User reviews

Jeff is sent to a woman prison, after being caught carrying heroine that belonged to her crime figure boyfriend Rudy. He asks her to keep her mouth shut and would try his best to get her out, but unknowingly to her he has other plans. When she arrives at the prison to do her time, she must face a tyrant of a head warden, Alabama who has a thing against American woman and a sadistic torture chamber of the dark ages called "the playpen" for certain troublemakers.

We all know the formula by now for cheap drive-in WIP features, I take it? Wrongly accused woman. Hard labourers work in the fields. Out-of-control cat-fights. Mass showering. Suffering at the hands of the head warden. Harsh terrain surrounding the prison to make it hard to escape. A gusty prison break. And finally those corrupted individuals get their up and comings. So basically the heat is on in the banana republic.

"Woman In Cages" is another quick, cheaply done Corman production, but this time Jack Hill didn't hold the helm. Instead Gerry De Leon was in the director's chair and he brought to the table a real mean-spirited and quite gloomy Philippine WIP affair. His conventional direction might lack style and cracking energy, but it's balanced out by its intrusive grittiness. The story by James H. Watkins and David R. Osterhout is rather straightforward with little lead way in its same-old-same-old actions and plodding moments, but plenty of sour and quite outlandish moments do occur. The moral card of injustice that leaks its way in comes off as quite silly and lazy. While, there's some slight wit evident, it just seems to get derailed. It mainly concentrates on the unpleasantness and sleazy nature that's drilled in constantly. In the long run these scenes might be effectively crude, but personality does lose out to this rough shtick that really does dry up proceedings. The characters don't feel as dominating; say in "The Big Doll House". Some of the actresses of that film do turn up here. Pam Grier plays the nihilistic lesbian head prison guard with such venom, but this hard-boiled devil woman glow does take away from her energetic persona. The crackling stunner Roberta Collins is in fine form as the on edge drug addict and the gorgeously biting Judith M. Brown also appears. Jennifer Gan was decent in the lead role of the glassily clueless Jeff. Music director Tito Arevalo provides a smoking; on-the-ball soundtrack and Felipe Sacdalan's cinematography methods are unsparingly grounded.

Not one of the best of the sub-genre, but well worth a look for the fans for some glorified badass whipping in this mostly dour WIP outing.

For those viewers who are accustomed to cheering on the antics of cult actress Pam Grier on screen, her character in 1972's "Women in Cages" may come as something of a surprise. Far from her bodacious, sympathetic action heroine, she here plays as nasty a personage as can be imagined: a pot-smoking, white race-hating, lesbian sadist from Harlem named Alabama, who is the matron in an exceptionally sleazy Filipino prison for women. Fans of this type of film--a subgenre that includes other New World films such as "The Big Doll House" ('71) and "The Big Bird Cage" ('72), both with Grier--know what to expect from such: nude shower scenes, sadistic but lovely prison guards, a handful of gorgeous inmates and over-the-top action sequences. While not as much fun as the other two films just named, "Women in Cages" does still provide the requisite goods, and Pam stakes her claim to be placed in the pantheon of such classic female jailers as Dyanne Thorne in the "Ilsa" films, Barbara Steele as the crippled warden in "Caged Heat" ('74), and my favorite, the grotesque matron that Hope Emerson plays in "Caged" ('50). In addition to Pam, the film boasts the presence of cult favorite Roberta Collins, as a smack-addicted rat fink; several catfights; vermin (of the snake, rat, leech and Filipino bounty hunter/rapist varieties); torture by fire, whip, rack, wheel and electricity; AND an oceangoing brothel. Though I still prefer the underrated Grier films "The Arena" ('73) and especially "Black Mama, White Mama" ('72) to this one, "Women in Cages" still proved an entertaining diversion.

