THE POM-POM GIRLS (1976): 2/5

Despite the title, the cheerleaders actually take a backseat in this flick's storyline.  The Pom-Pom Girls actually focuses on the exploits of Johnnie (Robert Carradine) and Jesse (Michael Davis), a pair of swinging California dudes who play football for their high school.  Johnnie spends his spare time trying to win over Sally (Lisa Reeves), who is going with the school's resident greaser, Duane (Bill Adler).  Meanwhile, Jesse is trying to decide between two girls, the easily available Sue Ann (Susan Player) and the more challenging Laurie (Jennifer Ashley).  He also tends to butt heads with Hartmann (James Gammon), the football team's domineering coach. 

This is a decent narrative spine for a high school exploitation quickie but The Pom Pom Girls never quite lives up to its promise.  The first problem lies in the characterizations.  Johnnie and Jesse don't make appealing heroes - in fact, they come off as a couple of narcissistic, self-indulgent creeps who misuse their women and step on anyone who gets in their way.  Despite the best efforts of Carradine and Davis, these jerky characters never register as sympathetic or charismatic and it's a drag having to spend a whole film watching them.

The Pom Pom Girls is further injured by sloppy storytelling.  Plot threads are either left flapping in the breeze (Jesse romances two girls at once but neither ever figures it out) or rushed through too quickly (the faceoff between Jesse and his coach is a total non-event).  On the good side, Director Joseph Rubin - who'd latter direct thrillers like The Stepfather and True Believer - makes good use of his scenic California locales, gets naturalistic performances from his cast and packs in the requisite nudity and hijinx (including a food fight and a drag race).  Unfortunately, the meandering script veers into dullsville too often, making 90 minutes feel like two poorly-paced hours. 

Better yet, director Sam Grossman brings a colorful, kinetic style to the visuals and editing that gives the film just the right 'pop' feel.  The cherry atop this drive-in sundae is Sammy John's countryish soft-rock score, which instantly sets the mood for Californian good times.  In short, The Van is light but engaging programmer that is worth a look to anyone who interested in 1970's teen comedies.

Mono audio is utilized for both films.  Neither mix is a sonic stunner but they get the job done.

Viewers have the option of watching the films by themselves or as a 'drive-in experience,' which adds some previews and other fun stuff to the beginning of each film.  The Pom-Pom Girls side has a Mighty Mouse cartoon, a concession stand ad and trailers for The Beach Girls and Jocks.  The side with The Van adds another concession stand ad plus trailers for Malibu Beach and Weekend Pass.  Some of these extras come from rather worn-looking tape masters but they still add an extra bit of entertainment to the package.

This pair of sun 'n' fun time-capsules makes for a nice little package.  The cheap video mastering is a nuisance but this still delivers a nice amount of bang for the buck.