Most of the dramatic interplay off the rink is further stymied by silly dialog. Nevertheless, it's an entertaining film. The cinematography is by Fred J. Koenekamp, who shot four other features in 1972! Jodie Foster plays Welch's daughter.

Casey Junior.

[morrison-dylan-fan · 6/10 · 5 December 2015]

Talking to a family friend about movies he was after,I got told about a roller derby Drama (!) starring Raquel Welch.Despite having seen photos of her for year I have never got round to seeing a movie featuring Welch,which led to me deciding that it was time to let Welch roll in.

The plot:

Losing a "loser must leave the team" challenge,roller derby player K.C. Carr starts to fear about how she is going to put food on the table for her daughters.Seeing K.C. as one of the stars of the team,sports mogul Burt Henry decides to off Carr a spot on the team.Accepting the offer,K.C. soon finds herself on a whirlwind tour and romance with Henry.As her teammates start to suspect K.C. of gaining her spot from favouritism,Carr begins hearing complains from home about why she is rolling away from them all.

View on the film:

Before I get to the film,I have to mention that whilst the title has some grain,Warner Archives have given the title a very good transfer,with the clear soundtrack allowing for every glide across the track to be swiftly heard.

Filmed in actual roller derby stadiums,director Jerrold Freedman & cinematographer Fred J. Koenekamp spin the sports action with a stomping energy,as rapid shot close ups allow the viewer to see every thump and punch that K.C. and her team give and take.Along with scanning the venues for the most "unique" crowd members, Freedman also glides long tracking shots across the pitch,which along with opening up the whole location,also shows K.C. getting deeper into the business.

Waiting weeks for Welch to respond after passing Welch the script at her door,the screenplay by Barry Sandler (with additional work from Calvin Clements Sr. & Thomas Rickman) keeps the film spinning at a warm hearted pace,thanks to Sandler cross training funny slap-stick antics on the track,with a tough,determined thread around single mother K.C. Breaking her wrists whist practising for the title,the very pretty Welch gives a great performance as K.C. Carr,whose sweet nature care towards her kids and her teammates is connected by Welch to a joyfully ruthlessness in ending up ahead of all the doubters,as K.C. junior goes down the (roller derby) track.

This movie has a lot to offer...

[bfjrnski · 3 October 2001]

Kansas City Bomber is both a gritty,realistic action film and a perfect showcase for the talents of Raquel Welch! The film opens with a (staged) match-race which sests the tone for the rest of the story... Raquel portrays Diane"KC"Carr-a beautiful,dissallusional mother of two who has become a pro-skater for both the money and the desire to succeed in something for HERSELF!Her two children(curiously about the same ages as Raquels kids in real-life) live in Kansas City with her concerned yet old-fashioned mother.KC's mother of course wants her to quit the life on the road and simply come home to the kids.KC says she just needs"a piece of the action" but we can tell that Mom's advice IS sinking in! Meanwhile life on the road as a pro-skater is no bed of roses: KC's new team the Portland Loggers is managed by the shifty and suave Burt Henry-Mr. Henry has "big plans" for KC-not to mention making her his(latest?) love interest!Much to the dismay of the other girls on the team-especially the aging,alcoholic,scrapper Jackie Burdett. Mr.Henry's idea of achieving his 'big plans' involve elevating KC's status at whatever the cost! Will he succeed? Or will KC's better judgement win out? Aside from the obvious plot drama,Kansas City Bomber is probably the first movie to reveal the life of second-rate athletes.This movie takes some chances with showing it's skaters as they were in the 1970s-mostly middle-aged and lonely! They travel from city to city in buses,hang out together in cheap bars,and get no other joys from their lives-except while signing thier fans autographs! I especially appreciate the way that the filmakers resisted the temptation to glamourize the sport of pro-skating-instead they have portrayed it mostly as it was in the 70s-a dying sport! These skaters perform to dingy and half-empty arenas and expo centers-populated with the elderly,disabled and too young patrons! Clearly nobody is getting rich here-EXCEPT for the sleazy Mr.Henry!

A 1970's romp on wheels

[ThomasColquith · 4/10 · 25 September 2021]

K. C. Bomber is clearly not a masterpiece, nor is it supposed to be, but it is watchable and is slightly entertaining. Though its greatest use now may be as a time capsule, giving the modern audience a small window into its era of 1972, a time when roller skating was hip and single working mothers were becoming more common. Watch if you like, or not. 4/10.

