Don Cochran, an actor known for his role in the 1963 film Heavenly Bodies!, brings a unique flair to the cult cinema landscape. In this film, he embodies the vibrant energy of the dance scene, capturing the essence of the era's exploration of sensuality and performance. Cochran's presence in Heavenly Bodies! adds depth to the film's narrative, showcasing the intersection of dance and eroticism that defines its cult appeal. His work contributes to the ongoing conversation about the cultural significance of exploitation cinema.
Heavenly Bodies!
Part of the charm of Heavenly Bodies is seeing the camaraderie of director Meyer and his war buddies who he frequently enlisted to help him over the years with his various film projects. There is one scene in particular where Russ takes his fellow 166th Signal Corps photographers on a photo field trip to the woods to shoot two buxom models (Althea Currier and Monica Liljistrand) amidst the lush scenery. Whilst the models are putting on their make-up and doing their hair, all of the director’s buddies are setting up and cleaning their cameras and lenses. Eventually they find a nice spot to shoot pictures of the two girls, all whilst fighting each other over taking turns and getting the best angles. It’s quite sweet to see them almost worshipping the pretty models knowing that they must have come across some really challenging stuff between them when working out in the field during World War II. It’s not going to be to all Meyer fans taste, no doubt a large number of people will find it very boring, but for Meyer completists and photographers Heavenly Bodies is an interesting little snapshot into two different but very similar work practices that took over Russ Meyers life. If you’re going to bother watching his early films, you best include this in your viewing as its one of the more significant in the batch that have finally been released.
