Bikini Bloodbath Carwash (DVD)

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"Caution: Slippery When Slashed." -- Bikini Bloodbath Carwash

Back in February of this year, I reviewed the original "Bikini Bloodbath" and I was pretty harsh on the film. I understood the intention was to deliver a campy and cheesy B-movie, but I just didn't get any of the humor. If I recall correctly I think I only laughed twice, and they were moderate chuckles at best. The rest of the time I couldn't wait until the whole tedious ordeal was over.

Recently, the sequel "Bikini Bloodbath Carwash" came in the mail, and judging from past experience I wasn't all that eager to pop the disc into my DVD player. I mean, I can take gratuitous nudity just fine, but what I can't take is a film that is so paper-thin on substance it requires multiple haphazard music montages in order to fill out an hour and a half. However, part of the job in being a reviewer is giving all movies a fair shake, so I braced myself for impact and decided to let the carnage begin.

Well, I never thought I'd say this, but I think these "Bikini Bloodbath" pictures are starting to rub off on me... just a little. I don't know what happened here exactly, all I know is that it seems writers/directors Jon Gorman and Thomas Edward Seymour put more heart and effort into the script the second time around. They also removed--or at least watered down--practically everything I despised about the original, too. Whether the two filmmakers did this on their own accord or listened to feedback on the first film, they deserve a gold star for taking steps in the right direction. "Bikini Bloodbath Carwash" is far from being a great film by any means and even "good" is probably too generous of a word to describe it, but I no longer have any qualms labeling their film as "mindless fun."

Jenny (Rachael Robbins) is fresh out of high school and now attends Community College University. This wasn't clear at first to me since Robbins replaces Leah Ford from the first project and the actresses look nothing alike. The puzzle pieces eventually fall into place, though, after the new Jenny reminds viewers of how she killed Chef Death (Robert Cosgrove Jr.) and saved the day. Normally it's a huge pet peeve of mine when stars are juggled like this in movies since it's just as easy to create a brand-new character. At any rate, here it manages to work in the film's favor. Robbins is not only very easy on the eyes--she also has this fiery spark about her and it was obvious she was having a ball.

Jenny and her seven girlfriends pay their tuition by slipping into their bikinis and washing cars under the watchful eye of Miss Johnson (Debbie Rochon) who apparently has given up her gym teacher position for the more lustrous lifestyle as a carwash Madame. If I survived a near death experience, I'd surround myself with bikini-clad employees, too.

After work like most college students, the girls like to get together and strip down to their skivvies to party--or am I mistaken for one of my daydreams? Anyway, one evening they decide to mess with a homemade Ouija board and conduct a séance to communicate with one of their dearly departed loved ones. However, they accidentally get the wrong number and make contact with the infamous Chef Death instead. Somehow this reawakens the chef from his eternal slumber, and he crawls out of his grave to continue his killing spree.