Scarecrow-88 Andrew Pine stars as a disturbed wacko, Clement Dunne who is obsessed with "helping" beautiful women who posed for a nude pictorial in a centerfold magazine by stalking them, terrorizing them with unsettling phone calls, sending them flowers, and ultimately slicing their throats with a straight razor, removing a shoe from each victim as a keepsake.CENTERFOLD GIRLS has three different stories featuring the next victim chosen from the magazine by Clement who circles their faces, tearing them away with his razor after finishing them off, consoling himself with a music from his record player. He's very clean cut, tidy, always seen wearing a suit, glasses, bow tie, the works. He drives a beat-up blue station wagon and later tells the third victim that he's a salesman so we might know how Clement works as a serial killer, his trips "up north" a way for him to successfully carry out his methodical acts towards those selected for execution.The first victim is a beautiful nurse, Jackie(Jaime Lyn Bauer), who drives "into the mountains" to interview for a job falling prey to "the family"(Dennis Olivieri, Janet Wood, Teda Bracci, and Talie Cochrane), a group of weirdos, modeled obviously after the Manson Family, who torment her after she graciously gives one of them a place for the night in her aunt's home. Clement, perhaps a reason for his abilities as a psychopath, has a innocent, if nerdy, appearance, and doesn't seem to be such a dangerous threat, and is able to secure Jackie's trust after she is emotionally/psychologically destroyed by the family(..and after nearly being raped by the owner of a nearby hotel, Ed, portrayed by Aldo Ray)which results in a grim conclusion. The second victim, Charly(Jennifer Ashley), is a young woman who joins a crew shooting nude pictorals for another magazine. The crew consists of Melissa(Francine York), the one who calls the shots, setting up the schedule for the layout of the shoot, Perry(Ray Danton)the man "with connections" who enjoys the company of young girls and often "pimps" them demanding a cut of their profits, photographer Sam(John Denos), and two models(Kitty Carl & Ruthy Ross), renting a cabin on top of a cliff overlooking the ocean. Clement secretly boats to their location, awaiting his chances to kill each one of them. The third chosen victim, a pretty stewardess, Vera(Tiffany Bolling), provides the most problems for Clement as she, despite how fate arranges for her possible doom, finds ways to escape potential harm. Vera's car blows a tire as she rushes off to escape Clement, her pursuer(..she decides to leave her apartment after Clement kills Vera's roommate, believing the person was her)hitching a ride with two sailors who drug her, molesting her in the process. Clement offers her a ride, she discovers his magazine(..with the women's faces cut away, with hers circled as next), and a showdown will conclude the film within the charred remains of Topanga Canyon in a fight for survival.I was really pleasantly surprised with John Peyser's CENTERFOLD GIRLS, the idea of an anthology featuring three separate stories linking the killer to all of them. Interesting how the film only provides little details regarding the killer. We are witness to Clement's methods of selecting victims, how he operates, and how he carries out his dedicated mission of "cleansing" them of their immorality, in regards to using their luscious bodies to stain the minds of the viewing public. The razor murders are expertly staged in not showing the slice in grisly detail yet maintaining an impact in how he's able to attack in a quick assault, mostly from behind, without their being able to escape(..except at the end, when Clement, unlike times past, wastes time, flashing his "friend" in front of Vera's face)..director Peyser uses blood spray(..such as how blood splatters a window, or collects in a pool) instead of the typical blade carving flesh in gruesome detail, quick and concise, moving to the next scene.Pine is impressive(..the real standout, a reason his face is recognizable while others not so much)as the killer, a dedicated sociopath who hides his insecurities and sexual incapability under a desire to rid the world of filthy women. The women of the cast(..except York and maybe Bauer)won't knock your socks off with their performances, but their delectable flesh is featured extensively. The film shows the ugly side behind being beautiful and desirable, how the blessings of having alluring qualities can lead to mistreatment and cruelty. Perfectly 70's, particularly how sexually liberated women are in the film, and how mores had changed(..Clement is almost a reject from a different time attempting to right the wrongs of society by "cutting away" the trash that pollutes it). In every story, women are lustfully gazed upon by eager males who present themselves as respectable and helpful, only to reveal their primal urges later. Lots of nudity which is to be expected when dealing with such lurid subject matter. Startlingly resembles many 80's slashers with quite a head-start since John Peyser's CENTERFOLD GIRLS was released in '74..for the exception of 70's characteristics like the clothing styles and vehicles representing that era of cinema. Very effective use of Topange Canyon forests that had been decimated by a fire, whose remains, as Pine effectively proclaimed in an interview, resemble a type of hell.

