Woodyanders Review of The Specialist

The Specialist (1975)

An enjoyably dippy serving of melodramatic 70's drive-in junk

[8/10 · 29 January 2009]

Smooth hotshot lawyer Jerry Bounds (a solid performance by Adam West of TV's "Batman" fame) clashes with huffy and powerful rival veteran attorney Pike Smith (a pleasingly crusty and lively portrayal by John Anderson) over a big case involving a water company. Smith hires the sultry and enticing Londa Wyeth (perfectly embodied by the gorgeously voluptuous Ahna Capri) to pose as a jury member and befriend Bounds so he can be disbarred from the profession. Director/co-writer Hikmet Avedis, who also appears in the film as sleazy low-rent private eye Ace Sharkey, relates the engrossingly lurid story at a steady pace, maintains a lighthearted tone throughout, and sprinkles in a handy helping of tasty female nudity (lovely blonde Christianne Schmidtmer has a small, yet memorable role as a nude model while Capri looks positively smashing sans clothes). The sturdy cast of familiar faces helps out a whole lot: Alvy Moore as the lecherous Bailiff Humbolt, Marlene Schmidt as Bounds' concerned, supportive wife Elizabeth, Harvey Jason as Pike's laid-back swinging artist son Hardin Smith, Charles Knopp as hard-nosed Judge Davis, and Chuck Boyd as wimpy law firm head Arthur Farley. Massoud Joseph's crisp cinematography and Shorty Rogers' get-down funky score are both up to speed. Moreover, the insanely groovy theme song sung by Lou Rawls, some amusingly dated slang ("far out"), a hysterically overwrought disbarment trial, and a simply sidesplitting surprise downbeat ending all greatly add to this picture's considerable kitschy appeal. In fact, this movie often plays like an R-rated feature length 70's exploitation version of an episode of "Perry Mason." A fun little diversion.