"Women in Cages" reunites the three main cast members of "The Big Doll House" (Pam Grier, Roberta Collins, Judy Brown), but the results suffer from a massive downgrade in quality. Roberta once again steals the show, as she is three times the looker AND the actress that anyone else in the film is. Sometimes I had to pause the tape just to look at her amazing face. She has one great catfight here, but (sadly) she does no arm-twisting this time. Pam Grier is too young for her role and comes across as wooden, and the main lead is forgettable. The film has its moments, but it's mostly dreary and unpleasant. If it weren't for Roberta, I'd say just forget about it. (**)

American B-film companies found in the Philippines a cheap, plentiful supply of labour and locations for their tropical drive-in sleazefests. Admittedly these exploitation films are an acquired taste and a dubious form of entertainment; however they mark an important cultural milestone as the first features where a black actress, even playing a prison moll or topless revolutionary, is given a lead role of any substance. Director Jack Hill started the eightball rolling when he shot The Big Doll House in 1971, set in a nameless Latin American prison but filmed in the Filipino jungle. Unseen in Australia since the early 70s, the film featured a mixed cast of local and American exploitation regulars, but it's remembered as the first high-profile role for the later Queen of Blaxploitation, Pam Grier.

Legend has it that Sam Arkoff, head of American International Pictures saw a statuesque Grier at his company switchboard and cast her on the spot for her breakthrough hit Coffy. That, as they say, is bull shee-it. The former beauty queen made her film debut in 1970 as an extra in Russ Meyer's big breast bonanza Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls, and appeared in a number of B-pics shot in the Philippines the following year for AiP's rival company, Roger Corman's New World Pictures. Alongside her role as the tough-as-nails prostitute in Big Doll House were supports in the horror flick The Twilight People and as a topless hooker (again!) in Cool Breeze, then back behind bars for Women In Cages.

In Women In Cages, Grier plays the sadistic warden for once, a pot-smoking lesbian with a fully-equipped torture chamber (including a guillotine!). The 'New Fish' (a recent inmate, for you prison film novices), a ditzy blonde ex-stripper called Alabama, has taken the heroin possession rap for her pimp boyfriend. She knows too much, so the pimp blackmails her cellmates to execute her. A competent and well-shot entry in the tropical prison genre from Filipino director Gerry De Leon, it places the embittered ex-addict and prostitute Grier in the position of slave owner, watching her white charges toiling away in the plantation with obvious ironic glee.

Afraid of being caught with a stash of heroin by the Filipino law enforcement, a drug dealer named "Rudy" (Charlie Davao) slips the package inside a purse belonging to his girlfriend, "Carol Jeffers" (Jennifer Gan). When she is apprehended, she remains silent in the naive belief that Rudy will pull some strings and get her released. Instead, she is sentenced to 10 years of hard labor in a remote prison deep inside the Philippine jungle. Even then she remains convinced that Rudy will make every effort to get her out. Instead, he tries to ensure her silence by having one of her cell mates named "Stoke" (Roberta Collins) kill her. If that wasn't bad enough, the main patron named "Alabama" (Pam Grier) takes sadistic pleasure in torturing the inmates and Carol is in her sights. At any rate, rather than spoil the film for those who haven't seen it, I will just say that this is essentially a B-grade exploitation film. The acting is second rate, and the fight scenes leave much to be desired. Likewise, as in most films of this type, one should be aware that there is some nudity and a couple of graphic scenes here and there. Even so, the story flows smoothly and there are some attractive women, most notably Judith Brown (as "Sandy") along with the aforementioned Roberta Collins and Pam Grier to keep things interesting. And while it's certainly not a great film by any stretch of the imagination, it's not necessarily a bad film considering the genre.

Pam Grier is in this - and you may or may not be aware of her, but after watching this, you will have her on your radar. Really mesmerizing performance. And while the movie itself was not exactly good, the other actors give it their best shot too. Women in cages - it's almost taking the (sub)genre and put it into your title. It literally is if you think about it.

As with every good (and bad) of these female prison exploitation movies (I have not seen many, but they sort of write themselves to a degree), you have a lot of violence but also a lot of nudity. It just is inevitable. Sleaze and down and dirty as it goes. This is I would imagine not the worst of them, though if you are into that sort of thing, you'll find something to "enjoy" anyway

American women prisoners in a foreign country. Sex and action.

From producer Roger Corman, and starring Pam Grier as Alabama, we have a story of various women who are locked up in a foreign country (I believe the Philippines). Yes, there are the "women in prison" motifs, such as the showers -- and you might see plenty of nudity. But the film is hardly sexual, as it is so raw and gritty. This is the type of nudity you get from National Geographic.

Pretty much the best thing about this film is seeing Pam Grier kick a little butt, get her butt kicked, and then kick a little more butt. She is one of the early modern strong females in film, and there is no denying her power on screen.

