Cherry, Harry & Raquel! (1969) User Reviews

An uncharacteristic disappointment from Russ Meyer

[The_Void · 6/10 · 20 March 2008]

Russ Meyer's career got raunchier as it went on and his 'more serious' early films as well as his comical later efforts both have their plus points. Cherry, Harry & Raquel comes almost in-between the two sides of Meyer's career and almost feels like a dress rehearsal for the likes of Up and Supervixens, as we get all the raunchiness of Meyer's latter day films but it's incredibly poorly strung together and unfortunately, unlike the later efforts, the result is a film that has a handful of interesting scenes, as well as a bucket load of rubbish and boring ones. At times it feels like Meyer shot a load of footage and just stuck it together. As the title suggests, the plot focuses on three main characters - unsurprisingly called Cherry, Harry and Raquel. Harry is a police sheriff with a sideline in drug smuggling, and a local apache has got wind of this, leading Harry to track him down. Harry also has an eventful love life, with no less than two luscious and buxom beauties to choose from - there's Raquel, a prostitute, and Cherry; a nurse.

Despite not being among his best work, Cherry, Harry and Raquel does feature Meyer's trademark style. We've got plenty of sex and nudity, as well as some fairly vicious violence, some good dialogue and Meyer's trademark fast editing. Most of the film takes place in the desert and this provides a good setting for the movie, and also helps to give the film it's most memorable moments - namely, Uschi Digard posing naked against desert backdrops. This is the first Russ Meyer film to star Charles Napier - the memorable actor who would go on to steal the show in Meyer's 1975 masterpiece Supervixens. He's not as good here as he was in Supervixens; but the performance is something of a landmark as Napier was one of the first men to do a full frontal nude scene. Naturally, Meyer doesn't let his audience down with his choice of actresses; Larissa Ely and Linda Ashton are both great (especially unclothed) and their screen time together is one of the best moments of the film. Meyer often tried to give his films a point and it usually serves only in making his films sillier and more bizarre - and that is the case here too; although the ending monologue will provide some laughs. Overall, this is probably the worst Russ Meyer flick I've seen so far and despite some positive elements - there really isn't much to recommend it for.

Begins and ends with a diatribe against our society that is ANYTHING but erotic!

[moonspinner55 · 4/10 · 5 March 2001]

Sex and violence in a desert town as sheriff Harry (Charles Napier) gets involved in bushwhacking and murder. More breasts and bloodshed from Russ Meyer, with minimal plotting interrupted by staccato clips of naked women frolicking in the dunes. It's obviously a bad picture, but it does have Napier and he's worth watching in just about anything. I loved Pauline Kael's assessment of his rock-solid stature in her review of "Citizen's Band" (she called him "an erotic Steve Canyon"). To me, he's a kinky Brian Keith, a mountain of brawn and straw-blond hair. He has criss-cross scars on his face and a smile that has a maniacal bend (like Nicholson's Joker without make-up) and his sex scene with Raquel--or is that Cherry?--in the sand is really something to see (and one of the few times the film is not chopped up to provide deeper meaning in the subtext). *1/2 from ****

Teasama!

[tday-1 · 6/10 · 31 March 2005]

Hilarious Russ Meyer flick shot in the desert with big-breasted babes,lots of car chases and illogical inserts of naked women. Charles Napier is fun as corrupt sheriff running drugs for his boss,slimy Franklin Bolger with the help of nasty Enrique,the Mexican sidekick. Everyone is having sex,Franklin with Racquel,Harry with Racquel,Enrique with Racque,Harry with his girlfriend Cherry,Cherry with Franklin,Cherry with Racquel,all set to Russ Meyer's endless cutting back and forth with scenes that make no sense at all. Racquel is supposedly the town hussy,living with Enrique,but she likes Harry and his girlfriend. There's lots of simulated sex,bare bottoms and boobs,a quick frontal shot Of Charles Napier,and lots of gory violence. The plot is hard to follow but twist ending pulls it all together,or does it? You'll have to see for yourself. A true laugh-fest because everyone takes it seriously although the viewer is laughing their heads off by the time it's through.