Raquel broke her wrist, giving this movie her all.

[curly-17 · 7/10 · 5 September 2000]

Raquel Welch broke her wrist doing some of her own stunts, in this movie where action is all-important, and plot non-existent. In 1972, by her own admission, Raquel Welch was a sex goddess who hasn't turned serious actress -- and "Kansas City Bomber" changed nothing. Raquel said in an interview at the time, that when she was growing up in La Jolla, CA, she would sometimes strap on a pair of skates and clank all the way from her porch to her garage and back. When she was 7, she put the skates away and didn't skate again until a year ago when she began readying herself for "Kansas City Bomber." Raquel reported to a banked oval track built for her on a Hollywood lot, where she skated 5 hours a day for 3 months. Her tutor was famous skater Paul Rupert who skated along beside her, coaching her and teaching her the basics of 5 strides on the banked track, how to take falls (fall backwards -- if you fall forwards you could break a wrist), and everything else she needed to know.

There is almost no time for any love interest in this movie, what with the all the Roller Games and bruising grudge matches. Whatever its dramatic shortcomings, and there are many, "Kansas City Bomber" does offer Raquel looking good even in pads, some authentically seedy roller skating locales, and real heroes and villains of the banked track. Sharp-eyed fans will recognize real-life Roller Games players from the L.A. Thunderbirds: tall John Hall, and big blocker Danny "Carrot Top" Reilly; the games announcer even mentions the names of top jammer Ralphie Valladares, and Ronnie "Psycho" Rains (with a beard), and "Little" Richard Brown -- who is still skating (now in Roller Jam) almost 30 years later! The game they play is some hybrid of Roller Derby and Roller Games that does not exist in real life. It lends a surreal atmosphere which is appropriate. Raquel's nemesis on the banked track is Helena Kallianiotes, a Belly Dancer in "Head" (1968). Try suspension of disbelief, and you will enjoy this movie forever ("and forever is a long, long time!")

Glam Girl skates her way thru the northwest

[DJJOEINC · 3/10 · 5 July 2007]

Kansas City Bomber-Raquel Welch is K.C. Starr in this film about the roller game(never once is the phrase roller derby uttered).This 1972 camp classic follows Welch as she adds color to the confusing sport by challenging teammates to loser leave town match races.In one of the most chemistry free on-screen couplings I have witnessed she sleeps with the owner of the Portland Loggers(Kevin McCarthy)- I guess to secure her position on the team-although with her look and stunt-doubles skills it seems like an arbitrary and unneeded relationship.She is a single mom trying to earn money for her children(her daughter is portrayed by a young Jodie Foster)and in one of the many unintentionally funny scenes of the movie her son will not speak to her and actually backs away from her- the mix of Raquel's terrible acting and the Don Ellis score(a good score wasted on this schlock) make the scene a memorable howler.Most of the movie is dedicated to the skating and fighting scenes- simply terrible fake fighting and tons of crowd shots with an audience full of people with no dental insurance and thrift store clothing.This movie has tons of odd setups and long takes,mixed with odd montages.We also have an Of Mice and Men pairing as KC pals around with the team enforcer Horrible Hank Hopkins.Of course HHH flips out during the third act trying to add "color" for the boss.This movie was one of the few movies by director Jerold Freeman(who after his next film A Cold Night's Death spent the rest of his career directing for television).So bad it's good- the DVD has the original theatrical trailer.If you like the campy and the ridiculous then give this one a rental. D-

This time lets skate it for real

[sol-kay · 7/10 · 5 January 2009]

(Some Spoilers) Refreshing honest movie about the world of Roller Derby skating involving the somewhat insecure,in most of her scenes, as well as hard hitting Recquel Welch as Roller Derby star K.C Carr. Having been banned from the Kansas City Bombers after losing a match race to her rival on the team the some 250 pound Big Bertha Boglinai, Patti "Moo Moo" Cavin, K.C's, or Dianne, was picked up by Roller Derby mogul Burt Henry, Kevin McCarthy, who owns the championship Portland Loggers.

