The Concrete Jungle (1982) User Reviews

A grim, straightforward WIP drama

[gridoon · 5/10 · 17 February 2007]

"The Concrete Jungle" doesn't offer anything you haven't seen before, but it's still an absorbing, fairly well-made & acted little Women-In-Prison drama. What the fans of this sub-genre need to know is that the filmmakers have taken a mostly serious-minded approach here, at least until the last 10 minutes when a massive fight that breaks out in the prison yard turns into a mudbath! Most of the time, though, the film simply chronicles, in a straightforward manner, the daily struggle for survival of a 100% innocent woman who tries to adapt to the harsh prison life. Tracey Bregman's sweet, innocent-looking face is perfect for the part, and she is surrounded by actresses who mostly manage, in a short amount of time, to build their own characters. The standout for me was June Barret as the bad girl Icy, who is both strong and insecure. (**)

In the vein of Chained heat, but slightly better

[videorama-759-859391 · 4/10 · 22 January 2014]

You think, cause it's a true story, this won't be like those other sexploitation women's prison flicks. You very well know, where the guards and staff are as corrupt as the ones doing time, where there's hardly a good soul in the house. This movie starts off, giving a false impression, as if it's to be different, of good quality, but soon, when our little patsy is convicted, and we hear those bar doors slam shut, we fall back into the same path of sleaze, this prison infested with bad eggs. But we already know this, judging by the cover, what have you. Not surprisingly a few stars from Chained Heat return in this. Young and Restless star, cutie pie, Bregman, a woman who's got class, is set up unknowingly, when bags of snort are found in her ski's. Now her real nightmare begins in the cold confines of those four walls, where we meet some more nasty pasties, and we've got to have a queen b..ch here, that replaces Danning. Her name here is Margo, but this one's really evil, and if you cross her, you pay. One drug dependant woman, threatening to blab on her, ends up a statistic, shot up from air in a needle, and we know what that means. We again have many similarities here, as compared to Heat, like lesbianism, evil female governors, horny corrupt guards, and an investigating and sympathetic warden, determined to get to the bottom of this corrupt filled prison, and no surprise, it's again played by Nita Talbot, her character very much like the one in Heat, but I think here, she's a more stronger force. Now the sexy Bregman is an idiot. Why must you ask? Cause she's protecting her scum boyfriend, (Peter Brown) who has the balls to come in and visit her, saying he was doing it for him and her, to build a new life. Bologne, the drugs we're stashed in her ski's. So for the whole movie, she keeps her mouth, until she can't no longer, in light of all the madness around her. Talbot makes a deal with, an exchange, and she then walks out those gates, a free woman, until she's a blip in the distance, played against a great 70's song. If a fan of these film's, you'll enjoy this as much as the others. Performance wise, everyone holds their own, Bregman, strong, proving she can carry a movie, while Jill St John excels with a real nasty piece of acting as a female governor, better than Stella Stevens in CH.

Is Prison The Stage Of An R-Rated Movie?

[stu_w · 5/10 · 28 April 2014]

Apparently so in this exploitation flick from the good old 1980s. You can't help, but feel sorry for the sweet and sugary Elizabeth who gets wrongly convicted for her seedy boyfriend's job of hiding his drugs in her luggage at the airport .

As soon as the cuffs are snapped on and the jail guard snaps on a pair of latex gloves, you know where this is heading - survival in jail. There's plenty of fighting (of course) and more injustices than you can shake a stick at. Poor Elizabeth is victimized at first, but finally stands her ground.

The film is full of stereotypical prison inmates, but Jill St. John stands out as the prison warden. She's so evil and conniving that it's a treat when everything backfires on her and she ends up locked in jail with the rest of the prisoners. Her nipples will undoubtedly be a popular sight from there on in with the other inmates in her cell block.

The climactic finale obviously has a lot of explosive and violent fighting with Elizabeth struggling through it all. She has such a wild and deep determination for justice that you can't help, but root for her and hope she succeeds. She's a survivor and proves it so.