Cherry, Harry & Raquel: A black mark on Meyers record

[Platypuschow · 2/10 · 4 July 2017]

To all the critics who consider Meyers work near porn I always say this, he essentially makes Carry On style movies and but adds boobs to keep peoples attention.

Granted they aren't as funny as the Carry On classics but they do have their own special charm once you get past the gratuitous usage of a certain pair of popular lady parts.

Sadly this particular Meyer film lacks any laughs at all, is short on charm and with the exception of the always excellent Napier even the cast falls flatter than a flat thing on the flattest day of it's life flattened by an electrified flattening machine. So fairly flat! I didn't see this one until adulthood whereas many of the others I was younger and maybe there is a connection there. Not suggesting at all that I watched Russ Meyers movies as a youngster for any nefarious reasons but now into adulthood the mere sight of a nipple does not make me jump up and down, whistle and bang my head with a frying pan repeatedly looney toon style.

Like "Supervixens," the film is a swiftly paced excursion into sex and violence

[Nazi_Fighter_David · 7/10 · 7 September 2008]

The story takes place in the Nevada desert… Frank Bolger is a conspicuous man in the community who also happens to run a drug-smuggling ring on the side… The local sheriff is in on it, acting as his hit man.

After a hot scene with one of the local women, Bolger orders the sheriff to eliminate the Apache (John Milo), an Indian who has been cutting into their marijuana sales... The sheriff reluctantly agrees, takes the boss's woman home, and relieves his frustrations on her before trying to carry the Indian away…

Meyer does indeed have a fascination for very richly gifted women, and this film is no exception… The scene where Bolger talks the nurse into giving him a body massage is a classic erotic tease… Also, Meyer has very cleverly juxtaposed a sensual lesbian scene against a bloody battle between the sheriff and the Indian… But much of the sex is unmotivated… Meyer cuts so quickly, however, that it is more of a lack of respect tease than an exploitive treatment of sex…

Larissa Ely (Raquel) is wonderful as the steamy, sweaty, desert young woman… Linda Ashton (Cherry) is delightful as the sexy nurse, but Charles Napier steals the show as the violent, explosive, cruel of a sheriff

I'm sorry to say my least favourite Russ Meyer movie. Mediocre stuff from the sleazemaster. Warning! Contains full frontal Charles Napier!

[Infofreak · 10 February 2003]

Try as I might I can never get as enthused about 'Cherry, Harry and Raquel!' as much as I am about nearly every other Russ Meyer movie I've seen. It starts off well enough with an impassioned plea against censorship superimposed over a background montage which includes two buxom babes rubbing their breasts together. It looks like it is going to be Meyer at his most outrageous, but sadly it gets very dull very quickly. The script is just simply not up to Meyer's usual high standards, either plot-wise or dialogue-wise. It's co-written by Meyer with Tom Wolfe, though don't get excited it's not THE Tom Wolfe of 'Electric Kool Aid Acid Test' fame. Now THAT could have been something! Anyway, legendary tough guy character actor Charles Napier plays Harry, a corrupt sheriff involved in the smuggling of "the mind bending narcotic" marijuana. His partner is played by another Meyer regular, the fabulous Franklin Bolger. Napier and Bolger almost single-handedly salvage this mediocre movie, which almost comes to a standstill every time Cherry (Linda Ashton) and Raquel (Larissa Ely) are on screen. This was their first and last Meyer movie, and it's no mystery why, they just aren't up to the standards set by Tura Satana, Haji, Erica Gavin or Kitten Natividad. If anyone of those actresses were substituted for Ashton or Ely this movie might have really sizzled. Another legendary Meyer babe Uschi Digard IS on hand for naked dancing and posing against the desert locations, which is very striking and memorable, but Uschi, Napier and Bolger aren't really enough for me. I still find this one a great disappointment. I would only recommend it to a diehard Meyer fan. Others looking for an introduction into his astonishing oeuvre would be better to start with 'Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!', 'Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls', or 'Supervixens' (which may or may not be a sequel of sorts to this one, as Charles Napier plays a violent cop called Harry in both movies). All three of those are utterly brilliant and are among Meyer's best work.

