Plot: What’s it about?
The hot cheerleaders from Stinkwater High were favorites to win a competition, but a freak accident took them out of the picture. The entire busload of the school’s top cheerleaders, all struck down in their prime. These were some gorgeous, nubile young babes too, so the whole school is in a state of shock. The Fighting Beavers were on the verge of fame and trophies, but now that seems like a distant chance, one which is soon to vanish. Just when hope has drained down to none, a trio of offbeat dudes stumble into a serious situation. A mortician with memory problems, his idiot nephew, and the night janitor have discovered that one cheerleader, just one of those hotties has somehow survived the accident. But this chick isn’t the same sweetheart she once was, at least not on the outside. She has been disfigured beyond belief in the accident, though a plan is hatched to give her a second chance. A secret healing elixir offers some potential for success, but it is not a lock to work in this extreme case. With the elixir and the last surviving cheerleader involved, the three men soon start to think about a solo operation. This leads to constant tension and soon enough, a total breakdown between all three. With such high stakes on the line, which of the three men will come out on top?
I had some specific expectations in mind for Cheerleader Autopsy, but those expectations were realistic, based on the disc’s case’s claims. I wanted to see tons of naked, nubile women, liberal doses of blood, some wicked violence, and to top it all off, some solid laughs. I wanted the breasts and violence more than the others, but as it turns out, this film relies more on humor than topless babes, which is a shame. A few chests are bared in the duration of Cheerleader Autopsy, but I wanted to see wild abandon, a throwback to the old exploitation cheerleader flicks, only with some gore tossed in. I have to admit, the lack of cheerleader boobs left me cold, but this movie manages to compensate somewhat. The humor angle is played hard in Cheerleader Autopsy, a move which works out rather well. No, the jokes aren’t hilarious and you won’t be holding your sides, but all things considered, a lot of the gags work. And I was in a bad mood, given the lack of bouncin’ babygirl boobies, but I still found a lot of laughs here. The dialogue is decent, with some nice barbs and the performances are laughable, just as intended. The low production values add to the comic impact, which helps you forget how bad the movie is at times. So if you’re in a daring mood and don’t mind minimal titties, check out Cheerleader Autopsy.
Video: How does it look?
Cheerleader Autopsy is presented in full frame, as intended. This movie was shot on low end video, which yields a rather limited transfer. As I said, the image is handheld camera footage, so it’s jumpy and not film like in appearance. It basically looks like a home movie, which is pretty much unavoidable in this case. Aside from the obvious flaws inherent with the medium, the transfer looks great. Colors are rich, but don’t have the same sharpness of a polished film, but still, the colors look very good. Black level varies greatly, although correct most of the time. So for what it is, this is about as good as it gets for this movie.
Audio: How does it sound?
Not a whole lot to discusses here, as this was a low budget production and as such, it sounds like one in this release. That is not to say that the audio is bad, but you can tell that the audio wasn’t one of the main focuses. This kind of movie doesn’t need a creative sound design however, so not much is missed in this soundtrack. At least some decent separation is to be heard, while flaws remain limited to some minor hiccups. The limited production values do limit the audio at times, but given the situation, it all turns out well enough. The sound effects are clear and audible, while vocals have a clean, crisp presence also. Not the kind of soundtrack to show off your system, but a more than solid one for this material.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes two behind the scenes featurettes, some great audition reels, and the film’s trailer.
