Women in Cages

Illustration: Unknown

Gerardo De Leon | USA, Philippines | 1971

No-nonsense vintage Grindhouse delivered in typical low-budget Filipino style from Manila-born Gerardo De Leon. With its cheap as chips sets, outrageous dialogue, poor continuity and an astonishing negligence for gritty realism (the hair/makeup-up of the female inmates is exemplary throughout!), this is De Leon's magnum opus and an absolute classic of the Women-in-Prison genre.

Rudy Diaz (Charles Davis), local crime kingpin and leader of a gang of heroin smugglers, runs an off-shore brothel onboard an out of commission luxury liner called the 'Zulu Queen'. His gullible American girlfriend, Carol Jeffries (Jennifer Gan), takes the rap for attempted heroin smuggling; he gets away scot-free, whilst she is sentenced to ten years hard labour in Carcel Del Infierno, a female prison run by chief matron Alabama (the inimitable Pam Grier) — a tough ex-Harlemite negress who holds a grudge against white girls.

Carol is placed in a cell with three other inmates: the swarthy Theresa (Sofia Moran) — Alabama's lesbian lover, heroin addict "Stoke" (Roberta Collins) and fiery redhead Sandy (Judy Brown). As the newcomer, not only must Carol avoid 'The Playpen' (a fully equipped medieval torture dungeon!), but also fellow inmate "Stoke", who has been bribed to kill Carol in exchange for a heroin fix.

After tortuous stints in 'The Playpen' at the hands of Alabama, "Stoke" and Sandy, together with Carol and fourth girl, decide to flee the prison. Serendipitously, they manage to take Alabama as a hostage in the process of their escape, and as the bandit guards take up the chase, it's not just the escapees who are hunted, but even Alabama herself.

For a title which was rejected outright for cinema exhibition by the BBFC in 1972, it comes as no surprise that for its home video debut a deep set of cuts would be required. Apex's late 1986 release (which is missing the opening cast credits) was required to have no less that 3m 19s worth of trims before being granted an ‘18’ certificate.

Censored scenes include the removal of images of cock fighting in the opening sequence; reduction to the torture of "Stoke" on the spinning wheel; reduction to the torture of Sandy via a lit brazier between the legs; a real snake being struck with a metal bucket; reduction to Theresa's whipping of a tree-tied Alabama; shots of the bandit guards ripping off Theresa's clothes and exposure of her post-rape naked breasts; shots of the bandit guards groping Alabama's exposed breasts and the subsequent raping of her by the leader before being drowned.

Shown here is the rarer of the two covers designed for promoting the film. The illustration appears to have been inspired by Pop artist Alan Jones, crossed with a smattering of Electric Blue! Note the shadow of the gun-toting figure cast across the girl's back.

The more common design can be found here.

aka : Bamboo Doll House; Women's Penitentiary III

cast : Judy Brown, Roberta Collins, Jennifer Gan, Pam Grier, Sofia Moran, Bernard Bodine, Charles Davis, Johnny Long, Holly Anders, Dwight Howard, Roberta Swift, Paul Sawyer, Jeffrey Taylor, Nick Cayari, Andres Centenera, Marissa Delgado, Paquito Diaz