Barb Wire (film)

Infobox Film
name = Barb Wire


caption = Movie poster for "Barb Wire"
director = David Hogan
producer = Dennis Brody
Robert Del Valle
Peter Heller
Ray Manzella
Todd Moyer
Mike Richardson
Brad Wyman
writer = Chris Warner (comics)
Ilene Chaiken (story)
Chuck Pfarrer (screenplay)
starring = Pamela Anderson
Temuera Morrison
Victoria Rowell
Jack Noseworthy
Xander Berkeley
Udo Kier
music = Michel Colombier
cinematography = Rick Bota
Michael A. Jones
editing = Peter Schink
distributor = PolyGram Filmed Entertainment/Propaganda Films
released = May 3, 1996
runtime = 98 min
language = English
budget =
imdb_id = 0115624

"Barb Wire" is a 1996 film based on the Dark Horse comic book series "Barb Wire". The film was produced by Brad Wyman and starred Pamela Anderson Lee.

The movie was a vehicle for "Baywatch" star Anderson, intended to enable her to cross over from television to movie stardom. It was poorly received by critics and moviegoers, but loved by Anderson's fans.fact|date=August 2008

Plot

The film's plot was loosely based on the plot of "Casablanca". Barb Wire (Anderson) owns the Hammerhead, a nightclub in Steel Harbor — "the last free city" in a United States ravaged by the Second American Civil War — and she brings in extra cash by hiring out as a mercenary and bounty hunter. Her club is raided by Chief of Police Willis (Xander Berkeley), who is looking for the fugitive Dr. Corrina Devonshire (Victoria Rowell). Devonshire, a former government scientist, has information about a bioweapon being developed by the Congressional Directorate; she is trying to escape to Canada in order to make this information public.

Meanwhile, Cora Devonshire has turned up at the Hammerhead. She is accompanied by Axel Hood (Temuera Morrison), a "freedom fighter" whom Barb had known (and, it is implied, loved) at the outbreak of the war, but the two were separated soon afterward. Axel is now married to Cora, and is trying to help her get to Canada. They are trying to find a contraband pair of contact lenses which will allow Cora to evade the retinal scan at the Steel Harbor airport. The lenses pass through the hands of several lowlifes before also ending up at Barb's nightclub.

Rather than give the lenses to Cora and Axel, Barb makes a deal with "Big Fatso" (Andre Rosey Brown), the leader of a junkyard gang: Fatso wants the lenses, which are worth a fortune on the black market, and Barb wants a million dollars and an armed escort to the airport, where "she" plans to get on the plane to Canada. But Fatso double-crosses Barb; when Barb, Axel, and Cora show up at the junkyard to make the swap, the storm troopers of the Congressional Directorate are also there, along with Chief of Police Willis. Willis makes a show of arresting Barb and Cora, but instead of putting handcuffs on Barb, he slips her a hand grenade. Barb, Axel, Cora, and Willis pile into Barb's armored van and lead the Congressionals on a car chase, culminating in a hand-to-hand fight between Axel and Congressional Directorate Colonel Pryzer (Steve Railsback) atop a moving crane — followed by a hand-to-hand fight between Barb and another Congressional atop a forklift being lifted aloft by the same crane.

In the end, the party makes it to the airport, where Barb reveals that she still has the contact lenses. She gives them to Cora, and Cora and Axel get on the plane to Canada while Willis and Barb remain on the rainswept tarmac.

quote
"Willis:" Where will you go? "Barb:" Well, I hear Paris is nice this time of year. "Willis:" I do believe I'm falling in love. "Barb:" Get in line.

Reception

The film was critically mauled on its release, and was considered a box office disappointment. It is perhaps notable for its opening, in which Pamela Anderson dances topless as water is sprayed on her. Some of this sequence was cut on the film's initial release, but restored for later home video and DVD releases.

Cast

*Pamela Anderson – Barbara "Barb Wire" Kopetski
*Temuera Morrison – Axel Hood
*Victoria Rowell – Dr. Corrina "Cora D" Devonshire
*Jack Noseworthy – Charlie Kopetski
*Xander Berkeley – Alexander Willis
*Steve Railsback – Colonel Pryzer
*Udo Kier – Curly
*Candace Kita – Dancer

Trivia

*The entire "Don't call me Babe" leitmotif of "Barb Wire" comes from the original advertising for the "Barb Wire" Dark Horse comic book, in which she said those words to differentiate herself from a buxom, slightly airy comic book heroine named "Babe" created by John Byrne.
*Barb's motorcycles are a 900cc Triumph Thunderbird and a Triumph Tiger 900 (all-road model) made as water-cooled three-cylinder models by the new Triumph factory at Hinckley in Leicestershire.
*In the film, Pam's waist was laced down to 17 inches. The corset and the heels she wore made fighting scenes very challenging for her. [ [http://www.pamwatch.com/interview5.html Pamwatch : Interviews ] ]
*Anderson was pregnant during the filming of this movie, and did her own stunts. [ [http://www.pamwatch.com/bio.html Pamwatch : Pamela Denise Anderson's Biography] ]
*Pamela Anderson suffered a miscarriage during filming of the movie [ [http://www.pamelaleeanderson.net/biography.php Pamela Lee Anderson | Pamela Anderson Fan Site] ] .

Awards

*Nominated for the 1996 Golden Raspberry Awards in the categories Worst Picture, Worst Actress (Pamela Anderson), Worst Screen Couple (Pamela Anderson's "Impressive Enhancements"), Worst Screenplay (Chuck Pfarrer and Ilene Chaiken), Worst New Star (Pamela Anderson) (won) and Worst "Original" Song ("Welcome to Planet Boom! (a.k.a. This Boom's for You)", written by Tommy Lee).
*Nominated for Best Fight (Pamela Anderson Lee/Steve Railsback) at the 1997 MTV Movie Awards.

oundtrack

*" Welcome to Planet Boom" - Pamela Anderson-Lee, Tommy Lee
*" She's So Free" - Johnette Napolitano
*" Spill the Wine" - Michael Hutchence
*" Word Up!" - Gun
*" Don't Call Me Babe" - Shampoo
*" Hot Child in the City" - Hagfish
*" Let's All Go Together" - Marion
*" Dancing Barefoot" - Die Cheerleader
*" Scum" - Meat Puppets
*" Ca Plane Pour Moi" - Mr. Ed Jumps the Gun
*" None of Your Business [Barb Wire Metal Mix] " - Salt 'N' Pepa

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0115624|title=Barb Wire
* [http://www.pamwatch.com/interview3.html Sci-Fi Universe article from May 1996 at PamWatch.com]