Debbi's last stand; image taken from moviebadgirls.com
Last night, I went to an Alex Cox-less screening of Repo Man, the 1984 classic about Otto, a young L.A. punk played by Emilio Estevez, who gets involved in the wild, legally specious world of auto repossession. It was my first time seeing it, and it kinda blew my mind the way They Live did. Killer commentary on mindless American capitalism. Rad music. Geniusly dumb dialogue. Surprisingly great lunkhead performances from the leads. Fighting.
Oh, and a one-up on They Live: women of color kicking ass! There’s Marlene, who handles the money at Helping Hand Acceptance Corporation. She bashes a chair over a federal agent’s head when the FBI starts following them (best not to reveal too much, but UFO activity is a factor).
And no woman kicks more ass than Debbi, the lone female in Otto’s old gang who doesn’t take anyone’s mess, including from the other dudes. While the dudes are mainly talk, Debbi seems to be far more interested in action, and garners surprising results in her last scene.
Also, her look is awesome — like Annabella Lwin of Bow Wow Wow by way of Grace Jones, but post-apocalyptic.
And also a bit post-racial. Not a term I care for, but I find Debbi’s racial ambiguity very interesting. Given actress Jennifer Balgobin’s surname, my guess is that she is of South Asian (perhaps Indian) descent. But I wouldn’t say her racial identity is clear, thus suggesting that she may occupy several identities. This becomes all the more complicated by her accent, which is a bit British, a bit Valley Girl. Though in California, Debbi doesn’t seem to have any interest in assimilating. That she’s a punk of color — a bit of an anomaly, especially given the subculture’s troubled history with race relations — is not to be overlooked.
Sigh. If only more hipster girls were willing to butch up their look in such a masculinist fashion. L.A. is becoming a cool city in the wake of Brooklyn backlash, but something tells me that many bright young things would not be willing to shave their heads and don ski masks and metallic trench coats.
That said, I can’t help but wonder of women like Amber Rose, Kanye West’s coutured companion, were influenced by Debbi. Given her bleached buzz cut, I wouldn’t be surprised. Yet, something tells me Rose’s look would still be too runway for this road warrior’s taste.
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