On the Logger team K.C' presence starts to set off alarm bells with the teams star rammer Jackie Burdette, Helena Kallianiotes, who feels, rightfully so, that K.C will eventually replace her as the team captain and star. K,C for her part just want's to be a team player but it's the manipulative Henry who has other plans for her. Besides wanting K,C to replace Jackie as the star attraction on the Loggers he also wants to get her into the sack with him!

Trying not to make waves with her teammates K.C's attraction to the teams owner, Burt Henry, has them turn on her feeling that she's using her sexy body to get ahead at their expense. It's when K.C gets involved, in a non-sexual relationship, with one of the male members of the Loggers the gentle giant "Horrible Hank" Hopkins, Norman Alden, that a jealous Henry starts to manipulate him as well. Right out of the Logger's staring lineup and eventually, by being traded, the team itself!

Having Hank put some "color" into his act Henry has the poor guy lose it all at a game where he ends up almost beaten unconscious by the opposing players. Trying to come to K.C's rescue, who's being unmercifully attack by both the women and men of the opposing team,Hank ends up being plummeted with both fists and kicks as well as pelted, with cups and bottlers as well as folding chairs, by the outraged separators! Told by a very pi**ed off Henry that he's been traded and to pack up and get out of town Hank completely breaks down and starts skating, making hog calls, around an empty skating ring until he's wrestled to the ground cuffed and taken away by the arena security guards.

K.C who was always very kind and understanding to the love sick Hank ends up getting the short end of the stick from him. Hank feels, like almost everyone else on the Loggers, that K.C used her body to not only get ahead but get him canned by her "lover" Burt Henry. It's then that Henry comes up with another one of his hair brained scheme's to get people to attend the Logger games in promoting a match race between K.C and her rival Jackie with the loser having to leave Portland forever; and forever is a long long long time!

***SPOILERS*** With the fix in the two championship skaters are told in advance who's to end up winning the race. It's then that both K.C and Jackie decide, despite being in jeopardy of being banned from the sport for life, to see who's really the best without Henry, or anyone else, deciding it for them.

P.S look for a 10 year old Jodie Foster in the film as K.C's daughter Rita. The very exciting and heart lifting ending in the movie "Kansas City Bomber" was used some three years later in the 1975 futuristic classic "Rollerball". That movie had James Caan, the male version of K.C Carr in the film, as the undefeated Rollerball champ Johnathan E.

Nothing special here, but it certainly kills time amiably enough.

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 10 August 2018]

Renowned sex symbol Raquel Welch is front and centre as Diane "K.C." Carr, a reigning roller derby star who is obliged to leave town early in the tale. She signs up to play for leering team owner Burt Henry (Kevin McCarthy), the kind of guy who ultimately does what's good for business. She must overcome the vindictiveness of another player, Jackie Burdette (Helena Kallianiotes), who'd previously been the big cheese of the team, and fend off advances from horny pig teammates. In the meantime, single mother K.C. ends up with little time for her two kids (the daughter is played by Jodie Foster, in one of her earliest roles).

The script here is just okay, but at least it manages to entertain, and create a key emotional moment for teammate Horrible Hank Hopkins (character actor Norman Alden, giving the movies' standout performance). What is striking is the way that this fad of the 70s has definite similarities to pro wrestling: the colourful personalities, the bone-crunching brutality, the circus-like nature of the sport, life on the road, and the frequent smack-talking. This helps the picture to at least be a reasonably good artifact of time and place, if not a great film. The action on the track is pretty damn amusing, and adding a degree of authenticity is the presence of real-life roller derby players of the period. Decent location shooting in Kansas City, Fresno, and Portland is an asset.

Raquel is very appealing and also quite convincing in a very physical role, giving as good as she gets. McCarthy is fine as the unlikely romantic partner for her. Kallianiotes is one of those antagonists whom you do come to understand and sympathize with, to some degree. Jeanne Cooper, Katherine Pass, Cornelia Sharpe, William Gray Espy, Richard Lane, and Russ Marin round out a solid supporting cast. If you're watching it for Jodie, be advised that her role is actually quite minor.

Overall, a watchable picture, certain to appeal to fans of Raquel and roller derby in general.

Seven out of 10.

Shame on You America, for Stubbornly Refusing to Give Raquel Welch the Professional Recognition She So Desperately Strived for and Deserved!

