| A SMELL OF HONEY, A SWALLOW OF BRINE |
| Directed by Byron Mabe (U.S.A. -1966) |
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| A Smell of Honey, a Swallow of Brine is essentially a Roughie re-working of The Boy Who Cried Wolf. In this instance however, it�s more a case of �the girl who cried rape�. The girl in question is twisted secretary Sharon Winters. The bitter blonde vixen has a nasty habit of leading men on with her feminine charms, then crying rape during foreplay. She seems to revel in manipulating men, then bringing their world crashing down around them the moment they get a smell of that elusive honey. Sharon�s turn on has just seen one would-be lover jailed for several years, and the easy on the eye predator is out on the prowl once again. She doesn�t just target hapless men; she�ll torment anyone who finds her attractive. That includes her lesbian roommate Paula. Sharon delights in undressing in front of her envious roommate, despite having no desire whatsoever to join poor Paula�s team. It�s enough to drive your average lesbian stark raving mad. But for the moment, Sharon Winters has bigger fish to fry. |
| Dick Owens is a colleague of Miss Winters, and has fallen for his co-worker in a major way. He lives with his mother, and by all accounts is a fine upstanding citizen. Naturally, Sharon lures him to her bedroom. She undresses in front of her mild mannered co-worker, and they get down to business. Before long, the object of poor Dick�s desire tires of the whole process. �Whadda ya think I am? Some two dollar hustler? You tried to rape me!� she screams, pushing him away from her in disgust. As Sharon�s nervous date tries to dissuade her from screaming, she informs him that she�s going to tell the cops, everyone at the office, and worse still, their boss. Owens has led a sheltered life, and could never handle such consequences. He skips town for a few days without a word to anyone (even his worried mother), and the company fires the previously model employee for absenteeism. It seems that Sharon is a celibate version of the Black Widow. After the joy brought about by destroying another male subsides, the conniving Miss Winters turns her attention to the fairer sex. She seduces Paula, and the roommates wind up in bed together. Just as it seems that Sharon has switched sides, she coldly pushes her lesbian roommate away. �Cut Paula, that�s as far as we go� she tells her coldly. �But Sharon� baby, please� Paula begs, caressing the vixen�s naked curves. �Get out! You belong in an institution! You, and the rest of your kind!� Sharon shouts, motioning toward the door. As the devastated Paula leaves, her heartbreaker roommate has some parting words of wisdom. �Paula, I may be a bitch� but I�ll never be a butch�. As her sobbing roommate makes tracks, Sharon laughs maniacally. Another mission accomplished. Before the mind games are over in A Smell of Honey, a Swallow of Brine, Sharon Winters will drive another co-worker into becoming a deranged real life rapist. She�ll also meet her nemesis. A man who�s even more despicable than she is, and knows how to fight fire with fire. The sultry Stacey Walker is surprisingly exceptional in this film. She may just be the most memorable screen villainess of all time. Her performance is genuinely erotic, yet also despicable. Roughie impresario David Friedman discovered the homeless Texas college dropout on Santa Monica beach, and immediately cast her in The Notorious Daughter of Fanny Hill after being awestruck by her unique white trash sex appeal. After shooting both Fanny Hill and Smell of Honey for Friedman, the actress seemingly dropped off the face of the earth. If Arch Hall jr. is exploitation cinema's answer to James Dean, then surely Stacy Walker must surely be a Roughie Rita Hayworth.. Entertainment : 4 out of 4 Watchability : 3 out of 4 Overall : 3.5 out of 4 Reviewed by Blake |
| "There is an expression for girls like her... you see it scrawled on mensroom walls!" - David Friedman's original advertising blurb. |