Everything about James Bickert’s “Amazon Hot Box” is pure fun and an absolute delight for those who enjoy schlocky, tongue in cheek goodness.
While visiting South America to “save the turtles”, an innocent college student (Kelsey Carlisle) is captured and thrown into a banana republic prison run by the evil Inga Von Krupp (Ellie Church). From here, she must fight for her life against a crazed group of fellow inmates as well as Von Krupp’s twisted experimentations and her nightmarish torture machine.
Amazon Hot Box is one hell of a fun movie involving banana republics, undercover agents, filthy and lawless prisons, voodoo experimentation, and much, much more.
There’s so much glorious madness going on in this movie that is handled perfectly by writer and director James Bickert. The film is a fast paced and highly entertaining nod to schlock 70’s cinema that is bursting off the screen with filthy color and no shortage of eye candy.
It’s the type of presentation and layered, overlapping story lines that we’ve come to expect from Bickert (Frankenstein Created Bikers).
With so much going on, and a lot that could have been explored a little more, my only complaint (if you could call it that) is that I wish the film were a little longer!
I would have loved to see more of Jordan Phipps as Agent Sixx, or perhaps a look at more of the evil experiments that Inga Von Krupp and her mad scientist Dr. Greeley (Paul McComiskey) were cooking up in the bowels of their lawless prison. A dinner scene shared between the two is just a darkly comic glimpse into how twisted these two are, and it successfully left me wanting to see more of them.
The film’s technical aspects are very impressive, as it sounds and looks fantastic. I had a blast with the practical effects and the wonderfully old, dark and dirty setting for the prison. The fight scenes are playfully choreographed and full of acrobatic kicks and punches until they inevitably end in a wonderful, over-the-top and gory demise.
Tristan Risk makes a beautifully twisted entrance as inmate Val. Establishing her dominance over the new inmates right away by demanding a grotesquely demeaning act from the newly captured Penny (Carlisle), we know right away that Val is neither good nor bad. She is her own animal and plays by her own rules…to a point. And Risk has a devilishly good time with the role, owning it and stealing every scene she’s in. Risk was born for these types of roles.
Another stand out amongst the cast is Jordan Phipps. Every time she’s on screen she radiates a powerful screen presence and has the natural allure of a movie star. Whatever “it” may be that makes someone an undeniable star, Jordan Phipps has “it”. If a Barbarella remake is ever in the works, someone please give Phipps a call: she’s a very talented modern day bombshell.
Overall, I highly recommend Amazon Hot Box if you’re looking for a fun, cheeky, brazen good time. Grab some beers, roll some joints and let the good times roll. Amazon Hot Box is a blast.
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