Wow

[BandSAboutMovies · 7/10 · 31 March 2024]

This is the first appearance in a Russ Meyer movie of Charles Napier. He plays Harry Thompson, a California border sheriff and marijuana smuggler who also somehow - spoiler warning - comes back from the dead to die again in Supervixens.

But as for this movie, it starts with a narration that blames marijuana for so many evils in society. Harry has ignored all that as he Harry works his sheriff job in between illegal activity. He lives at the site of a close silver mine with his English nurse girlfriend Cherry (Linda Ashton). As for Raquel (Larissa Ely), she's a writer who has an interest in sexually pleasuring men. The two women learn of one another but Harry doesn't want them to make love for some reason. When we first see Raquel, she's in bed with Harry's partner Enrique (Bert Santos). The two men work for Mr. Franklin (Frank Bolger), the town's main politician, to move drugs. One of their other associates, the Apache (John Milo) is screwing everyone over. Franklin asks for him to be killed, but he gets away and steals Harry's Jeep.

Now, Enrique knows too much and he must be killed. But the Apache gets to him - and Mr. Franklin - first. Raquel finds his body and is so upset, she must be hospitalized. Good news. Her nurse is Cherry and they finally get together to make love, all while Harry and the Apache do the exact opposite and kill one another.

But ah - it was all a story that Raquel was writing. This strange ending may be because a lot of the film's footage was accidentally ruined by the color lab. Roger Ebert said, "The result is that audiences don't even realize anything is missing; a close analysis might reveal some cavernous gaps in the plot, and it is a little hard to figure out exactly how (or if) all the characters know each other, but Meyer's subjective scenes are so inventive and his editing so confident that he simply sweeps the audience right along with him. Cherry, Harry and Raquel! Is possibly the only narrative film ever made without a narrative." Uschi Digard, the lover of the Apache, was also added Linda Ashton quit and you have to admit that she adds a lot to the film. Meyer claims the other actress quit over her pomeranians ruining the carpets of the motel they were staying in and the owner getting upset.

He also said, "The picture is the most successful film I have on cable television-or hotel-vision-because you never have to come in at the beginning. It doesn't matter. It could be a loop."

It also has one of the first instances of mainstream full frontal male nudity, which made it a controversial movie all the way back in 1969.

Great erotic entertainment .....

[PimpinAinttEasy · 7/10 · 15 February 2016]

Dear Russ Meyer,

your film had some great erotic scenes. The lesbian scene with Linda Ashton and Larissa Ely was particularly impressive. I cannot believe Linda Ashton did not act in more movies. What an enormous waste of talent.

Charles Napier is another great square jawed all-American hero/villain. Frank Bolger is a terrific actor. His dialog delivery was something else. He was as entertaining as the naked ladies. Bert Santos role must rank as one of the funniest by a Mexican in American cinema.

A lot of reviewers on IMDb were praising the editing. I guess I would have to agree with them. The film was almost cut like a music video with the main plot interspersed with scenes of men and women cavorting naked. Out in the open. The monologue at the end- I am not sure what that was all about. But this was great erotic entertainment. Thanks Russ.

Best Regards, Pimpin.