Cujo108 Andrew Prine is Clement Dunne, a fanatic out to "help" the women who posed for some magazine's annual skin calendar. The problem? His brand of help involves stalking and slit throats. Sporting a skinny build, glasses, a bland suit and hideous shoes that don't match the rest of his attire, Dunne doesn't fit the look of your typical psychopath. However, what he lacks as far as physical menace goes, he more than makes up for in dogged determination.The Centerfold Girls is the very definition of a grindhouse film. It is a gritty, mean-spirited romp with a bleak world view and a narrow plot. Most of the men in the film are rapists, sleaze balls or exploiters. Then there is Dunne himself, who seems to flip-flop in his motivation. One minute he is wanting to "help" his victims, and the next he is telling them how they have to be punished for the smut they implant in the minds of those who view their calendar. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the film is the way in which it is structured. We follow Dunne as he hunts down three girls in particular, one segment of the film for each girl. Reminiscent of an anthology, but with the same basic storyline and key character throughout. Only the victims and settings change.The first act deals with Ms. March and her 24 hours of hell. She leaves her hospital job in L.A. to go see a doctor in a small town for a job interview. On the way there, she picks up a hippie girl who lies her way into getting a ride. Eventually, the former centerfold has to deal with the hippie's raucous friends, a rapist motel owner and naturally, the ever watchful Clement Dunne. This is without doubt the sleaziest of the film's three segments. The girl is toyed with and nearly raped twice, and it only gets worse from there. Aldo Ray plays the motel owner who has a thing for her, but only if she doesn't make things too easy for him.The second story has Dunne stalking the young Ms. May. She and a few other models are going to an island photo shoot. Dunne follows them and gets to delve out more help than he originally bargained for. This is the weakest part of the film. It follows a typical slasher film structure, but the characters are uninteresting and some of the action is choppy. There are also some really poorly done day-for-night shots. Despite the flaws, it is enjoyable... just underwhelming compared to the opening and close of the picture.The third and final segment finds Dunne gunning for Vera (the lovely Tiffany Bolling). When she's out one night, a blonde friend uses her bathroom only to fall victim to Dunne in a case of mistaken identity. Vera takes the hint and decides to get out of town. Unfortunately for her, the friend she asks to house-sit is a total moron who gives Dunne the info he needs to track her down. This is the best act of the film, thanks in large part to the strong screen presence of Bolling. I like her quite a bit, and she makes for a worthy adversary to the persistent Dunne. We also get a bit of interaction between the two sans telephone before the attempted murder, something that doesn't happens with the other victims. The final showdown in a patch of leafless trees makes for a strong close to the proceedings.I have to say, as far as exploitation cinema goes, they don't come much better than this. If it were better known, it would likely be a classic of the genre. I have the Media VHS, and the print really compliments the mood of the picture. For exploitation/grindhouse fans, it gets my highest recommendation.

Steve Nyland (Squonkamatic) First off, let's deal with the pinhead sect who are dissing this movie for daring to give them EXACTLY WHAT IT PROMISED -- A sleazy, disturbing, voyeuristic movie about a deranged psycho who murders centerfold models with a straight edge razor. Since nobody in the free world holds a gun to someone's head and forces them to watch a particular movie (aside from Al Gore's AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, that is), anyone who went out of their way to see this movie and were horrified to find out that it actually had the **balls** to give them exactly what it was advertised as has nothing to complain about. Other than maybe sleeping in on the morning they were handing out working brains. They got theirs after all the good ones were gone, I guess, and had to make do with an addled mind that can't grasp basic concepts ... like trashy exploitation movies actually being trashy, and exploitational. How stupid can people get? If you want art, rent or buy art, and stay away from the gutter, which is where this movie deliberately set out to be.With that scolding out of the way, CENTERFOLD GIRLS is one of the purest, most startling and twistedly imaginative examples of the Grindhouse Exploitation & Sleaze Film as I have ever encountered. Packed wall to wall with glorious female nudity, gory killings, and punctuated by yet another brilliantly twisted performance by Andrew Prine as yet another bizarre psychopath, this movie dares to give viewers exactly what they are looking for in such entertainment: Garbage.And not just your standard run-of-the-mill so boring 'cos we've seen it all a million times garbage, but garbage that keeps one guessing. Not as to the identity of some masked killer hacking their way through a supporting cast of unlikeable morons, but guessing in terms of just where the movie is going from one given moment to the next. There was one murder that was so abrupt, so uncalled for, and so absolutely brilliant in how it was staged that this film should actually be "Required reading at the Academy, Mr. Spock" material for anyone who's interested in making a low budget amoral slasher film. It is still a vibrant, shocking, and sensationalistic masterpiece of exploitation thirty-five years after it was made.Yes, there are vulgar, lurid moments that degrade the women who agreed to participate in the film, and none of the characters -- including the sexy women who's murders the film celebrates in such an unflinching manner -- are truly redeemable individuals. Even the usually heroic Aldo Ray comes off as a despicable monster, something that isn't easy to do, and his villainy is one of the film's great