HOT CATS IN GREEN HELL (1981)

  This Asian obscurity goes under a plethora of aliases including ANGELS WITH GOLDEN GUNS, TERROR IN A WOMEN'S PRISON, ANGER and my favorite VIRGIN APOCALYPSE. What we got here is one of those movies that seem to be 2 different movies spliced together(One of which I believe is a movie simply titled MARKING). One story we follow is a women-in-prison deal where various ladies are forced into a prostitution ring. The other plotline follows an Asian Charles Bronson-type cop who's trying to find the head of a criminal organization. There are some great scenes of him disco dancing and being hit one by a gay crime boss. In addition to all the girls with guns rebellion going on you get some male genital torture, Goblin's music from SUSPIRIA used to score a sex scene, a baby pig getting snuffed out for real(beware vegans!) and what appears to be 2 mummies fighting(mummy-fu?) to wrap it all up. 

THE ARENA (1974)

 It's kinda weird seeing 70s Pam Grier in ancient Roman times but compared to some of her fellow female gladiators here she does come off as the most kickass of the bunch. This is overall an odd mashup of 2 different genres, the Italian peplum(complete with many scenes directed by Joe D'Amato himself and featuring Rosalba Neri, Paul Muller, Salvatore(THE BEAST IN HEAT) Baccaro and many other familiar eurotrash cinema faces in big roles.) and the Roger Corman(who produced this) women-in-prison flick with Grier and Margaret Markov(who had previously been paired up in the classic BLACK MAMA, WHITE MAMA). There's also some clear inspiration from SPARTACUS. You get lots of sword-fighting and female-on-female violence. Decent time-wasting midnight movie. AKA GLADIATOR WOMEN(re-release title) and NAKED WARRIORS(re-edited cut video title). 

THE MUTHERS (1976)

  Filipino blend of blaxploitation, kung fu, women in prison and jungle action cinema directed by the prolific Cirio H. Santiago. Fairly standard by-the-numbers action movie plot that is unique for starring 4 black ladies in the lead roles. Jeannie Bell is the one I'm most familiar with having been the star of TNT JACKSON before this. Lots of terrible martial arts and gun-fu is on display. Not much more to recommend this one though. 

                       Not very much like RAMBO but there is lots of action in the jungle!:

CAGED WOMEN (1991)

 By the time this came out, in 1991, there must have been something like 100 movies that already used the title CAGED WOMEN so that gives you some idea of the creativity and originality involved in this Italian/ Portugese co-produced women-in-prison flick. Packed full of boobs and degradation though it certainly delivers what you'd expect from this sub-genre. Main gal, Pilar Orive, who seems to have had a very small acting career in the 90s, is certainly not hard to look at completely naked throughout most of the film. While nothing particularly exceptional happens here they do manage to jam in a THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME homage to bring it all to a close. Good watch for sleazoid completists. AKA CAGED WOMEN IN PURGATORY

 

             Known in France under the very unsexy title of HIGH SECURITY DISTRICT:

FEMALE PRISONER SCORPION: JAILHOUSE 41 (1972)

 

 This is the 2nd part of the Female Scorpion saga and I think I liked this one as much as, if not more than, the first one. It picks up right where we left off with Scorpion(Meiko Kaji) stuck in a women's prison, rotting away in solitary confinement in the basement. Luckily her amazing recuperative powers have not diminished in the slightest because she has to deal with being gang-raped by the guards, beaten by her fellow inmates and pretty much go through all types of hell before getting any vengeance on her tormentors. The artiness with which this was shot is something to see and makes me want to go back and re-watch the original film now. 

