When watching a film like this I don't expect much, pretty much just filth and maybe bad taste chuckles. The Defiance of Good therefore really wrong footed me by being an ultimately upbeat and pleasurable outing, although to be fair it does spend some time in the gutter. It tells of the unfortunate Cathy (Jean Jennings) who gets busted by her mom on her first time trying cocaine, which proves so traumatic to dear mama that she simply has to send her daughter to a mental asylum for observation. As one might expect, said asylum isn't exactly a place of peace and understanding so young Cathy leaps at the chance to recuperate at the facility of a pleasant seeming Dr Gabriel. She should have paid more attention though, as this Dr. Gabriel happens to be played by Fred "Weasel" Lincoln (its the same stupidity of anyone inviting David Hess to a house party), so things still ain't exactly roses. But in an unconventional way things all wind up on the bright side. The message seems to be a clear one, systems of control as represented by middle class paranoia and medical institutions are a grim and needless restriction upon those that they intend to protect, and only by accepting, even revelling in that which is forbidden can one be truly free. Which is not, it has to be said, a philosophically sound message, but here it works as a means of cutting through some basic absurdities and social ills that are clearly recognisable as such. Plus its always sweet to see a lovely young lady embracing the dark side, gotta love that dark side. Message aside, this is mostly just plain cool stuff. Director Armand Weston shows a real flair for the sinister in scenes involving Cathy and her fellow inmates, scenes of sexual violence (particularly a gang rape) are enhanced by rocking guitar and there's some very funny dialogue including the gem of a post rape exchange "Why didn't you tell the nurse you needed a Tampax?" "Because that's not menstrual blood!". Jean Jennings alternates between convincing and amusingly hammy but makes up for any lapses with sheer beauty, Day Jason is equally easy on the eye as her friend, while Fred Lincoln is a pleasure as unconventional psychiatrist cum sex guru Dr. Gabriel, a wise authoritarian perv who somehow made me think of a high monk from an old school kung fu flick. His chief assistant deserves a mention too, can't act worth a damn but she wields a whip like a goddess. I could have done with a lot more disciplinary action in the second half (no geometry sweeter than welts on a pure young ass) but things move at such a blissful clip that I wasn't too irritated. And the sex is all pretty hot, which counts for a lot. Overall this is well worth a look for genre fans, good sexy and seamy stuff even though it ain't earth shattering or anything.
Review of The Defiance of Good