Women in Cages is yet another sleazy women in prison film from the same people that brought us classics such as The Big Doll House and The Big Bird Cage. This film is nowhere near as good as those two, but it's still an entertaining effort that fans of this sort of trash will surely appreciate. The plot is just your general women in prison sort of story and, naturally, focuses on a bunch of women inside a women's prison. One in particular has been sent to jail after being set up by her boyfriend; meanwhile, another prisoner has been given the task of murdering said unfortunate prisoner. There's also an escape attempt being plotted. This women in prison film stands apart from many of the others simply because it stars Pam Grier in the role of a guard rather than a prisoner. Naturally, she steps into this role well and plays the antagonist with relish. Unfortunately, there's no role for Sid Haig in this one. The film is directed by Gerardo de Leon, and regrettably he doesn't have the same flair as Jack Hill and the film does fall a little flat in that respect. However, it's still decent enough entertainment and at about seventy five minutes, it doesn't outstay its welcome either. Worth a look.

With a title like "Women in Cages", a filming location in the Philippines and salacious posters featuring scantily clad women, it's obvious that this is NOT a Merchant-Ivory Production! It's clearly a low-budget schlock film and without even seeing it, I knew the film would include lots of violence, girl fights and boobs. That is just the sort of film they made in this country back in the 70s.

Although Pam Grier appeared in other Women in Prison films, in this case she does not play a prisoner but a sadistic lesbian matron who delights in abusing her charges. Now you might ask why a Black-American lady is in the Philippines doing this--you can only assume that she's REALLY dedicated to her job (plus I heard they had a great dental plan). In addition, she is able to vent her anger towards White ladies--as, oddly, this Asian prison has an over-abundance of Americans. Eventually, Grier's sadism is too much for some of the ladies and they take their chances escaping into the jungle--a jungle from which no one has ever successfully escaped! Can the sexy young ladies (all who appear about 25) escape? Or, for that matter, does anyone in the audience really care? Overall, this is a trashy exploitation film--the sort you'd have expected to see in sleazy 70s grind houses. Cheap, stupid but entertaining on a VERY base level--it's definitely not everyone's cup of tea! But, if you like unabashed trash, this is as good as any and it delivers exactly what you'd expect.

If I recall correctly, Pam Grier appears in about four women-in-prison films on both sides of the bars. In this film, she is the Chief Matron, and not a nice person at all.

This was one of the last films for director Gerardo de Leon, the most- awarded director in the history of the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Science.

It also features Judith Brown and Roberta Collins, who both appeared in several women-in-prison films.

In an uncredited role, you see Sofia Moran, a Philippine action star, who became their 13th President.

Torture, showers, crawling through the sewer (Yech!) and boobage.

Recently seen this film, and although I would rate this as a better than average "B" movie, the plot was good. I was compelled to sympathize with the prisoners and wanted desperately for the four main characters (women prisoners) to escape.

I would like to comment on an actress who portrayed Teresa in the film, played by Philippine actress Sofia Moran. I felt that she played the role wonderfully and was sympathetic to her character as a victim of the Warden (Pam Grier). I am surprised that she is not even 'Billed" in the opening credits as I felt that she is one of the main characters and provided us with a polished character portrayal compared to the other 3 main characters in "Women in Cages".

Overall I can state that this movie rates as one of the "better" films of this genre and "women in prison films" to date.

In the Women In Prison genre, this is clearly one of the weaker films. One of Pam Grier's early movies and you can tell. Bad acting galore and nudity, but I wasn't expecting award-winning performances..check it out for yourself but again: it's the weakest of the genre.

There have been a lot of movies with the theme of beautiful women being locked in prison and abused by the warden. This film is a classic example of that theme.

Pam Grier, the black movie queen of 1970's "B" movies, is the sadistic warden of a women's prison in a foreign country. Two of the prisoners attract her attention - a hot-blooded redhead, and the prison-informant blonde. The redhead is in prison on charges of murdering her husband. I can't remember why the blonde is in prison, but then that doesn't really matter in the film anyway. Let's just say that the redhead and the blonde don't get along, and the warden utilizes her own distinct form of justice when they get into a fight.

