Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Sondra Currie is Jessica, a young Mormon bride headed to Utah with her husband. They’re getting to know one another when five bandits, fresh off a bank job, stop by their camp. Since the husband has only $55 on him, they decide to take the only thing he has that’s worth anything.

So Jessica is gang-raped by the five outlaws in front of her husband, whom they then kill. They shoot Jessica, too, and leave her for dead. But she survives and summons the strength to hike through the wilderness until she comes to a cabin. She convinces a frontiersman named Rufe (Rod Cameron) to teach her to shoot.

Then it’s off on the vengeance trail. But first, Jessica figures she needs to lasso up some help. She does that by freeing three female outlaws from their holders, killing one deputy and wounding another in the process.

That threesome includes Kana. Jessica — dubbed Jessi by the other gals — doesn’t know it, but Kana was picked up by the law when she was left behind during the bank job getaway by a man named Brock — the leader of the bandits who attacked her and killed her husband.

Sondra Currie as Jessi, after a rough night with the members of Brock’s gang in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Rod Cameron as Rufe, the aging man who helps nurse Jessi back to health in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Review:

A low-budget version of the Hannie Caulder story. And it’s pretty darn bad. Don’t even bother to wonder why Jessi — the good Mormon girl — would ride up on a wagon of female prisoners she doesn’t know and decide to star shooting at the lawmen guarding them. It makes no sense, except to add three more shapely female bodies to the film’s plot.

That’s important because all the gals except Rachel have nude love scenes. Claire’s is the silliest. A busty, blonde saloon girl, she’s attracted to an Indian buck near death and rides him to restored health. When she talks about staying behind to care for him, Kana slips inside a barn and breaks his neck. Can’t break up the band, you know.

There is a bit of a twist at the end, but the only reason anyone should watch this is for the appearance of Rod Cameron in his last Western and one of his last of dozens of film roles. You’re more likely to recognize the voice than the man, because he’s barely distinguishable behind a thick and obviously fake beard. He was 65 when this film was released.

Currie appeared in a number of similar sexploitation films in the mid-70s and has gone on to enjoy a long TV and movie career — she’s in all three “Hangover” films. She made her debut in John Wayne’s “Rio Bravo” (1970). She plays the prostitute Mary Belle in a small, uncredited role. She’s the gal Jorge Rivera (Cordona) rushes out of his bed so Jennifer O’Neill (Shasta) can lie in it after fainting because she killed a man.

Jennifer Bishop as Rachel, the lady outlaw Jessi recruits for her own gang in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Regina Carroll as Claire, merrily gunning down members of the Brock gang in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Directed by:
Al Adamson

Cast:
Sondra Currie … Jessica
Geoffrey Land … Clay
Ben Frank … Brock
Regina Carroll … Claire
Jennifer Bishop … Rachel
Ellyn Stern … Kana
Joseph Cortese … Baldry
John Shark … Slime
Biff Yeager … Link
Rod Cameron … Rufe
Gavin Murrell … Indian
Rigg Kennedy … Seth
William Hammer … Shag
Hugh Warden … John

Runtime: 80 min.

Ellyn Stern as Kana, riding into the ghost town where the Brock gang is staying in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Geoffrey Land as Clay, the lawman Jessi wounds to free three female prisoners in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Memorable lines:

Seth: “You’re so beautiful.”
Jessica: “I want to be beautiful for you, Seth.”

Jessica, of her husband: “Please don’t hurt him any more.”
Frank, leader of outlaw band: “Hurt him? Hell, he’ll be as good as new next life.” Then, to the husband: “Next time, bring some more women to go around, preacher. It’s a poor Mormon that’s only got one wife.”

Rufe, showing Jessica his sawed-off shotgun: “This is Judy. Judy’s my equalizer. Nice thing to have in a pinch. But don’t shoot at nothin’ you’re expecting to pick up afterwards. Judy just leaves bits and pieces.”

Shotgun guard on wagon hauling three female prisoners, reacting to Jessica’s appearance: “Another woman. Damn, the place is crawling with them.”

Sondra Currie as Jessica, bidding farewell to Rufe, the man who equips her for her mission of vengeance in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Ben Frank as Brock, leader of the outlaw gang Jessi is trying to track down in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Jessica, as Claire prepares to abandon her: “What about the gold?”
Claire: “You ain’t gonna live to count it.”
Jessica: “Claire …”
Claire: “Don’t Claire me. You don’t care ’bout nothing no more. You been hatin’ so long, you forgot what lovin’ was. We’re a bunch of animals. All of us.”

Brock: “This Mormon bitch, can she really shoot?”
Kana: “She will kill you.”
Which earns Kana a hard slap.

Jessi: “God bless you, Rufe.”
Rufe: “Don’t religion me, gal. Damn, I got enough troubles.”

Regina Carroll as Claire, caring for a wounded Indian (Gavin Murrell) in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Jennifer Bishop as Rachel, being taken into custody by lawman Clay (Geoffrey Land) in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Ben Frank as Brock, reacting to a warning from Kana (Ellyn Stern) that Jessi is out for revenge in Jessi’s Girls (1975)

Sondra Currie as Jessi, honing her six-shooting skills for the mission ahead in Jessi’s Girls (1975)