So Young, So Bad

This film was produced in New York City and is very similar to the film "Caged" also filmed in California in the same year. In this film the girls are not in a prison but a reform school but it is ruled just like a prison and even worse. Mr. Riggs, (Cecil Clovelly) runs the institution along with Mrs. Beuhler,(Grace Coppin) who have no regard for the girls and have them working in a potato farm and in a laundry. Dr. John H. Jason,(Paul Henreid), "Casablania",'42 is a psychologist and is a new-comer and works with Ruth Levering,(Catherine McLeod) and they both decided to change things around and treat the girls differently, allowing them to wear regular clothes and having dances and no working with potato's or a laundry. Loretta Wilson,( Ann Fancis) plays the role of a young girl who was married and had a baby and was abused by men and plays a very sexy mean sort of gal and falls in love with Dr. Jason. I was surprise to see Rita Moreno,(Dolores Guererro) play a role as one of the girls in prison who is all mixed up, but she does sing a rather pretty song in this picture. Ann Francis was very young in this picture and just starting her career and gave an outstanding performance.

This low-budget juvenile delinquents/women in prison flick from United Artists and director Bernard Vorhaus has Paul Henreid starring as Dr. John Jason, newly arrived at the Elmview Corrective School for Girls. Dr. Jason brings his psychiatric expertise to bear while dealing with the newest group of young female delinquents, including tough girl Loretta (Anne Francis), emotionally unstable Dolores (Rita Moreno), and thick-as-thieves duo Jackie (Anne Jackson) and Jane (Enid Rudd). However, the cruel and tradition-bound senior staff disapprove of the new doctor's techniques, which include treating the girls with respect, and a clash is inevitable.

While budgetary limitations are abundantly obvious, there are some interesting filming choices, involving close-ups, quick-cut editing, and off-kilter framing, so that the movie never gets dull. Despite what I have read about Pagan Love Song being her debut, this film was in fact Rita Moreno's first film. This was the first substantial role for Anne Francis, and she's the clear standout. This was also Anne Jackson's debut, and her character's obvious, if unstated, lesbianism is unusual for movies of the period.

"Dr. John H. Jason" (Paul Henreid) is an idealistic psychiatrist who accepts a job at a reform school for females which has a very high rate of recidivism. After getting to know some of the girls he makes some recommendations which are completely ignored by his superiors, namely "Mr. Riggs" (Cecil Clovelly) and Miss Beuhler (Grace Coppin), who believe that a reform school should be run like a prison. Eventually, this leads to a conflict between Dr. Jason and the assistant supervisor, "Ruth Levering" (Catherine McLeod) on one side and the aforementioned Mr. Riggs and Miss Beuhler on the other. Now, rather than disclose the entire plot, I will just say that this film will probably be considered "lightweight" by current standards. There is no nudity, vulgar language or anything else that might be considered "graphic". However, it is an interesting movie all the same with a very capable cast. In that regard, I thought both Anne Francis (as "Loretta") and Catherine McLeod probably gave the best performances. On the other hand, I must also admit that there were some parts which were a bit corny at times. But that's probably to be expected with most films produced during this particular period. Be that as it may, I enjoyed this film for the most part and rate it as slightly better than average.

Most of these films only have camp value. This one has some, but it is basically a fairly decent B movie and well acted. A definite bonus is the appearance of Rita Moreno and Anne Francis when very young. You can see what talented beauties these two women would become.

Tawdry girls' reformatory stuff from United Artists, this potboiler came out shortly after "Caged" and shares many traits: hidden pets (a rabbit meets a sorry end), an inmate gets her hair cut and goes crazy, repressed sexuality runs wild. Subtle it's not, and the New York area location shooting looks cheap, but I reveled in it. As the sympathetic psychiatrist trying to bring humanity to the joint, Paul Henreid doesn't look that embarrassed, and his romance with another reform-minded official, Catherine McLeod, has a nice, credible arc to it. And some of the troubled youngsters making their debuts are clearly headed for greater things: Anne Francis as the young-hot-stuff miss who abandoned her baby and is overcompensating, Rita (here Rosita) Moreno as the Latino spitfire, Anne Jackson as the feisty troublemaker. The we-don't-give-an-inch bureaucracy is memorably hateful, and it's a fun caged-dames B flick that makes the most of its limited resources.