The redhead is taken into the warden's "play room", stripped naked (we only see the upper half), has her arms pulled up over her head and is then locked into some boots, which are then slowly cranked apart to spread her legs wide. A brazier's flame covers her modesty for most of this scene, as the warden taunts her a bit and then pushes the brazier forward - "This is our version of the hotfoot!". Cut to a scene of the women working in the field as the redhead's screams echo through the prison walls.

Later on there's a prison riot and the blonde irks the warden. To punish her, the warden strips the blonde (this time a restraint strap covers the actress' modesty) and binds the prisoner to a wheel and spins her around. After a few rotations, the warden tries to taunt the blonde into submission, but instead of surrendering, the blonde spits into the warden's face. In retaliation, the warden pulls out a trident and stabs the blonde as she's spun on the wheel some more.

Eventually the blonde and redhead team up and escape from the prison, and are pursued by the warden and her guards. The prisoners kill off the guards, capture the warden, and leave her tied to a tree as they flee to freedom.

The movie is worth seeing if you like women-in-prison films. Not much gore, and the only nude scenes are the ones described above, but what's there is worth a late-night or afternoon screening. People probably won't think of you as a cinematic genius, but what do you expect for a 1970's prison film?

Well, one thing you can always say about women-in-prison flicks is that they always pass the Bechdel test! This one is a follow-up of sorts to The Big Doll House, even if the returning Pam Grier is playing a clearly different character this time round, namely a sadistic warden! The overall tone of the movie is a bit more nihilistic and gruesome than the earlier, slightly goofier movie; though its probably marginally better overall. All the usual tropes of the sub-genre are present here but that also means it is as limited as these films can be as well.

On of the best early 70s exploitation women in prison flicks.

The production values are as high as the nudity quotient.

It seems like every 3 seconds some hot chick is pulling her clothes off and getting tortured for no reason other than to entertain us.

And then there's Pam Grier. She was quite the hottie in her day.

Move over Lindsay Lohan....this movie shows the original Fire Crotch!

The Plot.

Carol Jeffries (known as 'Jeff') is a naive American woman staying in the Philippines.

She is given ten years in prison after being set up by her drug-dealer boyfriend, Rudy.

She endures the harsh conditions, sadistic head matron and attempts on her life, then convinces her cell-mates to try to escape with her through the jungle, in spite of the knowledge that ruthless trackers will be sent out after them.

"Women in Cages" might be the best-made Women In Prison (WIP) movie I've seen, if not the most enjoyable. I'm surprised I'd never heard of Filipino filmmaker Gerry de Leon. I read that Tarantino is a huge fan - naming a character in "True Romance" after the Pam Grier character in this film - and I'm not surprised. I watched this right after "The Big Doll House", a more famous WIP flick with Pam Grier, and the difference is amazing, and all pretty much down to the direction. The framing of shots, use of close-up, and even the colour pallette combine to make de Leon's film a cut above.

However, if it has a fault it's that it's too self-serious to be really entertaining, and the trappings of WIP flicks make it too silly to be taken seriously. So you are left with a curiosity.

There is, after all, little point in summarising the plot: they're all the same, aren't they? It goes like this: pretty young woman is framed for a crime and sent to a prison in some unnamed remote location - usually a jungle in Asia or South America - where the sadistic warden tortures inmates with techniques inspired by S&M. The warden will often be a lesbian, as will, probably, some of the other inmates, and there'll be at least one shower scene. It all culminates in an escape attempt.

The movie is also, surprisingly, not all that exploitative. There's no full frontal nudity, and the shower scene doesn't seem thrown in just to appease lecherous audience members. There's also very little violence or sex.

Pam Grier also plays the warden in this one, after being a prisoner in (I think) all the other WIP flicks she starred in. De Leon gives her character more depth than one might expect. Perhaps he realised what Grier was capable of as an actress?

In the dark underworld of Filipino crime, women are mere playthings, discarded when broken. They wind up in prison, and not just any prison. They find themselves in HER prison. Holy mother of all things exploitation, Pam Grier is Alabama, and you'd better not tick her off!

Mind your manners, or you could find yourself in Alabama's "play pen" and be strapped into "the boots"! She might even give you a spin on her "wheel of death"!

She's vicious! She's sadistic! She's single!

Enter Carol "Jeff" Jeffries (Jennifer Gan), who was framed by her drug lord boyfriend. Now, she's just another inmate in Alabama's chamber of horrors!

