Part slasher, but mostly a detective thriller with some rather tame soft-core sex, from director Fred Olen Ray(..under the pseudonym Ed Raymond)regarding a serial killer hunting down models who were all part of a Sorority 5 years ago when a girl supposedly committed suicide driving off a curb near a bridge. The "suicide", which for a while seems unrelated to the rest of the film, is linked to the murders as transfered LA detective Shane Newman(Brent Huff)and his Hawaii partner Julie Seska(Kari Wuhrer)seek the find who is behind the homicides at a posh resort. Could the culprit be Derek Simmons(Winton Nicholson), the millionaire publisher of Cavalier magazine for which these girls were invited to the Hawaii resort for a shoot? Could it be mysterious photographer Taylor Cameron(Debbie Rochon)who is to shoot the girls? While on the case, Shane has altercations with the resort's manager, Miss Pratt(Kathy Cullis)who wants them to investigate quietly without announcing a serial killer on the loose possibly hurting tourism. To insure this, Pratt enlists Sam's superior to threaten his job is if he doesn't cooperate. Meanwhile, we also follow the exploits of the girls, Kristen Neal(Amy Lindsey), Megan(Belinda Gavin), and Amanda(Kalau Iwaoka)who become nervous about being targets. The first victim's boyfriend, Charlie(Michael Lloyd), who found his girlfriend murdered in a jacuzzi after leaving to fetch some water, might just know a possible clue that could help the detectives..which could put him in danger as well. The film alternates between Hawaii and Los Angeles, as Sam gets some much needed assistance from his former co-workers back home who themselves discover some interesting evidence regarding the suicide victim, Rachel Kincaid(Jen Nikolaisen), a pregnancy, and a college Professor in hot water, Andrews(Robert Donavan).
The slasher element is rather uninspired as the attacks are very uneventful(..a strangulation, a drowning, the aftermath of a stabbing), but Olen Ray does what he can with developing the detective crime drama portion of the script. The actors deal with some pretty dire dialogue and rather irksome attempts at humor(..a lot of exchanges between the detectives, for instance, whose attempts at wit fall flat), but the location is stunning and cinematography sophisticated and polished. There are two lengthly car chases that are well executed and exciting, but this kind of film doesn't really need them. Plenty of tits, but the sex is photographed to avoid explicit details. Kari Wuhrer is a pleasant sight, and is featured in a sizzling fantasy sequence swimming and exiting a pool in a bikini as Sam dreams about her, moving uncomfortably in his bed. But, she is given standard, tired cop lingo and the role is the average detective looking for clues. She certainly deserves better. I didn't think Huff was that bad, given the usual detective role always in trouble with his superiors who demand for him to follow the rules and operate in a controlled manner. Olen Ray vet, Jay Richardson has an amusing cameo as Sam's LA superior, Hugh Janus(..say it a few times and you'll get the joke). The film has multiple endings as characters under aliases are discovered, correlating with Rachel, the victim in the opening of the movie. Rochon, unestablished in great length at first, does get to come into her own towards the end with a memorable, if cheesy/corny, confrontation with Sam at the end. The resort is simply an ideal, breathtaking place to shoot such a murder mystery, but I sure wish the slasher aspects would've been more inspired.
The slasher element is rather uninspired as the attacks are very uneventful(..a strangulation, a drowning, the aftermath of a stabbing), but Olen Ray does what he can with developing the detective crime drama portion of the script. The actors deal with some pretty dire dialogue and rather irksome attempts at humor(..a lot of exchanges between the detectives, for instance, whose attempts at wit fall flat), but the location is stunning and cinematography sophisticated and polished. There are two lengthly car chases that are well executed and exciting, but this kind of film doesn't really need them. Plenty of tits, but the sex is photographed to avoid explicit details. Kari Wuhrer is a pleasant sight, and is featured in a sizzling fantasy sequence swimming and exiting a pool in a bikini as Sam dreams about her, moving uncomfortably in his bed. But, she is given standard, tired cop lingo and the role is the average detective looking for clues. She certainly deserves better. I didn't think Huff was that bad, given the usual detective role always in trouble with his superiors who demand for him to follow the rules and operate in a controlled manner. Olen Ray vet, Jay Richardson has an amusing cameo as Sam's LA superior, Hugh Janus(..say it a few times and you'll get the joke). The film has multiple endings as characters under aliases are discovered, correlating with Rachel, the victim in the opening of the movie. Rochon, unestablished in great length at first, does get to come into her own towards the end with a memorable, if cheesy/corny, confrontation with Sam at the end. The resort is simply an ideal, breathtaking place to shoot such a murder mystery, but I sure wish the slasher aspects would've been more inspired.