Erica Gavin Movies

Considered the quintessential "girls in prison" flick of the 1970s, novice director Jonathan Demme's Caged Heat is set in a hellish American woman's penitentiary run by vicious, wheelchair-bound Barbara Steele. Statuesque convict Erica Gavin is forced to undergo horrible (but legal) tortures when she is falsely accused of trying to escape. Gavin and fellow con Juanita Brown decide to make a real break, but return to prison to rescue a friend who is about to be lobotomized by the sadistic prison doctor. Then they stage a robbery, only to find a group of male robbers at the bank ahead of them. A final shootout in the prison yards brings the film to a bloody climax. Caged Heat was also released under the title Renegade Girls. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

After nearly a decade as one of America's most successful independent filmmakers, legendary sexploitation auteur Russ Meyer first reached out for the brass ring of major studio success with this frantic cult favorite, once described by Meyer and screenwriter Roger Ebert as "the first exploitation-horror-camp-musical." Kelly McNamara (Dolly Read), Casey Anderson (Cynthia Myers), and Petronella Danforth (Marcia McBroom) are the three members of an all-girl rock band called "the Kelly Affair" who pull up stakes for Hollywood in search of stardom; they're accompanied by their manager, Harris Allsworth (David Gurian), who also happens to be Kelly's boyfriend. Kelly has an aunt in Hollywood, fashion mogul Susan Lake (Phyllis Davis), who takes Kelly under her wing and informs her she's entitled to a share of a recent family inheritance, much to the chagrin of Susan's lawyer, the shifty Porter Hall (Duncan McLeod). Susan arranges for Kelly and her bandmates to attend a wild party thrown by Ronnie "Z-Man" Barzell (John La Zar), a flamboyant and very successful record producer; Z-Man renames the band "the Carrie Nations," signs them to a record deal, and they're one of the biggest acts in America practically overnight. However, Harris is pushed out of the picture as the band's manager by Z-Man, and as Kelly's boyfriend by actor and gigolo Lance Rocke (Michael Blodgett), sending Harris into a deep depression even after he becomes the new boy-toy of adult film star Ashley St. Ives (Edy Williams). Meanwhile, Petronella finds love with law student Emerson Thorne (Harrison Page) until her head is turned by heavyweight boxing champion Randy Black (Jim Iglehart), and Casey explores her sexual boundaries with Roxanne (Erica Gavin), a beautiful lesbian designer. This nonstop train of decadence, drugs, and betrayal finally comes off the rails during a drug-fueled orgy at Z-Man's mansion, which erupts into violence when the rock mogul's darkest secret is revealed. Featuring one-hit wonders the Strawberry Alarm Clock, supporting performances by Meyer regulars Charles Napier and Haji, and a bit part from future blaxploitation icon Pam Grier, Beyond the Valley of the Dolls proved to be Meyer's biggest box-office success, though after his next film (The Seven Minutes) bombed at the box office, he returned to independent production in 1973. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Tom Palmer (Garth Pillsbury) is a good natured "bush jockey," flying chartered tours in and out of scenic British Columbia and entertaining visitors at his remote mountain cabin. He shares his secluded home with his wife, Vixen (Erica Gavin), a hot-blooded wildcat of a woman who is irresistibly drawn to illicit physical affairs despite truly loving her husband. Her pants are even hot enough to flirt shamelessly with her own brother, a motorcycle riding hooligan named Jud (Jon Evans), though his African-American friend, Niles (Harrison Page), earns nothing but Vixen's racist contempt. When Tom brings a wealthy young couple to the lodge for a few days of fishing, Vixen goes on the offensive and soon has her way with both visitors, helping to patch up their marriage in the process. Next she decides to ease the sizzling sexual tension with her brother by joining him in the shower, and their incestuous coupling is witnessed by Niles. Again, Vixen cruelly insults his race and taunts him for dodging the American draft by heading for Canada. Frustrated and angry, Niles starts talking with Tom's new charter flight customer, an Irishman named Mr. O'Bannion (Michael Donovan O'Donnell), who is secretly planning to hijack Tom's plane to reach Cuba. He's a Communist, and after a political debate, Niles decides to join his cause and help O'Bannion carry out his terrorism. Once the felonious duo are up in the air with Tom and Vixen, though, she refuses to keep her volatile tongue still, and nothing goes as planned. ~ Fred Beldin, Rovi