[TonyKissCastillo · 9/10 · 31 January 2016]

Loana-NO PHOTO AVAILABLE! This is what you are greeted with on IMDb when you click on the character name of Raquel Welch from ONE MILLION B.C….Considering her iconic fur-bikini clad image was the best-selling poster EVER until Farah Fawcett came along a decade later, I find this fact to be just beyond the limits of my Suspension of Disbelief! I imagine that someone, somewhere, feels that Jo Raquel Tejada deserves a break….And believe me, I could not possibly be in more agreement with that decision! With its miserable 5.4 IMDb rating, and MEASLY 711 votes, (To be crystal….That's considerably LESS than the 1,000 votes needed to be taken seriously here!) I state, most emphatically, that BOMBER is the most underrated film of the thousands on which I have voted on this website! Believe me, I have NEVER made the previous comment before!

Here is a film which parallels the intense focus of its lead character, K.C. Carr, on the somewhat seamy world of professional team roller-skating. For those of you under 40, this sport (or is that exhibition?) enjoyed a considerable cult following in the 50's, 60's and 70's. BOMBER does not pretend to offer us romance or glamor or alternate back-stories…Just a gritty and intense focus on K.C. Carr and her obsession to excel in team-skating. Perhaps, this is a bit of a metaphor for her desperation to be taken seriously as an actress? How do I recall so clearly a film released well over 40 years ago? That's a fair question!

Well, when HANNIE CAULDER was released in 1971, I thought the film was rather under-appreciated by both the critics and the public alike and, even much more obvious, was the undeserved nature of the almost universal panning of Ms. Welch's performance in the title role! There was a growing vocal tide of resentment in the media against Raquel Welch. When BOMBER was released, the media was awash in Raquel Welch jokes…Johnny Carson quipped: "Hey, how about that new Raquel Welch movie…Kansas City BOMBER…Talk about accurate Box-Office Predictions!!!" Ahhhhh…Ms. Welch has been haunted, for most of her career, by the ghost of Loana (Photo Seared into our Collective Cultural Memory!) So, I paid to see BOMBER on three occasions in 1972, applying my most critical eye! All I could see was a very skilled actress whose interpretation permeated every cell of her being. I suppose I was one of a very select group who saw it that way! BOMBER does have a lot more going for it than just the title role…Helena Kallianiotes turns in an excellent performance in a Golden Globe nominated supporting role.

BOMBER displays even handed direction that immerses us in the very realistic, rather seedy world of professional team skating. The technical excellence of the filming and editing of the on track scenes also cannot be overlooked. Although you might not rate it 9*, as I did, if you can manage to see BOMBER with an open mind, I am sure you will find it both entertaining and worthwhile!

ENJOY!/DISFRUTELA! Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most welcome!

Dark Sports Movie

[sambase-38773 · 7/10 · 24 September 2021]

It took some courage to make a sports movie like this, one that's cynical about everything, including the sport it's highlighting. Sports movies today (ever since "Rocky") are usually uplifting and positive and as such feel kind of fake and silly. But this movie is nothing like that. It takes you right down into the gutter of life. And at times it can be kind of depressing to watch. In fact, one of the main characters is a clinically depressed alcoholic very effectively played by Helena Kallianiotes, who was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for this role. But as the movie goes along you feel like you're watching something real, even though the sport itself is supposed to be "fake".

And Raquel Welch gives a very real performance. Her character is gritty, sad, lonely, and vulnerable, and Raquel captures all of that very effectively. She tries to work her way through all the cynicism, even her own.

If you prefer dark and gritty sports movies then you might enjoy this. And, of course, Raquel Welch is in it and that's always a big plus.

Soap Opera on Roller Skates

[Sargebri · 10 July 2004]

Let me get this out of the way, not only was I a huge roller derby fan, Raquel Welch was my first pubescent crush. I was only six at the time this film was released and I every Saturday afternoon I would sit glued to the set watching my favorite team, the Los Angeles Thunderbirds do battle every week with their rivals. Now when I heard that there was a movie about the roller derby coming out, I was extremely excited. Also, when I saw Raquel Welch on the cover of Life Magazine, I really got excited. However, I had to wait a few years to see this movie on television and when I did, I couldn't see what I made a fuss about. Sure, Ms. Welch was hot in this film and the skating sequences were excellent, but as far as the story goes, you can have it. The story was nothing but pure soap opera. The only thing I really enjoyed about this film was Norman Alden's performance as the aging roller derby star who acted as sort of a big brother to K.C.. Other than that and the skating sequences, this movie fell flat. However, if you want to see what made roller derby big in the 1970's, this film is for you.

