Who Killed Teddy Bear

Its cult film status is completely understandable: like a hard-boiled film noir mated with a John Waters flick (after he sold out and went all mainstream). Elaine Stritch is fabulous as the lesbian boss ("I dig soft things...don't you?"). and Sal Mineo displays some real acting chops in a rather poorly-conceived role. I felt truly sorry for his character at several points (and that's due solely to Mineo's ability--not the writing). It's great to see raw footage of a long-vanished New York.

Campy quasi horror noir with acting to match, but it's still a very entertaining movie with a good sense of suspense. It has quite a bit of filler with its dancing scenes, but even those were enjoyable as mood setting, and the story manages to tie them in thematically. The ending is a bit underdone as well, but overall I enjoyed it.

Lurid and sweaty and uncomfortable and fucking awesome. Think a sexploitation version of Taxi Driver.

not least because of its ambiguous sympathies, this is extremely uncomfortable and depraved stuff for 1965, making PSYCHO look like something you'd take your mother to see. "who do we hurt with our 'special likes'? millions of women in the city, why do you suppose we choose this one and not that one? because we can tell, that's why. like a cat or a dog, we can tell. these broads are looking for it. but they gotta blame somebody right? 'rape rape rape!' that way they get it and they stay clean!"

A bit too sordid and squaresville for its own good (or bad), with all sorts of annoyingly Freudian overtones...kind of like Simon & Garfunkel produced a film. But the cast and characters are good, especially the nightclub-owner lady and the detective guy.

Despite salacious calls and physical threats, our heroine never looks more frightened than when she believes an older woman is making a pass at her.

Some shots in the movie function as perfect units of their own, and are true jems.