                                                POPULAR AND BRUTAL!:

RIOT IN A WOMEN'S PRISON (1974)

 This women-in-prison flick might have some of the tamest rioting ever in a film like this. These gals tend to just like throwing foam-rubber mattresses around wrasslin' with the guards(who seem to be mostly nuns). Unfortunately it also has some of the worst dubbing ever. Everyone talks super fast with an accent to make it even harder to understand. There's some nudity, of course, and the requisite shower scene happens but little in the way of any real action up until the midway point. A dog winds up getting hanged in what's the most brutal scene to anyone who likes dogs, a girl's head gets busted open in a rare bloody scene and it all kinda ends rather blandly. This doesn't really seem like something made around 1974 and seems closer to something from the 60s(which is an idea even more reinforced thanks to a few hippie characters that show up early on) Not one of the best examples of this normally more sleazy sub-genre.  AKA EROTIC CONFESSIONS FROM A WOMEN'S PRISON
 There is a French release of this(titled PENITENTIARY OF PERVERTED WOMEN) with lesbian porn spliced in for added sizzle!

Known in Spain(and Italy) under the super generic WOMEN'S PRISON title: 

            France gave it the way snazzier title of PENITENTIARY OF PERVERTED WOMEN!:

THE WOMEN OF INFERNO ISLAND (1980)

 A bunch of prostitutes are kidnapped and sent to an island prison. There's not much more of a plot than that but there is almost wall-to-wall nudity to look at so that's something. There's also a pretty lame gang-rape scene featuring a very young-looking girl which you'd think would be a difficult thing to make in a non-disturbing fashion. Besides being the most naked women-in-prison film that I think I've ever seen this one straddles that line between hardcore porn and softcore. There is not hardcore sex but there is a lot of full frontal vagina on show and fingers in said orifices.
 This seems like a less thought out version of a Jess Franco film(which is saying a lot!) and that's due to it featuring a few of his frequent stars Karine Gambier (from VOODOO PASSION and SEXY SISTERS etc.) and Erik Falk (from BLUE RITA and BARBED WIRE DOLLS etc.) among others. It was also directed by Franco's frequent producer Erwin C. Dietrich giving it that familiar Eurosleaze look. A good time for the very non-discerning perverts out there. AKA CAGED WOMEN, PRISONERS OF WAR, ISLAND WOMEN and WOMEN'S PENITENTIARY VII(making this part of a series of women-in-prison films that had nothing to do with each other but were just re-titled when released onto VHS. For what I think is a complete list of these click here.)

 Someone made a video featuring the rare non-nude scenes in the movie. Why, I'm not sure but the leather warden(Gambier) is nice!:

WOMEN IN THE LOVE CAMP (1977)

 Euro-sleaze director Jess Franco's BARBED WIRE DOLLS is my sentimental favorite of his women-in-prison films but this one is a pretty close second. Just like with that film you get tons of beaver and Euro-bush shots, wanton lesbianism and a sadistic lady warden whipping and torturing. This one also throws in a foul-mouthed parrot who calls ladies "dirty whores", decapitation and a weird ending that I'm not sure if it's supposed to be happy or not. Having watched a ton of Franco I can only guess it has something to do with the overwhelming power of lust over love but I still have a lot of films to watch before I would consider myself an expert of any kind on ol` Uncle Jess.
 Check this one out for some sleazy goodness along with some laughable dubbing. AKA LOVE CAMP

REFORM SCHOOL GIRLS (1986)

 Former lead singer of The Plasmatics and all-around legendary punk rock goddess Wendy O. Williams really should have made more movies. As it is she is really the highlight, to me anyway, of this film. In what is basically a spoof of the women-in-prison genre Wendy can't help but stand out among the other very high hair-sprayed gals at this reform school. Other highlights include a kitten-stomping monster of a women(Pat Ast) as our head guard and the great Sybil Danning as the head warden(unfortunately her role was originally written for a man so she tragically stays very dressed throughout the film). Lots of explodey action goes on, you get the mandatory shower scene. lots of pantie shots and it all culminates with a KING KONG-ending. Pretty perfect for something so goofy. Luckily it never falls as low as one of those Troma films from this same era.
 Director Tom DeSimone previously made THE CONCRETE JUNGLE which was a pretty good women-in-prison flick in it's own right but more on the serious side.
 There's a 1950's REFORM SCHOOL GIRL that really has very little in common with this one.