k c bomber

[mossgrymk · 6/10 · 14 October 2021]

A movie that cries out for the Michael Ritchie or Robert Altman treatment is instead outsourced to the too somber Jerrold Freedman and the result is a roller derby film with virtually no laughs or fun. Also, the usually good scenarists Tom Rickman ("Coal Miners Daughter") and Calvin Clements (of "Gunsmoke" fame) provide rather flat, unmemorable dialogue. So, aside from a decent Raquel Welch performance, and a bit better than decent Helena Kallianiotes, as well as their shapely bods, there's not much to hold onto. C plus.

Raquel skates like a truck!

[Boyo-2 · 7/10 · 14 September 2000]

As a kid I lived and breathed the Roller Derby. When this movie came out and it was so seedy, it was interesting only as a B-movie, with a big star, and nothing more. It has too many scenes of poor K.C. Carr (Raquel) moaning and groaning over something. No one gives the girl a break - her mother (Martine Bartlett, who played another monster mother to Sally Field in TV's "Sybil"), is tired of watching her kid (Jodie Foster!) and does not understand why the woman is doing what she is doing for a living. Her teammates and the opposition all dislike her, for some reason - all so that in the final scenes K.C. finally does what she wants and says to hell with anything and anyone else. Its not exactly the finest moment of liberation you've ever seen, but it'll do.

Raquel also rarely appeared in skates - her double is seen more than she is. Maybe the double should have done the acting as well.

Thrills and Spills

[Uriah43 · 6/10 · 4 September 2013]

"K. C. Carr" (Raquel Welch) is a jammer for the Kansas City Ramblers roller derby team and has just been traded to the Portland Loggers. The problem is Portland already has a jammer named "Jackie Burdette" (Helena Kallianiotes) who has been there 6 years and is the captain of the team and she has no intention of surrendering her position. The owner, "Burt Henry" (Kevin McCarthy) believes that K.C. is the future but at the same time doesn't mind a heated rivalry because it sells tickets. What he doesn't quite realize is just how serious the rivalry will become. Be that as it may, while the drama and some of the acting is a bit heavy, this film still delivers enough thrills and spills to be entertaining. Likewise, the presence of two attractive actresses like Racquel Welch and Helena Kallianiotes certainly doesn't hurt either. One thing I will say, however, is that this film is somewhat dated and it could probably use a modern remake. But other than that I found it enjoyable and rate it as slightly above average.

Could Have Been Better

[garyldibert · 7/10 · 19 February 2008]

This movie hit the theaters on August 2 1972 starring the gorgeous Raquel Welch as KC Carr, Kevin McCarthy as Burt Henry and Helena Kallianiotes as Jackie Burdette. KC Carr plays roller derby and she skates for the Kansas City Bombers. However, KC starts have problems with one of the other skaters. So the owner of the Bombers promotes a five lap match between the two stars with the loser leaving Kansas City forgive. Meanwhile the team announces that KC Carr was traded to the Portland Loggers. However, the Renegades claim her first so now she has to skate for the Renegades until her contract problems are straighten out. After a few games with the Renegades Burt Henry, the owner of the Loggers gets KC Contract problems fix so now she's skating for the loggers. However, there's one skater on the team that's not happy with the trade and that's Jackie Burdette the teams captain. After KC settles down with the team things start to happen and skaters start being traded and KC and the owner start seeing each other on the side. As KC stock continues to rise, KC Children start to resent her making things difficult for KC to continue skating. Now some personal thoughts on this picture itself. Over all I thought the movie could've had a better story line. The acting in the movie wasn't bad either. However, if you're a Raquel Welch fan then you'll like this movie. She was excellent in this picture as she is in all of her movies. It's to bad that she had to bruise her body like that. I sure would've like to been the trainer to her keep that body in the shape that it was in. Even though the movie lacks interest at times, I'm going to give this picture 7 weasel stars. Without Raquel being the leading actress in this picture, this movie would have been awful.

Wrestling On Wheels

[Lechuguilla · 20 May 2010]

Bruising action and bruised egos propel the plot in this look at the pro roller derby world of the early 1970s. Raquel Welch plays K.C. Carr, a physically tough but emotionally vulnerable young woman who can "jam" with the best of them. For K.C., her job as a player pays the bills, but it keeps her on the road, separated from her two young, fatherless children.

