HOT NIGHTS ON THE CAMPUS (1966) ** ½

Sally (Gigi Darlene) is a young farm girl who comes to New York City to start her freshman year at college.  She shares an apartment with a bunch of sexually advanced seniors who take her to her first “grown-up party”.  After some dancing, the party quickly turns into an all-out orgy (complete with human pyramids), leaving our demure coed to ponder, “At what point will they be satisfied?”  Later, Sally is seduced by her professor, and quickly embraces her newfound sexuality.  She then throws herself at a classmate and is soon modeling nude for photographers.  Eventually, Sally’s world comes to a standstill when she learns she’s pregnant.  

Hot Nights on the Campus kind of feels like a lost Doris Wishman movie.  It takes place in cramped apartments, features non-stop narration, and is a bit nastier than your typical ‘60s sexploitation flick.  The fact that it stars Bad Girls Go to Hell’s Gigi Darlene kind of reinforces that feeling.

The sex scenes aren’t nearly as hot as the title implies and the non-stop narration is sometimes intrusive.  The voluptuous Darlene is cute as a button, which certainly helps.  However, her erotic encounters aren’t quite as much fun as the early party sequences.  In addition to the wild orgy scenes, there’s a little girl-on-girl action (“Things like this just didn’t happen!”) to spice things up.  The swinging jazzy score is also memorable.

Overall, Hot Nights on the Campus is breezy, briskly paced fun if you’re into this sort of thing.  Some of the most enjoyable bits come courtesy of the film’s lack of budget and cinematic know-how.  I’m particularly thinking of the scene in which Darlene’s narration proclaims, “My world felt fuzzy and out of focus!” to excuse the fact that some of the outdoor scenes were in fact, fuzzy and out of focus. 

One thing that makes it more interesting than a lot of ‘60s sexploitation flicks is that it actually deals with the consequences of the heroine’s actions.  The scenes where she goes to get a back-alley abortion by a woman who looks like a chain-smoking witch (“She looked as evil as her trade!”) is especially memorable.  On the other hand, if you’re expecting some sizzling schoolgirl action, you might be disappointed.  I mean for a movie called Hot Nights on the Campus, we never once see Sally on the campus, let alone attend class, or do any homework!  Still, she’s promiscuous enough to get a passing grade in my book. 

AKA:  Nights on the Campus.