Buster and Billie (1974)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Daniel Petrie

Writers:

Ron Bartron (story)
Ron Turbeville (writer)

Release Date:

18 January 1975 (Sweden)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

What took place in that town in 1948 should have been a love story.

Plot:

Dimwitted but sweet high school girl of easy virtue and the most popular boy in the school share an improbable romance...

Plot Keywords:

Killed With Cue Ball | Revenge | Swamp Trash | White Trash | Female Frontal Nudity

Cast

Jan-Michael Vincent	...	Buster Lane
Joan Goodfellow	...	Billie Jo Truluck
Pamela Sue Martin	...	Margie Hooks
Clifton James	...	Jake
Robert Englund	...	Whitey
Jessie Lee Fulton	...	Mrs. Lane
J.B. Joiner	...	Mr. Lane
Dell C. Payne	...	Warren
Mark Pendergraft	...	Mole
David Paul Dean	...	Phil
David Little	...	Smitty
Vernon Beatty	...	Arland
Doris Pearce	...	Mrs. Hooks
Carl Reddick	...	Mr. Hooks
Dale Pearce	...	Sally

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Belgium:16 (video rating) | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Statesboro, Georgia, USA

Company:

Black Creek Billie

Trivia:

Roberta Pedon auditioned for the role eventually played by Joan Goodfellow.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Jan-Michael Vincent Is My Muse (2002)

Soundtrack:

Lightnin' Bar Blues

An underrated film

I also subscribe to the views of other IMDB writers concerning this film. BUSTER AND BILLIE made an enormous impression on my consciousness as a film viewer. I first saw it years ago, very late at night. Being teenaged at the time, this story of unconventional love in 1948 Georgia proved to be thoroughly eye-opening. This film affected me so much that, as I did not have a copy of it, I actually advertised in a newspaper for it, and someone forwarded a dubbed copy to me!

The excellent acting of Joan Goodfellow (Billie) and Jan-Michael Vincent (Buster) made watching this film a great experience. Their belief in the love of these two characters is reflected in their acting, reactions, and the little moments that these characters share. I have to admit that I have seen the film many times, but it is never a boring or predictable experience, even though one has knowledge of how it ends.

While this film has been described as cliched and a film with only a desparate appeal to oversexed teenagers, this is simply not true. It tells a good story beautifully, with great acting, and period atmosphere. If only the films of the 1990s and the 2000s could be like this.