I would estimate that roughly fifty percent of the film takes place in an indoor rink, where skaters go lap after lap around the rink, trying to gain advantage on each other, as the audience cheers and jeers, depending on who they like and don't like. The film portrays fans as low-class, uneducated dolts, oblivious to their obvious manipulation by franchise owner Mr. Henry (Kevin McCarthy), who carefully orchestrates skater performances. The seedy backstage world of pro skating reeks of cheap quarters and beer joints. Among the players, jealousies, anger, and fear lurk just below the surface.

Aside from the roller derby element, the story is rather thin. But it does end in a somewhat surprising way.

Raquel Welch gives a really fine performance, even though she's just a tad too "pretty", relative to the other women skaters. K.C. wants to get along and be a team player, but her adversaries give her a rough time. Welch gives her character an emotional depth that makes K.C. warm-hearted despite her physical toughness.

Lighting is very dark, which matches the film's dreary, downbeat tone throughout. Camera shots are quite effective in the fast changing skating action.

Owing to its narrow focus, "Kansas City Bomber" will be of interest to a very restricted base of potential viewers. Beyond this base, the film is worth a look for the fine performance of Raquel Welch.

Surprisingly good....and what a departure for Welch.

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 14 October 2021]

Raquel Welch took a huge career departure in playing the lead in "Kansas City Bomber". While it's not an especially deep film in some ways, it sure stretches her talents.

When the story begins, K. C. Carr (Welch) is traded from her roller derby team to one in Portland. Why? Because the owner of the Portland team (Kevin McCarthy) wants her on the team and plans on building her up to a top star. After all, she's talented and beautiful. However, soon it becomes apparent that the owner is pretty cutthroat....and he begins firing players who stand in the way of his dream team. As a result, the players hate K. C. and make her stay in Portland a tough one. What's next? See the film.

I am not sure how many actresses would agree to a role like Welch's. After all, the skating was rather dangerous....as Welch learned when she was practicing for the film (see IMDB trivia for more on this). It took guts...and I appreciate it. I also appreciate that although she is a lovely lady, the film often de-emphasized this and sure could have been an exploitation flick.

Overall, a far better film than you'd expect. Is it great? No...but it is never dull and is rather entertaining.

Welch doing roller derby

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 25 March 2021]

K.C. Carr (Raquel Welch) is a leader of the roller derby team, Kansas City Ramblers. She gets challenged by a teammate in a match race. The contest is rigged. She loses and is banished from the team. She joins the Portland Loggers owned by Burt Henry (Kevin McCarthy).

This is roller derby and Raquel Welch. I expected this to be full-on exploitation. There are some elements of that but this is more a story about the curse of being beautiful. Men fall over themselves and cause problems for her. Women get jealous and cause problems for her. Her one girlfriend gets sabotaged by a possessive man and she gets blamed for it anyways. It's interesting that this movie is actually about something. The roller derby action is also lots of low-rent fun. On the other hand, this would be better if it adheres to more sports movie construction. In a more standard sports movie, Big Bertha would be her ultimate rival and K.C. would gain the trust of her teammates to defeat Big Bertha in the big finale. That would be a more successful story.

super sexy Raquel on wheels

[jimakros · 6/10 · 3 May 2021]

I saw this when i was a kid and i couldnrt imagine any woman in the world sexier than Raquel Welch. She did look incredible in those days and thats the whole thing about this movie. The drama about a single mother trying to work as a pro skater and bringing up two kids is not believable for a second. The character Raquel plays wouldnt have two kids.

The other problem is there are many dangerous stunts in this movie and its unfortuanately more than obvious the stunt double for Raquel is a guy with a wig which looks really bad..They didnt have many stunt women in those days.

Raquel Welch excels in this seedy sleeper

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 24 October 2017]

Weary, but resilient roller derby queen K.C. Carr (a surprisingly gutsy and credible performance by Raquel Welch) has a difficult time finding a balance between her sports super stardom and her chaotic personal life.

