SHAMPOO (1975)

Los Angeles, 1968. Beverly Hills hairdresser George Roundy (Warren Beatty) has dreams of opening his own salon, but doesn't have the money. So, in order to raise the funds, he seduces a client (Lee Grant) and together, they try to convince her wealthy husband (Jack Warden) to finance George's salon. That's unethical as fuck (especially since George has a girlfriend of his own, Goldie Hawn, plus an ex that he’s still sleeping with, Julie Christie), but it has a good chance of working...if George can keep his dong in his britches. Unfortunately, George's sex drive is so out of control that he cannot help but to get in his own way.

As far as pre-RACQUET clones go, SHAMPOO is a good film. Strong acting by an impressive cast, quick pace, awesome fashions, interesting characters, a few funny moments, beautiful Los Angeles locations and some really great music during the party scene that fit absolutely perfect (especially the Buffalo Springfield song).

One thing that did go over my simple (yet still incredibly handsome) brain was all of the political themes and stuff going on in the background. Multiple times throughout the film there's a television featuring coverage of Richard Nixon's election. I don't know what the point of that was or why the film was set in 1968 instead of 1975, but even without understanding that extra layer of the story, I still enjoyed it. Maybe it has something to do with sexual revolution? And speaking of sex…I was surprised by the lack of sex in the film. Yeah, there’s sex talk and implied sex scenes, but SHAMPOO is much tamer than I expected it to be. I’m curious if SHAMPOO was considered risque or controversial when it came out?

Anyway, SHAMPOO is a fun film and worth checking out.  I am a little confused with Lee Grant winning the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role in this film.  I mean, she's definitely good, but it didn't stand out to me as award worthy.

I SAW WHAT YOU DID (1965)

Three young girls (who are as naive as they are stupid) spend an evening prank calling random people. One of their calls triggers a psychotic guy (John Ireland) into murdering his wife and then later on, when they call back saying "I know what you did and I know who you are." he flips out again and murders his nosy neighbor (Joan Crawford)!  Now the only thing he needs to do is silence the person on the phone.

Logic and reality are thrown far, far out the window, but it doesn't matter because I SAW WHAT YOU DID is so campy that I don't see how anybody could watch it and not laugh themselves silly. On the one hand, it tries to pass itself off as a thriller, while at the same time the music would be more suited for a Scooby-Doo cartoon and the teenage girls are just so carefree it's hilarious. Especially towards the end. Holy shit, I don't think I've seen anybody so carefree about nearly getting murdered since THE YOUNG GRADUATES!

John Ireland does a great job as the unhinged killer, Joan Crawford is Joan Crawford and the two actresses playing the teenage girls...well, they're not very good, but their goofy acting actually adds to the charm of the movie. If you're looking for a real horror movie then you'll be disappointed, but if you're just looking for something funny to giggle at then I SAW WHAT YOU DID should fit the bill.

It was kinda interesting to see how this film turned the tables on the infamous PSYCHO shower scene (with the killer being in the shower and the victim being outside) and how the feel and look (especially towards the end) of the movie actually foreshadowed many of the Slasher films that would follow in the coming decades.

Remake - I Saw What You Did (1988)