HOT ROD GIRL

Chuck Connors and John Smith

HOT ROD GIRL (1956). Director: Leslie H. Martinson. 

Mechanic Jeff Northrup (John Smith of Legacy of Blood) goes into a funk after his younger brother, Steve (Del Erickson), is killed after being goaded into racing in his hot rod. Although Jeff, who was in the car with his brother, tried to stop him, he loses his license and loses an interest in racing. His girlfriend, Lisa (Lori Nelson), tries to help him get over his depression, along with sympathetic cop Ben Merrill (Chuck Connors). Later, Jeff resists getting into a race with an out of town hotshot, Bronc (Mark Andrews), but tragedy results anyway. Now it's a question of who is responsible for a boy's death -- Jeff or Bronc?

Lori Nelson and Mark Andrews

Hot Rod Girls is an acceptable time-passer that might have amounted to something with a better script. The acting is generally competent, with John Smith giving a very good portrayal of a decent guy caught up in circumstances beyond his control.  Frank Gorshin of Batman fame scores as Flat Top, a flippant friend of Jeff's. Although he had very few credits, Mark Andrews makes his mark as the sinister and unpleasant Bronc. Roxanne Arlen is cast as the dippy blonde, L. B., and Dabbs Greer owns the auto shop where Jeff is employed. There's a fairly exciting sequence when Bronc and Flat Top play "chicken" in their cars, as well as a chase at the climax. Like most of these movies, the teens in this are played by actors in their thirties or thereabouts. Although Lisa is shown to be a racer herself in the movie's opening scene, this aspect of the film -- women racers -- is completely ignored despite the title. 

Verdict: Won't make your pulse race, but entertaining enough on its own terms. **1/2.