Director Jerrold Freedman relates the absorbing story at a steady pace, grounds the premise in a plausibly sordid workday reality, maintains a gritty and cynical downbeat tone throughout, astutely captures the raw brutality and fierce behind-the scenes scheming and backstabbing of the sport, and stages the exciting rough'n'tumble roller derby games with considerable aplomb. The hard-hitting script by Thomas Brickman and Calvin Clements admirably refuses to either sanitize or romanticize the seamy world of roller derby: Considering how even the star players are deemed expandable by smarmy and manipulative team owner Burt Henry (well played to slimy perfection by Kevin McCarthy) and anyone can be traded to another team at a moment's notice, K.C.'s winning of a grudge match between herself and bitter alcoholic rival Jackie Burdette (a strong and touching portrayal by Helen Kallianiotes) that she's supposed to lose registers as both an act of angry defiance and a bold assertion of independence.

Welch brings a winning steely resolve to the character of K.C. and earns bonus points for performing the bulk of her own stunts. Moreover, there are sturdy supporting contributions from Norman Alden as aging, but amiable jammer Horrible Hank Hopkins, Jeanne Cooper as no-nonsense manager Vivien, Katherine Pass as the sweet Lovey, Martine Bartlett as K.C.'s disapproving mother, and William Gray Espy as sleazy horndog Randy. Jodie Foster has a small part as K.C.'s estranged daughter Rita. Fred Koenekamp's proficient cinematography provides a pleasing polished look. A real solid and satisfying movie.

One of my greatest guilty pleasures

[raykeller · 8/10 · 21 November 2001]

OK, so before Raquel became a "serious" actress, she did a number of fluffy, inconsequential films which displayed far more of her physical attributes than any heavy-duty acting chops. This film (while keeping la Raquel covered, for the most part) pretty much falls into "fluffy": good-hearted but lonely divorceé Diane "KC" Carr tries to make it in the Roller Games circuit, clashing with female cohorts and dodging male advances. Being a huge fan of Roller Games during the early 70s, I was thrilled that this film featured a number of RollerGame stars who were big at the time. Toss in a love affair between KC and a manipulative team owner, stir in strained relationships between KC & her mother and KC and one of her two young children (one played by a young Jodie Foster), add a bitter rivalry with fading Roller Games queen Jackie (excellent Golden Globe nominated performance by Helena Kallianiotes) and there hangs the drama. Kevin McCarthy oozes as the pawn-shifting team owner, and pulls off the love-interest quite believably in spite of the fact he is 26 years her senior! Overall, a good effort (with La Raquel executive producing) and a check-your-brains-at-the-door kind of movie, but one I still love to curl up in front of... even while folding laundry.

As of March 15, 2005, I just learned that the movie is finally scheduled for DVD release May 31, 2005. For those of you who have bought previous DVD versions, you're probably already aware that they're cheesy bootleg copies, mostly taped from TV then transferred to DVD-R; says the seller, "I bought this at a convention, so that's why the picture isn't so great."

Roller Derby Black and Blues.

[copper1963 · 8/10 · 20 April 2006]

Much like pro-wrestling, roller derby was pure entertainment. Fake. A put on, really. But nothing about Raquel Welch was fraudulent. At the time this movie was made, she was thirty-two and prime choice. Her role (roller derby siren) is athletic, sexy, dramatic, physical, and smashes, forever, the starlet mold she had been frozen in for years. Never again would she achieve such a perfect mix in the acting arena. She has a great introduction: we see only her lower body (legs and skates) moving through darkness, as Don Ellis' rousing score penetrates the blackness. She has an entrance even an emperor would give thumbs up to. I like how she turns (briefly) the wrong way during the National Anthem. Your other left, Raquel. Cute. Jodie Forster plays her hero-worshiping daughter with a heavy dose of arsenic. Kevin McCarthy is the devious, unethical owner of the roller derby club. Raquel's fellow skaters, especially Hellena Kallianiotas and Norman Alden, give excellent support. I believe that Miss Kallianiotes inhabits one of the most depressing characters ever seen in a sports film. She is a loner. And she drinks bourbon from a brown paper bag--all the while alienating fans, teammates, and ownership. The film's cameraman performs magic with his gorgeous on location shooting in Portland. Also, there are some very unusual and lengthy tracking shots at a marina and through a hotel. Fantastic. Watch for the freeze-frame shot at the conclusion of the movie. It foreshadows James Caan's iconic pose in the upcoming Rollerball. Both films visualize an out of control society: where rules and fair play don't exist. I like how McCarthy's character barges into the ladies locker room, helps himself to a drink, and makes himself at home with his half-dressed female skaters. Later, he lets slip a business confession: "Everyone is bought and sold--including you and me." Telling.

