| Director | James Cox |
|---|---|
| Budget | $5.5 million |
| Box office | $2.4 million |
The girlfriend of John Holmes, Dawn Schiller, is on the streets and picked up by a holy roller after Holmes leaves Schiller in a hotel room. Schiller eventually calls Holmes to come and get her. Holmes arrives at the apartment, and they have sex and snort cocaine in the bathroom. The next morning, while in a motel room, Dawn sees a newscast that states four people were murdered at a rowhouse on Wonderland Avenue, the same one she had earlier been at with Holmes. The story eventually moves on to two city detectives investigating the crime, Sam Nico and Louis Cruz, and their contact with Holmes. Another officer, Billy Ward, intervenes in the investigation.
David Lind hears of his friends' murders at Wonderland and soon discovers his girlfriend was there. While at the crime scene, he is picked up by Nico and Cruz. Through Lind's story (told in flashbacks), we are introduced to some of the people who were present at Wonderland. Known as the Wonderland Gang, these people included Ron Launius and his wife Susan; Billy Deverell; Lind's 22-year-old girlfriend Barbara Richardson; and Joy Miller. Ron has a fondness for antique guns and frequently displays them. When he learns that Holmes knows notorious gangster Eddie Nash, he gives Holmes a pair of stolen antique guns to take to Nash, so that Nash can fence them, then the Wonderland Gang can split the loot. (Nash had befriended Holmes because of Holmes' notoriety as the porn film phenomenon Johnny Wadd.)
Holmes takes the guns to Nash, but Nash says the guns are too rare to be sold, as they would be easily recognized, and everyone involved would be apprehended. Rather than return the guns to Holmes, Nash keeps them for himself. Attempting to get back in the gang's good graces, Holmes suggests robbing Nash's home. Ron Launius is initially reluctant to be involved in the robbery, but after Holmes describes the potential loot, he is eager to participate. Holmes volunteers to draw them a map to plan the robbery, since he has visited Nash's house frequently. Holmes then visits Nash to buy drugs. When he exits, he leaves the kitchen door unlocked to give the Wonderland gang easy access.
Ron, Lind, and Deverell perform the robbery while Tracy McCourt, their getaway driver and lookout, waits in the car. Neither Holmes nor any of the women are present when the robbery occurs. As planned, the thieves enter through the unlocked kitchen door and rob Nash at gunpoint. Lind accidentally fires his gun, wounding Nash's bodyguard, Greg Diles. They abscond with over a million dollars in cash, jewels, and drugs. They bring their loot back to the Wonderland apartment to divide everything up. Holmes is unhappy with his portion, even though he did not participate in the actual robbery and he is in debt to the gang.
Nash discovers Holmes was involved in the robbery. He has Holmes beaten and finds Holmes' little black book. He tells Holmes he will kill every person listed in the book, starting with Holmes' mother, unless Holmes identifies the men who robbed Nash.
The retaliation for the robbery is swift and fatal. On July 1, 1981, Nash's henchmen (and Holmes), led by Diles, gain access to the apartment at Wonderland Avenue. Ron Launius, Deverell, Richardson, and Miller are all beaten to death with striated lead pipes. Lind is not present during the attacks. Diles compels Holmes to deliver blows to Ron. Susan Launius is beaten, but she survives. She is questioned by Nico and Cruz in her hospital bed. She tells them (in a near comatose state) that she does not remember anything, only shadows.