Plot: What’s it about?
In Common Law Wife, a rich old man seeks to trade in his current mistress for one with less mileage. He is Shugfoot Rainey and while he has a lot of dough, his over the hill mistress refuses to leave without a fight. She knows Shugfoot wants to kick her to the curb just to bring in someone else, a stripper from New Orleans named Jonelle. The young Jonelle also happens to be Shugfoot’s niece, but that’s the least of his worries at the time. His current mistress, Linda is determined not to step aside for Jonelle, so she consults the laws of the land. And according to the laws of Texas, she has spent enough time with Shugfoot to be considered his common law wife, which is certain to cause the old man endless headaches. But Jonelle isn’t done yet either, as she had cyanide put into Shugfoot’s moonshine, which leads to a final showdown between the two ladies, to see who leaves with the loot. In Jennie: Wife/Child, a young woman named Jennie finds herself locked in a loveless marriage with an older, much older man. Her husband Albert doesn’t take of her needs, so she turns to Mario, a hired hand. This satisfies her intimate needs, but when Albert discovers the truth, he flies off the handle. After he drugs them and chains them up, he starts to dig their graves, but will he be able to get away with murder?
The trials & tribulations of romance can be tough, even for the poor white trash of the world, as we see in these two movies. Yet another wild double feature from Something Weird, this one-two punch of hillbilly love is loaded with naked women, hilarious accents, and scorned women hell bent on some payback. And in the case of Jennie: Wife/Child, the events of the movie are told via some not so classic rockabilly music, which has to be seen and heard to be believed. As a fan of backwoods cinema, I found these flicks to be loads of fun, but if you’re looking for good movies, then steer clear of these trainwrecks. I have to think we all expect bad movies in this case, but the dialogue, writing, and performances are so bad, you can’t hold back the laughter at times. As such, we’re treated to a rollicking trek through the countryside, where yokels do little outside of drink moonshine, play music, and have wild sex. In addition, Something Weird has even included a bonus third feature length film, Moonshine Love. So as if one movie wasn’t enough, then two movies weren’t enough, three hick flicks has to be enough. You want the most naked hillbilly babes for your buck, then be sure to check out this double feature. And if you’re having marriage problems of your own, remember the power of making hot love in the barn, y’all.
Video: How does it look?
Common Law Wife & Jennie: Wife/Child are presented in full frame. Both movies look solid, given the kind of material involved, but don’t expect miracles. The images look sharper than expected, though the prints do have frequent marks and debris. Nothing too serious, especially in these cases, but some print damage is evident. As both movies are black & white, the contrast is crucial to the presentations. I found black levels to be smooth and consistent, though not as dark and refined as more recent releases would look. So I can forgive the imperfections here, as these movies look better than expected, to be sure.
Audio: How does it sound?
Not a lot to discuss on the audio front, although the included mono options seems to handle the basics well enough. The tracks don’t have a lot of age related problems like hiss or distortion, but a couple small instances do surface in the presentations. But on the whole, the audio is clean and clear throughout, so no real complaints. The sound effects and music don’t amount to much, but come across well here and leave little room for concern. No issues in the least with the dialogue, so every classic line is presented in fine form. I didn’t expect much from these tracks and I didn’t get much, but it was enough to make it all sound good.
Supplements: What are the extras?
As I mentioned before, we have a bonus feature length movie here, Moonshine Love and it fits right in with the other flicks. This picture is packed with naked yokels getting down, not to mention some intimate moments with a vegetable. You can also listen to director Larry Buchanan’s comments on Common Law Wife, which proves to be a humorous experience. He seems confused throughout the track, but no worries, as that makes it even more fun. This disc also includes a trailer for Common Law Wife and some exploitation artwork.
