Bruce D. Clark, a director and writer born in the 1940s, carved out a niche in the world of cult cinema with his distinctive vision. He helmed Naked Angels (1969), a film that captures the raw energy of the counterculture movement, and Hammer (1972), a gritty exploration of the underbelly of urban life. Clark also directed and wrote Galaxy of Terror (1981), a key title in the sci-fi horror genre that showcases his ability to blend suspense with surreal elements. His contributions to these films solidify his role in the evolution of exploitation and genre cinema.
Naked Angels
The story concerns a deadly feud between two rival bike gangs. The Angels are out for revenge against their rival gang, the Las Vegas Hotdoggers, who severely beat their leader, Mother (Michael Greene). Mother is just returning to the Angels and his old lady, Marlene (Jennifer Gan), had become the property of Fingers (Richard Rust), the new head of the clan. When Mother reappears, he quickly reassumes the gang's leadership and rights to the strawberry blonde, lascivious, foul-mouthed Marlene. The Angels go looking for the Hotdoggers at their hang out, a bar in Las Vegas. Not finding their rivals, the Angels ruin the bar and terrorize the local citizenry. A lone Hotdogger betrays his gang and tells the Angels of a secret mine to hang out in the desert where they can find his gang. Later that evening, Marlene and Mother are riding his chopper around Vegas, when a showgirl in a car catches his eye. He leaves with the showgirl and returns to find Marlene is livid with rage. Setting out into the desert, the Angels and Mother argue about what to do and how to travel through the said desert. Marlene angrily insults Mother. The mother gets angry and says that everyone in the gang can have Marlene. No one in the gang accepts, so Mother takes off on his own. The Angels and finally Mother meet again at the mine hideout with the Hotdoggers. A dynamite stick brings the Hotdoggers out of the mine for a brawl with tire chains, knives, fists, and boots. The Hotdogger leader steals Angel's bike, but Mother rides him down and finishes him off while the Angels look on and cheer. After taking revenge on all the Hotdoggers, Fingers and Mother fight it out at the end, but only one can be the leader of the Angels.