VIRGINS FROM HELL (1987)

 This Indonesian exploitation extravaganza starts out as a female biker gang takes on some evil mobsters. Very stylishly decked-out in bright short-shorts and leopard print they kick butt for a little while until they suddenly just give up. From there it becomes a more standard women-in-prison situation with some unique tortures for our inmates including sticking one of them in a bag with some unidentified rodent, another gal getting hung upside down and swung into barbed-wire, a roasting alive and, of course, the more common 'threatening a lady with some unwanted lesbianic-action' scene. The main bad guy is called Mr. Tiger(seemingly only because he has pictures of tigers in his office) who enjoys a bit of sadistic whipping and whatnot before he gets down to the raping antics. His goal, apparently, is to develop an aphrodisiac drug that he can make a fortune on(which doesn't really seem all that evil if you just ignore it's potential use as a date-rape drug). Eventually a scientist(who looks a bit like Indonesian action star Barry Prima, but isn't) helps our ladies get the revenge they've been craving since the beginning. Overall a pretty decent and goofy excursion into sleaziness(even though it strangely doesn't feature any naked boobs whatsoever for some reason) that's worth a look even though it gets a bit overly predictable towards the explosive finale. AKA MAIDENS REVENGE

                                                    Rapi films get rapey!!:


                                                              Exciting Japanese VHS!:

Known in Germany as VIRGINS OF HELL!: 

WOMEN IN CAGES (1971)

 Somehow I never saw this Pam Grier-starring women-in-prison flick until now. It's part of the Roger Corman-produced, Filipino-made prison epics series which follows THE BIG DOLL HOUSE and was then followed by THE BIG BIRD CAGE. In comparison to those two it's definitely of lesser quality but still sordid and sleazy enough to entertain fans of these lowbrow efforts. You get multiple shower scenes, Miss Grier exposes her lovely assets, wanton lesbianism, bumbling attempted murder hijinks and there's a sorta gang-rape ending. It's also interesting in that you get Grier in a villainous role instead of her usual spot as the tough prisoner. While the direction, under Gerardo de Leon, is a bit lacking and he's no Jack Hill  you could do worse in the sleazy thrills category so give it a pervy look. AKA BAMBOO DOLL HOUSE and WOMEN'S PENITENTIARY III
 Apparently Quentin Tarantino took Pam Grier's character's name, Alabama, for his main female character in TRUE ROMANCE.

A recycled poster design from THE BIG DOLL HOUSE:

SECRET OF WOMEN'S PRISON ISLAND (1970)

 I was introduced to this Japanese women-in-prison film under the alternate title of DECAPITATION ISLAND so I was expecting a pretty violent tale. There is one actual (offscreen) decapitation to start thing off and things do get rather graphic in the punishement department for our ladies in captivity but not as many heads roll as I was expecting. There are some unique tortures on display including a bowl of boiling oil that a lady has suspended over her that she has to hold still by an attached chain stuck into her mouth while lecherous prison guards poke her with sharp sticks. Lots of nude female Asian flesh, no real heroes and some samurai-style sword fights to end things. Pretty good WIP flick and unique enough to stand out. AKA ISLAND OF HORRORS

Some choice scenes!:
Decapitation island 1970 / Watch online

My bootleg DVD has almost the exact same cover as this, which is also the cover for THE JOY OF TORTURE also from 1970 which I have not seen so maybe there are other close similarities:

LADY GANGSTER (1942)

 Probably the most interesting thing about this 40s gangster/crime-noir flick is that it features Jackie Gleason as one of the tough-guys in a criminal gang of bank-robbers. Having been raised on a nightly diet of HONEYMOONERS reruns it's a bit jarring seeing Ralph Kramden himself running down the police and getting into knock-down brawls with our hero character(Frank Wilcox). Mr. Gleason does turn out to not be all that bad though and has a soft spot for the titular "Lady Gangster" by the time the film credits roll, which only takes a snappy 60 minutes which is the perfect length for a fairly basic film like this. It was also pretty neat to see what turns into a 1940s version of a women-in-prison flick for a long part of it's run time which is obviously quite a bit less graphic and way more wholesome than it's 70s incarnations. An interesting watch for old-timey gangster fans.

