MST3K: Girl In
Gold Boots (Shout! Factory DVD)
Picture: B- Sound: C- Extras: D Episode: B+
In taking down perhaps one of the seediest, weirdest, and
unflinchingly bad films they’ve ever watched, Mike Nelson and the robots from
the Satellite of Love pull no comedic punches. Make no mistake, Girl in Gold Boots transcends the realms of good taste and takes
its place among the gods of exploitative schlock cinema.
Originally aired April 18, 1999, episode 1002 (season 10, episode 2)
features the latter-day cast of Mr. Nelson, Mary Jo Pehl (as Pearl, the Mad
Scientist), Kevin Murphy (Tom Servo / Professor Bobo), Bill Corbett (Crow T.
Robot / Observer), and Patrick Brantseg (Gypsy). While by this point the show has lost some of
its steam with departures of Dr. Clayton Forester (Trace Beaulieu) and TV’s
Frank (Frank Connif), moments of comic genius still abound.
In the film, Michele, a downtrodden young woman tries to use dance to
escape her unfortunate financial and social state. Sounds like Flashdance, huh? Well, Jody
Daniels is no Jennifer Beals, and the seedy world of Hollywood go-go bars lacks
any of the romance of Pittsburgh in the 1980’s.
Michele quickly descends into a world of exploitation, drugs, and
misogyny, and Mike and the ‘Bots have no choice but to watch in horror! Amidst the “action” of the film, Pearl
suffers through an audit by the Mad Scientists’ accreditation outfit, but she’s
saved from decertification when Brain Guy (the Observer) sacrifices his decency
with a sexy go-go dance of his own!
While not vintage MST3K, Girl in Gold Boots gives us a snapshot
of a more cynical, worldly Best Brains crew, a group unafraid to take on
exploitative schlock and laugh in its face. However, it’s obvious to this reviewer that
the crew needed a mouth rinse after this one, and that came in the form of Merlin's Shop of Mystical Wonders,
episode 1003, which we’ll undoubtedly cover in a later review. In the meantime, enjoy Girl in Gold Boots with
someone close to you!
- Scott Pyle