Meyer near the "top" of his form

[john22900 · 9/10 · 8 July 2006]

It makes one wonder about the footage (half the film) that the processing lab irretrievably lost. Too bad too because although Meyer improvised by reshooting footage of huge-breasted Uschi Digard (and who can argue with that?), I'd be willing to bet that the lost footage was even better. Not that I don't have anything at all against Uschi (I don't), but I get the distinct impression the missing footage would have even been more erotic. If the missing footage is anything like the most erotic scene in the movie - the seduction of the Franklin Bolger character by the nurse = it would have blown the audience right out of their seats. The jump cuts featuring Uschi are nice to look at but without any substance they cannot be put into proper perspective as relative to the film. Charles Napier is fine as the corrupt sheriff (he plays bad guys extremely well) but it is the amply endowed women in the cast that steal the show.

Meyer shot a movie and lost half of it

[HalfCentury · 9/10 · 11 April 2005]

Russ Meyer is a genius at cutting films. And from other examples of his work you can tell he had the whole multi, jump cut vision in his head. Shooting plenty of coverage to get the whole hyper-active, ceaselessly interesting story told. But Cherry, Harry and Raquel was completely shot when the lab ruined over half the footage. Meyer was forced to improvise and Uschi Digart became the scene padding "Muse". The afterword narration becomes a completely overboard retelling of the whole movie. But for all those sad concessions to losing whatever Meyer might have made of this story, it's one of my favorites. Charles Napier absolutely rules. He must have double the muscles in his forehead and scalp than the ordinary mortal as evidenced by some of the mugging he does in this flick. Meyer's kinetic film cutting was far ahead of it's time. The climactic final shoot out is just bloody and macho and totally hilarious stuff.

One of my favorite Russ Meyer films

[matt zodiac · 9 February 2002]

Harry Sledge (Charles Napier) is a small-town sheriff who doubles as a drug runner for an old, rich pervert. He gets involved with the old man's woman, plus another big-breasted girl. Meanwhile he stalks a rival indian dealer in the desert. The film features typical great dialogue, masterful editing, photography and wonderful sex scenes. It also has some great action scenes and is surprisingly bloody. Charles Napier gives one of his best performances. It's a very entertaining 70 minutes.

The Toys Of Our Time

[Mvpkinger · 8/10 · 16 July 2014]

This movie was co-written, produced, and directed by the legendary Russ Meyer. Harry (Charles Napier) is a small town sheriff. He lives with his girlfriend Cherry (Linda Ashton), who works as a nurse. Harry's associate Enrique (Bert Santos) is sleeping with his girlfriend Raquel (Larissa Ely), who works as a prostitute. Harry and Enrique are in the employ of the old, corrupt Mr. Franklin (Frank Bolger). They illegally divert marijuana over the border, and split the profits. Mr. Franklin informs Harry that another associate named Apache (John Milo) has gone into business for himself, and must be killed. Apache avoids the ambush Harry and Enrique had set up for him. Later, Apache steals Harry's jeep, then runs over and kills Enrique. When Raquel arrives at the hospital where Mr. Franklin is staying to sexually service him, she finds that he has been killed by Apache. Raquel stays in the hospital, recovering from the shock of finding Mr. Franklin dead. Her nurse Cherry takes care of her, which includes having sex with her. Harry: "I don't like women messing around with women. It's un-American." Uschi Digard, as a supporting character named Soul, runs around naked in various settings, without advancing the plot. Looking at Uschi when she was in her prime is worth the price of the movie. As for the movie's characters, the narrator accurately states that they're "superficial in their makeup, but so necessary to our way of life."

