The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

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 insure 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.

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.

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.

I'm a little disappointed with this film. The DVD cover led me to believe that this was BAAAAADDDDAAAASSSSSSS cinema, so I bought it on this pretence. It has Pam Grier in it so it has to be BBBBAAAAADDDDAASSSSS, right? WRONG. This film is just BBBBBAAAAADDDDD! Trying hard to be a 'roughie' and exploitation / escape film at the same time, Women in Cages is a hotch potch job, it's all over the place. I had trouble deciding which character I despised more. Sure, there's nudity and violence etc, but not much else to stay awake for!!! Exploitation, fair enough but this isn't even 'good' exploitation, if that makes sense. I likes mah explore-tation a tad mo sleaziuh and mo well done than this.......