Women in Cages
Encyclopedia
Women in Cages is a 1971
film in the women in prison sexploitation
sub-genre, co-produced by Roger Corman
and directed by Gerardo de León
. It was prominently featured in the Planet Terror
portion of the 2007 film Grindhouse.
In August 2007, Grindhouse director Quentin Tarantino
said of the film, "I'm a huge, huge fan of Gerry de Leon.... [the film] is just harsh, harsh, harsh," he said, and described the final shot as one of "devastating despair."
) is set up by her boyfriend who she doesn't realise runs a ship-board prostitution, gambling and drug dealing empire. Thrown into a harsh prison she encounters Alabama (Pam Grier
), a sadistic lesbian guard fond of torture. Cell mate Stokes (Roberta Collins
) is a heroin addict who agrees to a plot involving Jeff, that will secure her more heroin. Another cell mate Sandy (Judith "Judy" Brown) also agrees to a plot involving Jeff, that could secure her own release. Their other cellmate Theresa (Sofia Moran) is Alabama's girlfriend.
Realising her boyfriend is not helping her, Jeff hopes to escape through the jungle, but learns that local poachers are paid to track and kill escapers - who inevitably become lost in the wilds surrounding the prison. When Theresa falls foul of Alabama and loses her privileged position in the cell block, escape becomes an attractive option to her. Theresa reveals that she knows the jungle well and can obtain outside help. Despite the fact that two of her three cellmates had previously agreed to covert plots involving Jeff, all three of her cellmates - Sandy, Stokes and Theresa - agree to accompany her on the escape.
1971 in film
The year 1971 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*February 8 - Bob Dylan's hour long documentary film, Eat the Document, premieres at New York's Academy of Music...
film in the women in prison sexploitation
Sexploitation
Sexploitation, or "sex-exploitation", describes a class of independently produced, low-budget feature films generally associated with the 1960s and serving largely as a vehicle for the exhibition of non-explicit sexual situations and gratuitous nudity. The genre is a subgenre of exploitation films...
sub-genre, co-produced by Roger Corman
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
and directed by Gerardo de León
Gerardo de León
Gerardo de León was a Filipino actor turned film director, who made his acting debut in the 1934 film Ang Dangal....
. It was prominently featured in the Planet Terror
Planet Terror
Planet Terror is a 2007 American action horror film written and directed by Robert Rodriguez, about a group of people attempting to survive an onslaught of zombie-like creatures as they feud with a military unit, including a go-go dancer searching for a way to use her "useless talents." The film, a...
portion of the 2007 film Grindhouse.
In August 2007, Grindhouse director Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
said of the film, "I'm a huge, huge fan of Gerry de Leon.... [the film] is just harsh, harsh, harsh," he said, and described the final shot as one of "devastating despair."
Story
Carol 'Jeff' Jeffries (Jennifer GanJennifer Gan
Jennifer Gan was a sixties pop culture actress who appeared in fourteen movie and television show titles starting in 1964. Prior to this she performed on the stage in musicals such as "Li'l Abner" in 1958, "The Pink Jungle" in 1959 starring Ginger Rogers and Agnes Moorehead and "No Strings" in 1962...
) is set up by her boyfriend who she doesn't realise runs a ship-board prostitution, gambling and drug dealing empire. Thrown into a harsh prison she encounters Alabama (Pam Grier
Pam Grier
Pamela Suzette "Pam" Grier is an American actress. She became famous in the early 1970s, after starring in a string of moderately successful women in prison and blaxploitation films such as 1974's Foxy Brown. Her career was revitalized in 1997 after her appearance in Quentin Tarantino's film...
), a sadistic lesbian guard fond of torture. Cell mate Stokes (Roberta Collins
Roberta Collins
Roberta Collins was a film and television actress who was known for her attractive physique, blonde, curly hair, and Marilyn Monroe appearance...
) is a heroin addict who agrees to a plot involving Jeff, that will secure her more heroin. Another cell mate Sandy (Judith "Judy" Brown) also agrees to a plot involving Jeff, that could secure her own release. Their other cellmate Theresa (Sofia Moran) is Alabama's girlfriend.
Realising her boyfriend is not helping her, Jeff hopes to escape through the jungle, but learns that local poachers are paid to track and kill escapers - who inevitably become lost in the wilds surrounding the prison. When Theresa falls foul of Alabama and loses her privileged position in the cell block, escape becomes an attractive option to her. Theresa reveals that she knows the jungle well and can obtain outside help. Despite the fact that two of her three cellmates had previously agreed to covert plots involving Jeff, all three of her cellmates - Sandy, Stokes and Theresa - agree to accompany her on the escape.