Hooded Angels Reviews

Despite its bevy of rawhide beauties, this adult Western doesn't unduly exploit its heroines' pulchritude; it's basically a straightforward gallop through frontier justice. In the waning days of the Civil War, rebel stragglers plunder the community of Silver Creek, raping the women-folk for good measure. After the marauders slay their male relatives, Hannah (Chantell Stander) and Widow (Amanda Donahoe), who've just lost a four-year-old son and a spouse, respectively, unleash their fury on the male gender. Decked out in distinctive hoods, Hannah and her girl gang pose as male outlaws and knock over banks. Using their feminine wiles, they even fool a pursuing posse and gun them down. But an old incident in Silver Creek, where they executed a rebel general, come back to haunt them. The girls ride into interference in a town housing a federal payroll; the dead officer's son, Wes (Paul Johansson), comes looking for vengeance, joined by friends cowboys Jack (Steven Bauer), Syl (Gideon Emery) and Billy (David Dukas), who had friends in the slaughtered posse. While Wes expects the hooded thieves to gallop into town, the amazon angels are already there, masquerading as saloon hostesses. Inevitably, romance compromises the gang's professionalism — Hannah falls for Wes, much to the dismay of her lesbian lover Ellie (Juliana Venter), while the Widow dallies with Jack. During the payroll heist, Ellie uncovers her face before witnesses, figuring that if she's forced to become a fugitive, Hannah will have to join her. But as the women retreat from the scene of the crime, Hannah is wounded and fellow bandit Jane (Jenna Dover) is killed. How can Wes and Jack reconcile their romantic feelings with the vendetta they've sworn against the beautiful bandits? This bracingly revisionist revenge tale doesn't sugarcoat the lawless period it revisits and the lesbian angle casts settler moms in whole new light, even if the main plot is cluttered with Western cliches.