RM's Psychedelic surrealist film

[jlomax28 · 9/10 · 29 March 2014]

Fun sexploitation! Uschi Digard looks like the 50 foot woman in this film. She is the 'Lost Soul' of the film. Dancing and bouncing through out the desert in nothing but thigh high patine leather booths and a chain around her waste. She interprets the convoluted plot about a corrupt sheriff who smuggles pot through the Mexican boarder into the USA. This film has three introductions. The first is a script about freedom of choice and speech that scrolls over a lightening fast montage of Uschi bouncing around. The montage is so kinetic that the words of freedom of choice become obsolete... Intro number two is a bold narration about the evils of marijuana corrupting the minds of today's (1969) thrill seeking, turned on-generation. It seems to contradict the the previous introduction... very tongue in cheek. The third intro is the film's opening credits... RUSS MEYER'S CHERRY & HARRY & RAQUEL. A blonde woman and a young man are seen driving in the desert. They stop the car and begin fornicating next to the sand and brush and cacti while the psychedelic song, "Toys of Our Time," blasts on the soundtrack. The film ends with the narrator giving the audience a moral road map of the characters. SPOILER: The VERY end of the film reveals that the whole plot has been the novel or story of a female author. She types away on her typewriter and her husband asks her brother if he has ever read his sister's, "anti-social," writing. The film alludes that the said author is carrying on an incestuous relationship with her brother. Perverted and brilliant. A great pot head film!

From Tom,Dick and Harry To Cherry,Harry & Raquel!

[morrison-dylan-fan · 8/10 · 5 July 2013]

With having recently gotten back from a week long mountain climbing holiday,I decided to kick start my movie viewing by taking a look at auteur film makers Russ Meyer's last ever "Soap Opera" film.

The plot:

Taking advantage of a growing thirst in the black market for marijuana,a local politician called Mr.Franklyn decides to use his powers to sort out a deal with small time sheriff Harry and police officer Enrique which allows for the drug to be illegally driven through the boarder.Initially enjoying the fruits of their success,with the politician getting very friendly with a number of the small town women,Franklyn is caught by surprise,when Enrique announces that he is leaving the partnership,and going into business for himself.

Fearing that Enrique is going to unleash all of the details about their dirty partnership,Franklyn quickly arranges a secret meeting with the loyal,but dimwitted sheriff Harry.Pulling Harry's focus away from his long-legged girlfriend just about long enough for him to get a grasp of the potential threat that Enrique is to their business,Franklyn orders Harry to go on a hunt for Enrique,so that he is stopped from giving anyone a whiff of the illegal activates which have been taking place in the town.Agreeing to Franklyn's demand,Harry soon begins to discover that tracking down Enrique may be much more difficult than originally expected.

View on the film:

For what would be the final title in co-writer/ (along with Tom McGowan) co-producer/co-editor (along with Richard S. Brummer)/cinematography/director Russ Meyer's overlooked "Soap Opera" era,Meyer and McGowan appear to be largely focus on the visual aspect of the movie.Meyer and McGowan's focus on the visual side,sadly leads to some of the great whip smart exchanges that Harry and Franklyn have with each other being ones which don't deliver the full sparks that they seem to promise,due to Meyer and McGowan giving the movie a plot,which despite one or two good sharp turns (including an unexpected murder) never feels that it is building to a dramatic,natural conclusion.

Whilst the screenplay sadly fails to light up in the way that it initially appears,Russ Meyer and co-editor Richard S. Brummer reveal an astonishing eye on making the movie one which marks the beginning of a new era for Meyer,and the end of another.Giving the film a delightfully surreal atmosphere,Meyer separates the main sections of the films plot with a number of snappy,and off-beat dream like severance's,which thanks to the sharp editing of Meyer and Brummer helps to give the movie a surprisingly colourful Fantasy element.

Rubbing abrasively against the Fantasy element,Meyer also gives the movie a strong Film Noir mood,with Meyer showing the desert based town to be one where morals can be brought at any price,which along with allowing Meyer to display the most amount of flesh that he had ever exposed in a vivid manner.Along with the Noirish side,Meyer also show a tough,aggressive Horror edge,thanks to the scenes of Harry closely chasing after Enrique having a chilling Supernatural feel about them,with Meyer also letting bright red blood flow for the first time in any of his movies,as Franklyn and Harry begin to wonder about how far they will have to go to keep their business partnership from fading into a puff of smoke.