For what it was, “Hillbillies” wasn’t really all that bad. By this I mean that it isn’t stultifyingly awful or technically incompetent like most of Jesse Franco’s output. It isn’t stupid and disgusting like Ted V. Mikels’ films. Yes, it’s pretty silly and the plot doesn’t make a whole lot of sense – think “Hitchcock filtered through ‘God’s Little Acre’ and about 2 quarts of moonshine”. But it has a couple of real actors in it, and some genuine musical talent that distracts from the skimpy plot, and a person who wasn’t feeling especially discriminating could conceivably enjoy it if he or she had a few drinks.

But what distinguishes this movie as a cinematic train wreck is the fact that the last 20 minutes or so is pure filler.In fact the last 20 minutes should have been the middle 20 minutes. By this I mean that once the actual plot is over – the bad guys are captured and everything is wrapped up – the movie should be over, except for maybe a recap or a “farewell” coda. And normally in a movie like this at this point you’d expect the musician/actors to perform a number (to a wildly enthusiastic audience) as the credits roll.

Instead, the screenplay does a “Merry Widow” and proceeds to parade a random bunch of folk and country music stars on camera who do their little musical turns and walk off. For 20+ minutes! I kept looking at my watch and thinking “Surely this will be the last number…oh NOES, here they go AGAIN!”

It’s the oddest sensation. For all I know, the uninterrupted musical “concert” at the end were the real reason for the movie, but surely the place for it should have been in the middle of the story, since the plot routinely came to a complete halt while someone sang a number anyway. This anomaly is extremely disorienting for anyone in a modern audience who expects a movie to be *over* when it’s over.