BY TODD GARBARINI
When
I was asked to review a film from 1975 called Supercock, I immediately thought that it sounded like a film that
may have starred the late adult film performer John Holmes who was known the
world over for being extraordinarily, if not freakishly, well-endowed. An
Internet Google search turned up Supercock
– the film I was reviewing and another one that starred John Holmes, a film I only joked about even
existing! The latter didn’t surprise me in the slightest and I breathed a sigh
of relief that I wasn’t being asked to review that film.
Supercock is a comedic outing concerning the
sport of cockfighting with a humorous script that makes as many sexual
inuendoes as you can imagine, to the point of it being a one-note joke that
occasionally draws guffaws, smiles, and even a few rolling eyes. It was usually
double-billed with the Warren Oates/Monte Hellman vehicle Cockfighter (1974). Shot in the Philippines circa 1974, the film
stars the late Ross Hagen as Seth Calhoun, a Western clothing-wearing hotshot
from the United States boasting about his cock, Friendly (a rooster that performs
in cockfights and has a reputation that precedes him). The dialog is insipid as
evinced by the airport scene as Seth walks through Customs and, when asked if
he has anything else to declare, he responds, “Just my cock,†drawing grins
from female onlookers. This is where he meets a taxi driver who calls himself
G.I. Joe (Tony Lorea) and they make an unlikely pairing as they attempt to take
on the highly lucrative industry of cockfighting, with G.I. Joe taking 5% of
the profits. A competitor, Seeno Nono (Subas Herrero), makes a failed attempt
to ingratiate himself with Seth only to find that the latter isn’t for sale.
Seth challenges Seeno Nono to a cockfight with Friendly against three of his best, well, cocks (you get
the picture). You see, Seth’s cock excels at fighting since he has been trained
in a technique called “affection training.â€
In
an effort to sway Seth, Seeno Nono unleashes one of his weapons, an attractive
Asian (Nancy Kwan) who, in typical B-movie narrative style, is not only young
but completely unattached (just like in real life!). Under his orders, she puts
the moves on Seth and wouldn’tcha know it she begins to develop feelings for him.
Her feelings of conflict don’t sit well with her boss who finally pulls out the
big guns in the form of his henchman who make a mad dash to steal Friendly in a
very funny and frenetic on-foot chase sequence that pits them against G.I. Joe
and Seth. The finale consists of a showdown between Seth and Seeno Nono’s cocks
(gosh, that sounds horrible…).
Supercock, like the 1979 horror film Tourist Trap, inexplicably received a PG
rating but rest assured that this is not
a film for children by any means. If the title draws a blank, it was also known
as: Fowl Play, A Fistful of Feathers, and Superchicken.
This is obviously a low-budget affair so you’re not going into this expecting the
cinematic equivalent of Once Upon a Time
in the West. There is no profanity or sex in the film although there is a
significant amount of violence between the roosters that could easily upset
youngsters should they possess the fortitude to get past the dubbed dialog and
“cock†banter that permeates the first two thirds of the film.
If
you can believe it, there is a novelization of the film. I can hear the words of Isaac Davis
in Woody Allen’s Manhattan (1979)
wherein he essentially describes the writing of novelizations of movies as another
“contemporary American phenomenon that’s truly moronic.†Supercock appears to be no exception.
Directed
by Gus Trikonis, the man responsible for The
Swinging Barmaids (1975), The Student
Body (1976), Moonshine County Express
(1977), and The Evil (1978) among
many other motion picture and television titles, Supercock is an acquired taste (sorry, another awful pun) and is now
available in a limited edition Blu-ray. It has a very good transfer and while
grainy it’s free of scratches, tears and reel-change cue marks. The extras
include trailers for The Intruder (1975),
The Dismembered (1962), The Satanist (1968), Trailer Trauma, Trailer Trauma 2, and Ninja
Busters (1984). The highlight is a feature-length audio commentary with
grade-B movie director Fred Olen Ray who talks a little bit about the film but
speaks at length about low-budget filmmaking in addition to his experiences in
the industry. A very informative and fun listen, worth the price of admission.
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