Trailer Park :: Wicked, Wicked not as Stupid, Stupid as You'd Think.

Wicked, Wicked (1973) MGM: Directed: Richard L. Bare;

Written: Richard L Bare; Produced: Richard L. Bare, William T. Orr;
Cast: Randolph Roberts, David Bailey, Tiffany Bolling, Scott Brady.

When a hotel detective suspects foul play after being unable to track down several guests who skipped without paying their bill, who then apparently fell off the face of the earth, his investigation kicks into high gear when his old flame checks in, who physically matches the description of all the other missing persons -- all female, pretty and blond. Turns out he's right to be concerned because there is a killer loose in the hotel, and he already has his sights locked onto the girl in question as his next victim, a victim just like the others, who will check in but won't check out...

As the legend goes, writer, director and producer, Richard Bare got the idea for Anamorphic DUO-VISION while driving to work one day, and as his mind wandered he noticed the dividing lines on the freeway had two distinct and different perspectives when looked at with one eye at a time. This resultant brainstorm planted the seeds of an idea to make a movie with two simultaneous images. Dusting off an old, unsold script called The Squirrel, Bare tore it apart and then reassembled it to fit his scheme. And after conquering a few logistical obstacles to pound out a new version, he presented the script to his old boss, William T. Orr, whom Bare had worked with on a ton of TV shows for Warner Bros., and together, they took the script and the gimmick to MGM and within 48-hours they had a check and a green light to film.


When filming began, Bare was smart enough not to overload both screens with action as to not confuse the audience. I'm hard pressed to recall a scene that had dialogue happening on both screens at once. Making one frame active and the other passive, DUO-VISION actually kind of works, especially in the scenes where the root cause of the killer's psychosis is revealed via flashback on one screen while he cracks up in the other. The process also works as a lie detector, allowing the audience to see the real truth while characters spin their lies, give false truths, and offer shaky alibis. The film was also one of the first to be released in Stereo, allowing the sound to be split as well.


Where DUO-VISION starts to break down is when one screen is occupied by obvious filler, most notably that batty organist, who provides the mood music for our psycho-drama by pounding out selected movements from The Phantom of the Opera. Apparently, while trying to edit the film together, Bare realized he was short of coverage and had to go back and shoot more footage to fill the gaps. And in the end, it took him almost 8 months to splice a working print together.


For his cast, Bare threw together an actual returning Vietnam veteran making his big-screen debut as the psycho-killer, a Mitchum deodorant spokes-model as their hero, and a failed singer /1970's Scream Queen Almost Was for their heroine. I've always enjoyed Ms. Bolling's work, and though I don't think she's all that good of a singer, by god, she gives it all she's got:

Rounding out the cast is Bare and Orr's old 77 Sunset Strip buddy, Edd Byrnes, Madeline Sherwood as the dotty Gloria Swanson clone, and genre veteran Scott Brady as perhaps the world's crankiest detective. And speaking frankly, though I think DUO-VISION does have its perks, Bare's script isn't up to the task to pull it off.


Filmed at San Diego's historic Hotel del Coronado, Bare claims the film shouldn't be taken all that seriously and should be treated as the goof he had intended. Half Grand Hotel half Grand Guignol, the director insists, the film is pretty laughable, and downright hysterical in spots, but it also gets surprisingly morbid and twisted, especially when we get into Sherwood's back-story and the sexual abuse endured by our villain that set him on his homicidal path, which in turn leads to his collecting hobby and what he has hidden in the hotel's attic. And that ending ... Oh, lord, that ending ... The film also serves as a time-capsule of earth-tone decor and questionable fashion statements -- and I recall one particular scene where a band member's shirt blended in perfectly with the wallpaper. Seriously, all you could see was his cheesy 'stache and rockin' proto-mullet.


Parody or not, audiences didn't get the joke and when Wicked, Wicked fizzled at the box-office a follow up film using the same process was quickly scrapped. Bare claims the failure was due to a lack of publicity, caused by MGM funneling the majority of its money into Las Vegas to build their new casino. And due to it's two-shot gimmick, the film posed a problem for home video release, and what limited VHS tapes there were were cropped down to one frame and the film has been wallowing in obscurity ever since. Wicked, Wicked still hasn't been released on DVD, though it should be, but one can track down some gray market foreign releases. It's also showed up on TCM's Underground in its proper, split-screen ratio. So, the film is out there, and if you have a chance take a look. This kooky, one of a kind piece is well worth your time and effort.