BAMBOO HOUSE OF DOLLS (1973)

 One of the sleazier Shaw Brothers movies. This one is a women in prison flick set during the Japanese occupation of China during World War II. The story concerns some Christian nurses, including a few white chicks, taken captive and put through the ringer by those evil Japanese. While it's not quite as insane and there's way less pubic hair than it's Eurotrash counterparts there's still quite a bit of sleaze to please the typical pervy viewer of this stuff. We get whipping, raping a blind lady on broken glass, boot-licking and some all-around general torture all set to one weird-ass snazzy soundtrack. It also all culminates with a bunch of gun, sword and kung-fu fighting veering things slightly towards the more standard Shaw Brothers style.



DOLLS around the world!:

FEMALE PRISONER #701: SCORPION (1972)

 This has to be the most stylish women-in-prison flick that I've ever seen. You get wacky upside down camera shots, super use of colors and some great fashions for something that mostly takes place insid a prison. The film successfully straddles the line between being a downbeat sleazy jailhouse movie(complete with mandatory shower scene and sadistic warden) and an absurd ultra-violent cartoon and this is not an easy thing to do. You get a tale of female vengeance involving tons of cat-fights, torture by miso soup, plenty of nekkid Asian ladies, bondage, kung-fu, knife-fu and gun-fu and as a bonus a prison guard who looks like Tony Clifton that never takes off his sunglasses. One standout scene features female-on-male rape(sure to please any "feminists" brave enough to watch this). There's also some of your more traditional gang rape and even some symbolism involving the Japanese flag thrown in which would probably mean more to me if I was either Japanese or smart. The one thing that does get to me after watching this a couple of times is how long it takes for our heroine, Meiko Kaji(who gets to don her big floppy hat similar to the one in STRAY CAT ROCK: SEX HUNTER), to get any payback for all the abuse she takes at the hands of pretty much everyone. I mean realistically she shoulda been dead before she even gets a chance to get her vengeance but luckily the absurdity of the violence level is matched by the absurdity of her mutant-like healing powers.
 There were three sequels to this which I have yet to see but if they're half as good as this one I can't wait to check them out.

DEVIL'S ISLAND LOVERS (1974)

 Oh Jess Franco you've done it again! Some of my favorite insane women-in-prison flicks(BARBED WIRE DOLLS, ILSA: THE WICKED WARDEN and 99 WOMEN) were made by director Jess Franco but this one is not anywhere near any of those in terms of sleaziness, story or really even in overall quality (although the cinematography is the best thing about this whole movie). It took me two tries to watch this one since I passed out trying to figure out what the hell was going on during my first attempt. The first half hour I kept expecting a straightforward women-in-prison type deal but it takes a little while before we ever even get to the prison and then it never really even looked like a prison to me. Of course I've never been imprisoned in Spain so perhaps they just use old villas guarded by guys with machine-guns to house their prisoners there. This film is littered with a lot of nonsensical characters, including our main two protagonists who are terrible at breaking out of jail, Howard Vernon as a maniacal warden, but mainly their lawyer who is quite possibly the worst lawyer in any movie ever! I mean this guy has proof of his client's innocence and a deathbed confession by the judge who convicted them but ends up being completely ineffectual at his job by the end of the movie. On the plus side there is a downer ending so at least Franco got that part right. There's also a little bit of lesbianism and boobs to spice things up so it's not a total loss. AKA LOVERS OF DEVIL'S ISLAND
 There is a shorter version of this titled FEMALE QUARTERS which does away with all the out-of-sequence flashbacks which make up a large portion of the movie. I've not seen this version but it sounds like it may be a big improvement.