Compelling 70s sports drama.

[sonya90028 · 10/10 · 6 December 2008]

I first saw Kansas City Bomber, when it was released in 1972. It capitalized on the roller derby craze, that was in full-swing back then. Roller derby's massive popularity, turned out to be a flash-in-the-pan thing. But it was a wild, exhilarating sport, while it lasted. There has been a resurgence of roller derby in recent years. But it just doesn't have the thrilling, visceral excitement, of roller derby in the 70s.

In her meatiest film role ever, Raquel Welch stars as KC Carr, a divorcée and mother of two. KC skates for her local roller derby team, the Kansas City Bombers. KC insists on pursuing her roller derby career, against the wishes of her matronly mother. KC skates, 'cause she 'just wants a piece of the action'. But her mother just doesn't get it. Neither does KC's young son, who even flees from KC, whenever she tries to relate to him.

Burt Henry (played with oily charm by Kevin McCarthy) spots KC, during a skating match. Burt happens to own the Portland Loggers skating team, and recruits KC to join-up. He has more on his mind, than KC's skating talent. Burt pursues a romantic relationship with KC, and she swiftly succumbs. From there, KC's relationships with her teammates deteriorates. First, her house-mate, named Lovey, gets traded to the Denver skating team. She accuses KC of persuading Henry to get rid of her. KC insists she's innocent, but to no avail.

KC also has a volatile relationship, with the Portland Logger's star skater, Jackie Burdett. From the beginning, Jackie shuns KC, and she sees KC as a threat to her position on the team. Particularly since KC is romantically involved, with Burt Henry. Jackie is her own worst enemy though. She drowns her sorrows in liquor, which she constantly swills from a brown paper bag. Jackie is also alienated from her teammates, and can't seem to pull herself out of her snarling, alcoholic apathy.

KC is befriended by a teammate, nicknamed 'horrible' Hank Hopkins. Hank is a dim, yet kindly bear of a man. KC feels protective of Hank, because he's constantly ridiculed by the others on the team, and the roller derby audience. Hank confides his insecurities to KC about being fired, because he's not a young skater anymore. To prove himself fit to compete, Hank goes way overboard and incites a violent brawl, with the opposing team one evening. Burt Henry witnesses this from his office, and fires Hank.

Hank returns to the skating area after the game, expressing his devastation at being canned by Burt Henry. Weeping profusely, Hank begs Henry to give him his job back, while having to be pried loose from Mr. Henry's ankles, by security guards. Hank also screams at KC, (who arrived to help reason with Hank) while being dragged from the scene, that he thinks KC was involved in getting him fired by Mr. Henry. It's the most wrenching scene in the film.

Hank's ouster from the team, is a prime example of the fragile nature of being a roller derby star. Any of them could be replaced in a heartbeat, at the whim of their team owners. Roller derby may have seemed so cool to the fans. But, as the movie shows, the life of a skater is anything but glamorous. The skaters travel via crowded buses, from venue to venue. Along the way, they deal with the instability and loneliness, that is a part of the roller derby life for the skaters.

The performances in this film, are heartfelt, and authentic. The overall ambiance of the movie, deftly reflects the shaky hopes of the skaters who hope to become, or stay, roller derby stars. Even if you're not a big fan of the roller derby, or Raquel Welch, I highly recommend this compelling sports drama.

Raquel on wheels

[moonspinner55 · 9/10 · 14 January 2001]

Raquel Welch in one of her best movies: a gritty look at roller derby with an unusual point of view, the protagonist being a sexy woman in #11 track uniforms. Film casts a jaundiced eye at roller derby audiences (seen at certain points are children, mentally-challenged twins, and older folks cheering the violent brawls and making obscene gestures, and a little old lady who spends all her money on roller derby games). Yet it's also a tough and sometimes sad character-study about one woman trying to do her best with what she's got. Raquel ends up dating the team's owner, but gets on the wrong side of her teammates (all of them!) and has to fight for her dignity and self-worth. No-nonsense script, a direction with few frills, solid supporting cast (including Jodie Foster in a bit), and Don Ellis' jazzy background score make "Kansas City Bomber" a drive-in classic. ***1/2 from ****