curve balls thrown mercilessly at the viewer. The one thing that impressed me more than anything else about the film was how it so specifically defied any formula for how psycho slasher horror films are "supposed" to be plotted out.There are two keys to the equation of its success: The first are the women themselves, all of whom actually were (or could have been) the girlie magazine pin-up celebrities that the movie depicts them as. They are all stunningly beautiful, with nary a silicone implant to mar their natural female forms. None of them apparently had the slightest qualm with being undressed & paraded before the camera for our amusement to the sole function of any other role in the film. They don't exist as "people" so much as the exist to be Ms. April, Ms. May, Ms. June, Ms. July, and Ms. August. Their names & personalities are exactly as important to the plot as the models gracing the pages of a girlie magazine, existing only to be stalked, terrified, and slaughtered by the psychopath.Is it misogynistic, regrettable, vile and sleazy? OF COURSE. But then again, what girlie magazine isn't? Don't blame the movie for telling things like they are, and indeed if you look at one of those kinds of magazines the first thing printed on the inside cover is a disclaimer pointing out that the habits, lifestyles and personalities of the models depicted in the magazine are not to be taken as actual representations of those people. Here is a movie that understands this concept, and uses it to great advantage.The other key is Andrew Prine, who should have been nominated for some form of an Oscar years ago (I say it should have been for SIMON - KING OF THE WITCHES, but take your pick, really: All of his performances are universally marvelous). With his geeky glasses, Sears Roebuck catalog puritan's suit and complete resolve to see his mission through, Prine is the perfect embodiment of the psychopathic killer who slaughters women in an effort to "help" them, as he explains to more than one of his victims. The old Rambler station wagon he is given to drive is also a perfect extension of his character, and while there is some truth to the criticism that his is the only character in the film that is actually developed that's just part of the stacked deck. You can't fault it for being effective at what it set out to do, and once again Prine's acting stands out amidst a sea of dreck that would otherwise smother any other performer.It is of course wrong to objectify women with pornography, and even more wrong to seek out & murder them for having taken part. But if every psycho killer movie were as honest about their intentions as CENTERFOLD GIRLS were maybe we wouldn't have such a low collective opinion of the idiom. It's the poseur films who wouldn't dare to go as far as this one do that give the form it's bad name. This one gets it right.8/10, and then some.

Woodyanders If anyone was to ask me who's my all-time favorite delightfully dweebish 70's B-horror flick actor, my answer would have to be the ineffably gauche, yet still bizarrely riveting Andrew Prine. With his tall, lanky, ungainly build, gaunt hangdog face, quivering voice, and often antsy, uneasy disposition, Andy was basically a poor man's Anthony Perkins for the Me Decade. Prine established himself as the early 70's twitchy psycho pic performer par excellence with his spot-on spaced-out portrayals of an evil, world-weary warlock in the trippy "Simon, King of the Witches" and a disgusting, desert-dwelling, mother-hating bargain basement misogynist Norman Bates-like oedipal wreck lunatic in the sublimely skanky "Barn of the Naked Dead." "The Centerfold Girls" finds our boy Andy in first-rate fidgety, fumbling, *beep*ed-in-the-head freakazoid form as Clement Dunne, an awkward, bespectacled, sexually repressed and thoroughly nerdy nutjob sporting a ghastly Beatles shag haircut, equally ugly rumpled leisure suits and unsightly two-tone Buster Brown shoes. The only thing worse than Dunne's hideous coiffure and horrendous wardrobe is his nasty murderous propensity for brutally carving up the assorted sinful scarlet harlots who've posed in the buff for the sleazy skin mag "Bachelor." Dunne's luscious lady victims are a veritable distaff who's who of 70's grindhouse cinema: the gorgeous Tiffany Bolling of "The Candy Snatchers" fame, "Bummer" 's Connie Strickland, Jennifer Ashley (who was previously terrorized by Prine in "Barn of the Naked Dead"), future "The Young and the Restless" daytime TV soap opera series regular Jaime Lyn Bauer, busty brunette Janet ("The G.I. Executioner," "Angels Hard As They Come") Wood, Talie ("The Love-Thrill Murders," "I Spit on Your Corpse") Cochrane, onetime "Penthouse" Pet Anneka di Lorenzo, and no-name lovelies Kitty Carl and Ruth Ross, most of whom do gratuitous nude scenes before Andy bags 'em. The male supporting cast coughs up a similar roll call of down and out exploitation hack perennials: the ubiquitous Aldo Ray as a repulsive would-be rapist, Jeremy Slate as a crusty homicide detective, Ray Danton as a droll adult magazine publisher, huge, hulking, granite-faced veteran tough guy Mike Mazurki as a grouchy mansion grounds keeper, and fat guy character actor Dan Seymour as a motel manager.John Peyser's tight direction, the almost constant avalanche of bared female flesh, and the harsh, bloody violence add immensely to the deliciously deviant junky fun, while the minimal music, crude cinematography and grainy film stock give this trashy treat the irresistibly seedy aura of a scuzzy no-budget porno feature. Perhaps the film's oddest , most startling and notable aspect is its shockingly blunt, in-your-face vile, sneering and hostile misanthropy and mean-spiritedness: Practically every last character, especially the largely creepy and unpleasant guys, comes across as really hateful, antisocial and unsympathetic a**holes; even Bolling's much-abused stewardess heroine is a snippy, stuck-up bitch. As a result, Prine's wonderfully warped wacko inadvertently seems like more of a semi-justified anti-hero instead of a full-fledged villain. It's this latter alarmingly off-kilter element which truly makes this depraved drive-in dreck one to relish.