As in most of the Women In Prison epics, it's good to see that haircare is a top priority in the slammer. Even during torture the women's hair remains soft and manageable!

WOMEN IN CAGES is one of the best WIP movies ever made. Ms. Grier takes it over the moon! Her performance is unforgettable! Watch and be converted!...

I won't go over specific plot details - plenty of people have done this already and many say "If you've seen one Women In Prison movie you've seen them all..." To a point they are right, it is built around expectations - that's part of a "Pulp" genre - the hardboiled detective, the Space Hero, the Mighty Barbarian... If only Romance novels got that scrutiny, or soap operas, crime shows...

However this is an R-rated movie that does live up to its title and expectations - nude women, lurid torture scenes, lesbian stuff, sex stuff. Beyond that it's a halfway decent story. It's a miracle it's not rated X and sadly no "Director's Cut" due to age, films getting trashed or burned...oh well.

AND - it is FAR ahead of any movie or franchise the modern "Politically Correct" or "Woke" have had a hand in. That is the real irony. I'll not do "spoilers" but despite this movie being "Exploitation" genre, despite it being "Grindhouse" and one of the early foundationals of the "Women in Prison" genre...

A - It'd pass the "Betchdel" test - and in the spirit of it - there are plenty of women who are characters who have personalities, names and don't just sit and chatter about men or wait idly for men to 'save' them - or at least eventually 'save themselves'...

B - It has major characters being homosexual. Not just for T&A/lurid male pleasure. You even get to feel for them both.

C - It uses many non-white people as characters. And unlike "Woke-Wood" of today they aren't Mary Sues, Magic (racial term) or crude cardboard cut-outs. They are characters - some are good, some are bad, and they act irregardless of their race. It's about what he or she wants, the reaction with other characters no "I . Am .. a ...place race here ... hear . Me . Give . Me .respect..." puppet like we'd see today.

The amusing irony is that if this film was released today the "Social Justice" crowd would probably be staging protests and maybe considering terrorist actions such as throwing a firebomb in the theater. But - per A, B, and C this movie is far more "Progressive" and a better plot/story than anything they put out - far more entertaining - will attract people outside the debt factory (aka "College") club of fellow "Woke" and pushes messages through about the effects of the Cold-War chess game and how lots of small countries got turned into dictatorships. In the Phillipines they installed Marcos because he was "Anti-Communist" - no worries there, he was a living, breathing advertisement for the concept - and I will be equally unfair - the Commies propped up plenty of "Pigs that thought themselves most equal".. I've seen this noted - blogs of film students in today's environment noting they'd hate the film for the exploitative elements but it passed most 'standards' they have trouble getting pushed through even today.

This movie is part of Corman's films that helped Pam Grier later launch to her "Blaxploitation" fame - and they even shot some films at the same time same Marcos jail, same Filipinos - but they jumped around roles for "Big Doll house".

Beyond this film I'd highly recommend "Machete Maidens Unleashed" for a documentary of the late Roger Corman's films of this era.

Women in Cages (1971)

*** (out of 4)

An innocent woman named Jeff (Jennifer Gan) takes the wrap for her boyfriend's heroin and is sentenced to a dangerous prison ran by the sadistic Alabama (Pam Grier). Jeff keeps holding out hope of getting out with the help of her boyfriend but her cell mate (Roberta Collins) tells her there's only one way out and that's through an escape. WOMEN IN CAGES isn't Shakespeare and it won no Academy Awards but it at least delivers what the title promises. It's easy to see why this film was such a hit when it was released because it features just about every type of perverted situation that you'd want for a sleazy drive-in movie. In fact, just thinking about the days when something like this was getting released weekly makes you wish these type of things were still being produced and especially at this type of quality. In regards to women in prison movies, this one here is certainly among the better ones thanks in large part to the Philippine locations as well as the cast. Both Gan and Collins make for good partners and while their performances might leave a bit to be desired, it's doubtful anyone coming to a flick like this is wanting great performances. Both fit their roles just fine and their beautiful bodies are constantly on display. Grier is once again the main standout as she gets a shot at playing bad and she does a terrific job with it. It's too bad she wasn't given more roles like this because it seems like she's having a blast. The film offers up women in showers, women fighting, torture sequences, sex scenes and just about everything else that fans of the genre would want. Is this a classic, all time great film? No but it's a fun reminder of what made this genre so entertaining.