WEIRD WEDNESDAY: Toys Are Not for Children (1972)

Man, I never would have survived the 1970s. It was too full of sin and sleaze, too many drugs, too many cults. I’m reminded of this every single time I watch a piece of cinematic insanity from that most bonkers of all decades.

What can you say about a movie that starts with a young woman playing under the covers—yes, the dirty side of playing—with a doll her father sent her for her birthday, only to be interrupted by her mother?

Jamie Goddard is that young girl, emotionally stunted by the loss of her father and unable to embrace her sexuality unless it’s within the world of prostitution and daddy/little girl play. She’s played by Marcia Forbes, a one-and-done actress who was probably chased away by just how insane this entire film is.

Fran Warren, who plays the mother, was a major recording star in the 40s and 50s. You may know her song “A Sunday Kind of Love” or have seen her in Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd. She pretty much abuses her daughter, who only finds joy in the toys from daddy and the ones she sells at a toy store. Then she gets married to Charlie and can’t consummate with him — the pull of daddy is too strong.

So she does what any of us would. She falls in with a lesbian prostitute and her pimp, starts making love to dirty old men and finally gets what she always wanted. The chance to be with — and yes, I mean with in the most perverted sense of the word — her father.

Director/writer Stanley H. Brassloff would direct only one other film, Two Girls for a Madman. After watching this, I need to chase down that movie, too.

Make no mistake, this is the kind of movie that is going to make you sick to your stomach. I kind of like that feeling. You may not. It would pair nicely with The Baby or Private Parts. If you’re the kind of adventurous film watcher that I am, you’re probably beyond excited to hunt this one down.

You can listen to the podcast I did on this:

You can watch this on Tubi.

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