Time Served

Wow, they combined a women-in-prison movie with a strip-club movie. Unfortunately, neither one is very good. The prison is full of average-looking to pretty white women. Not nearly enough nudity in the prison part of the film, and breasts in topless bar scenes really aren't that erotic. Catherine Oxenberg wasn't scintillating in the starring role, although she is quite pretty. Lourdes Colon was pretty decent here, and deserves a try in a better movie. It WAS refreshing to see women's breasts that could actually appear in nature. Maybe the silicone craze has run its course. (I hope)

Admittedly, my boyfriend and I did not rent this movie because we thought it would be oscar material. However, this movie is flawed because the director or screenwriter tried to combine a legitimate drama (inspired by a true story) with a T&A movie. This formula does not work because there is too much nudity for it to be taken seriously, but too many disturbing events (Like Sarah's rape, and her crying while dancing on the pole) for it to be an enjoyable T&A film. I would consider this movie a "Showgirls- Lite" --and that's not a good thing.

This t.v. movie comes of better than was intended I feel, and I'm talking the quality of the film. Like Chained Heat, if done unintentionally with style and finesse. What we have here quite a good solid drama, about an abused woman (hot Oxenberg) an actress who's name almost slips under the radar, if not for existing much more in the 80's. Batting for her little boy who shot the arsehole of a hubby, she takes the rap, and with a failed hearing, due to corrupt parties, ends up serving her time, which is no picnic, thanks to some of the sick and bent guard folk, and others, in cahoots with that bent judge, who run an operation, involving strip dancing at a club called Mr D'S, owned by and aged and hobbling Bo Hopkins, who's never been funnier. Appointed to Oxenberg's case, is not the brightest of lawyers (Jeff Fahey) an underrated actor, and he does us solid here, where he befriends the son, and starts to investigate the stink. One unintentionally funny scene has him in stupefaction, gawping at Oxenberg, getting her gear off at Mr D's. On the inside though, we're not forgotten about the brutality at the hands of one corrupt, sick, and repugnant, warden who beats the girls if not abiding by his sexual favors, and he plays violent. All in all, Time Served, rises about the average mire of these sorts of prison type films, with a fresh spin off, angle of story, that manages to be bloody entertaining. Solid t.v. movie drama with some hot bods to boot. You might just enjoy this one, and again, Mr 'Dynasty' Hopkins is hilarious, of course not the only star here, who was in that famous 80's soap.

If you want a good women-in-prison movie, rent Caged Heat. This absolute dog isn't worth seeing.

Catherine Oxenburg, with the help of some lighting & makeup, attempts to act a woman 10 years younger than herself who's wrongly accused of a murder. She gets taken to the most unbelievable prison you can imagine & the rest is downhill from there. If you're a guy who likes ogling bare-breasted women, then you may enjoy the strip scenes at Mr. D's, but if you want to see something erotic, you'd be better off renting a soft porn flick.

Admittedly, there are some amusing moments. Bo Hopkins is over the top, but quite funny as Mr. D., and I found Catherine Oxenburg's wooden attempt to pole dance quite hilarious – almost as good as Jeff Fahey's bemused "I've got a hangover and it shows" look – which he must have decided was key for his character, as he didn't change facial expression for the entire film. As for Louise Fletcher, one can only assume she was short of money at the time. The script never lets in a moment of tension, and it's all by the numbers right to the final scene.

The best thing I can say about this film is that the production values (cinematography, lighting, and sound) are respectable. A not too original variation on the old women-in-prison formula: Woman shoots man, goes to jail, forced to strip, is freed by forgettable hero; this film manages to fail as either sleazy exploitation or tolerable story. The acting is flat, Catherine Oxenburg (the heroine) never really believable in her reluctance, humiliation, or any other emotion for that fact. It's hard to blame her, though, as this movie is clearly nothing more then window dressing for the extended strip preformances by the several dancers, only one of whom is memorable. In fact, this feels more like an audition tape for these dancers, with a plot slapped on at the last minute. All in all, if you're looking for a story or a guilty pleasure, this film is neither.