Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc. Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 21, 2023

Vernon P. Becker's "Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc." (1971) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Code Red. The only bonus feature on the release is a vintage trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Here is another film that I would have never seen had the late Bill Olsen not rescued it from obscurity. It is called Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. and was directed by Vernon P. Becker, an American documentarian, who at least during the early stages of his career was apparently obsessed with Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. How bizarre.

Before he completed Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. in 1971 Becker made The Funniest Man in the World and Buster Keaton: The Great Stone Face, reportedly both very serious documentaries that few people have seen. However, they remained Becker’s final documentaries because shortly after their completion he began a professional relationship with Joe Sarno (also known as “The Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street”) and over the course of a few months while working on The Seduction of Inga he permanently redirected his career. What happened? Apparently, Sarno introduced an entirely new world of cinematic possibilities to Becker, he loved what he saw, and traded documentary filmmaking for projects like Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc..

If you are shaking your head while reading what Becker did after he met Sarno and are already guessing that he became a pornographer, well, you would be guessing wrong. Becker did not make any pornographic films. In fact, after he made Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. he went on to work with Yvonne De Carlo on a small film called Nocturna which was directed by Harry Hurwitz, who just like Becker loved Chaplin and made a documentary about him that was narrated by Gloria Swanson. (By the way, this is the same Hurwitz that made the hilarious sexy comedy Fairy Tales). Very, very interesting, is it not?

Here is something else that is worth considering if you are trying to understand precisely how a film like Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. was made. Have you heard of the Danish Mazurka films? These films were very popular in Scandinavia during the late 1960s and 1970s and did a lot of the things the classic commedia all'italiana films are famous for but without the quality satire and with a lot more skin. As you can probably guess, the Mazurka films had a much spicier sense of humor too, though it must be said that it was spicy for their era. In other words, the Mazurka films are very much a product of their time and by contemporary standards their spicy sense of humor is suggestive at best. Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. copies the blueprint that made the Mazurka films popular and teams up quite a few Scandinavian female actresses that would have been perfect in them. Becker even set Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. in Denmark where its Swedish star operates her business. And what kind of business is this? Dagmar (Diana Kjaer) runs an escort service with a couple of hard-working girlfriends that love to share their clients and while doing so constantly find themselves stuck in hilarious situations.

If I was a betting man, I would put money on Becker making the switch from documentary films to Mazurka-type films because Sarno convinced him that he could be successful on both sides of the Atlantic. It is why Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. has some nudity but never becomes explicit and is actually a good old-fashioned comedy.

How good is the comedy? The Mazurka films and the copycats like Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. are not as well scripted and acted as the commedia all'italiana films. I have seen and own quite a few of them and I would say that the very best Mazurka films are comparable to some of the smallest comedies Lucio Fulci directed. Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. even has an episodic structure like Fulci’s The Maniacs. However, at best Dagmar’s Hot Pants, Inc. is somewhat effective as a time capsule.

Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc. Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.67:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc. arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Code Red.

This release is sourced from an exclusive new 2K master. The film has a solid organic appearance, but as you can easily tell from the screencaptures we have included with our review its age definitely shows. Indeed, there are numerous minor scratches, blemishes, and even bigger marks and stains that pop up throughout the entire film. Color saturation and balance could be better as well. Some transitions are shaky too, especially during the second half, where there is noticeable fading in some spots. In other words, there is plenty of room for various enhancements, recalibration, and cosmetic work that could make the film look a lot healthier and more attractive. I still think that this is a fine organic presentation, but you need to keep in mind that the visuals look dated. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc. Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless track is fine. However, while viewing the film you will notice an occasional pop here and there, some light hiss trying to sneak in, and plenty of unevenness. So, time has left its mark and all of the limitations that are on the current audio elements are transferred without any corrections. Does this mean that you will be repeatedly distracted while viewing the film? No, I do not think so. You will just noticed what I described above.

Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc. Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc.. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc. Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you have seen and enjoyed some of the popular Mazurka films, I think there is a pretty good chance that you will find something to like in Vernon P. Becker's Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc. I am quite certain that this film exists because Joe Sarno convinced Becker that he could be successful producing and directing Mazurka copycats after the two collaborated on The Seduction of Inga, which enjoys something of a cult status now. I had never seen Dagmar's Hot Pants, Inc. before, so it was yet another discovery that I made thanks to Code Red. RECOMMENDED to folks that appreciate these types of genre films.