SWEET SUGAR (1972)

 I remember thinking this movie was one of the most amazing things I'd ever seen when I viewed it back in the VHS days as a young fellow. Watching it more recently I'm not exactly sure why it stood out so much to me from all the other women-in-prison flicks from this era. Maybe I just hadn't seen enough of these movies yet at that point. It's still a pretty good watch though you get all the expected thrills and blood-spills, shower scenes, cat-fights, machete-mayhem, machine-gun madness and horribly oppressed women fighting back against horrible sleazy men.
 This has a whole slew of AKA's including CHAINGANG GIRLS, HELLFIRE ON ICE, my personal favorite: SHE-DEVILS IN CHAINS and CAPTIVE WOMEN 3( a full rundown of the CAPTIVE WOMEN series is available here)

 Part of this classic VHS double-feature!:

JUNGLE WARRIORS (1984)

 This movie is pretty awesome! You get a group of models dropped into the middle of a jungle. Instead of running into cannibals they encounter Paul L. Smith(Bluto from that Robin William's POPEYE movie) who runs a cocaine empire with his evil step-sister Sybil Danning and their arrow-slinging henchman Woody Strode. From there it turns into a rapey women-in-prison/jungle action flick. Also John Vernon shows up as a mafioso guy. Heads roll, many large boobs are on display, Smith kicks ass as always and it ends with some big explosions and much gunfire. A pretty entertainingly wacky journey that I'd somehow never heard of until it popped up on this women-in-prison DVD set that I acquired. One of the main appeals is the great cast including Marjoe Gortner playing a douchebag and Ava Cadell playing a sexy lady! The only drawback might be that it's technically not all that much of a women-in-prison movie except for a few scenes but don't let that stop you from checking it out if you dig sleazy stupid action flicks.
 Apparently the rumour is that Dennis Hopper was supposed to play the Marjoe Gortner role but he was arrested for being naked and drugged out of his mind before that commenced and I imagine the film woulda been quite a bit stranger with his involvement.

RED HEAT (1985)

 Two years after CHAINED HEAT Lind Blair returns to the ol' women-in-prison formula. This is a little weird since she wasn't all that proud of it the first time around but I guess when ya gotta pay bills ya take the job. Basically this is a crappier version of CHAINED HEAT with the setting switched to Communist East Germany(referred to as The People's Republic). The main villain in this is the original Emanuelle herself, Sylvia Kristel and I've never seen her play such a badass before so that's something. Unfortunately it takes about a half hour before we even get to the prison and then it's pretty standard stuff involving catfights(including on between Blair & Kristel!) and gals raped with plungers and that sort of thing. Towards the end a paramilitary group battles prison guards and it all becomes more of an action movie so if that's your thing check it out if more sleazy hijinks is your bag go watch CHAINED HEAT instead.

  

SAVAGE ISLAND (1985)

 Linda Blair is supposed to be the star of this movie but really only appears in some wraparound footage at the beginning and end of the film and her voice is heard in some narration that pops up every now and then. We do get to see her shoot a very young-looking Penn Jillette right in the head so that's something. The rest of the movie is made up of footage from Italian/Spanish women-in-prison turds ESCAPE FROM HELL and HOTEL PARADISE(aka ORINOCO: PRISONER OF SEX and BLOOD FOR LIBERTY) both from 1980. Now I don't think I've ever seen these two flicks in their complete versions but these spliced-up cuts make them seem pretty lame. There are some explosions and transexual star Ajita Wilson shows up as a badass prisoner for a while but for the most part this whole thing is pretty forgettable and there are many more exciting women-in-prison adventures you should check out before this one, like CHAINED HEAT for one, actually starring Linda Blair.