I recommend this movie, but only if you're into prison exploitation flicks where boobies are a plentiful sight of the day. Warden Fletcher going to jail herself to become another federal inmate was a major treat - too bad a sequel hadn't been made of that! She'd be "Top Dog" for sure and with the most popular boobs in the penitentiary.

Entertaining For What It Is

[Michael_Elliott · 27 January 2018]

The Concrete Jungle (1982)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Elizabeth (Tracey Bregman) is the sweetest and most innocent thing you'd ever want to meet but her sleazy, no-good boyfriend plants some drugs on her and when she enters the U.S. she is arrested for trafficing. The poor woman is sentenced to a prison ran by Warden Fletcher (Jill St. John) who has some illegal doings happening with Cat (BarBara Luna) who just happens to be the toughest and dirtiest woman there.

Tom DeSimone's THE CONCRETE JUNGLE is a rather interesting women-in-prison flick just like his HELL NIGHT is an interesting slasher. What's so interesting about both movies is the fact that both of them try to cash in on a certain genre yet they also want to do their own thing. With HELL NIGHT, it was released during the slasher craze but it was more a Gothic horror film without the brutal slashings. With THE CONCRETE JUNGLE, yes it's a women-in-prison flick but it doesn't go for a lot of the trappings that you might expect.

Those trappings include the lead female getting naked, a manditory shower scene or a bunch of rough lesbian scenes. There's minor stuff throughout the picture but it's clear that director DeSimone wanted to deliver something more that a sleaze feast and to his credit he's actually done that. THE CONCRETE JUNGLE is a pretty entertaining movie thanks to a nice cast and a pretty good story. The prison life story has been told countless times and the story here isn't ground-breaking but it's interesting enough to keep you glued to what you're watching.

Another plus are the performers who do a nice job with their characters. Bregman is wonderful in the lead role because you really do buy her as the character. St. John and Luna are great villains and both of them add a lot of entertainment. The sleaziest moment in the film happens when Camille Keaton from I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE gets raped by one of the guards. You've also got porn legend Carol Connors showing up in a brief role.

While THE CONCRETE JUNGLE isn't the most graphic or violent women-in-prison film you're going to see, it's at least entertaining for what it is and fans should enjoy it.

Camille Keaton's quick paycheck

[caspian1978 · 5/10 · 4 May 2004]

The Concrete Jungle is the gold standard in movies about women in prison. Since then, a dozen of "late night, Cinema like" prison films with naked women trying to survive behind bars. For 1982, the Concrete Jungle made headlines for being the first of its kind. Today, it is far from being taken seriously. I felt bad for Camille Keaton rape scene. Not only was she not a leading actress in this film, nor did her character have any real importance to the story, her role was a quick flashback to her only famous role as the rape victim in the "classic" horror movie I Spit on Your Grave. I think it's time to call your acting career quits once you keep getting only rape roles.

Trash mini-classic

[kamikaze-4 · 7/10 · 15 January 2002]

Alternately boring and sleazy, the Concrete Jungle commits the unpardonable sin of taking itself too seriously. But what a cast! You have Tracey Bregman as the new fish Cherry; an innocent young woman framed for drug smuggling by her nefarious boyfriend, Peter Brown. Then there is Jill St. John as evil warden Fletcher. Let's not forget Barbara Luna as the queen bee. Of course, Camille Keaton reprises her rape victim role from I Spit on Your Grave as well as Kendall Kaldwell as Eyes the mean corrections officer. With Nita Talbot as the concerned social worker, Shelly Meyers assuring us a happy ending for all involved. Also if you look closely, you will recognize, Tiana Pierce from Mother's Day as well as Forms Karate champ, Karen Sheperd billed as Kung Fu. Oh well, at least it was a better billing than the woman credited as "Blimp" Followed by the sleazy homage to boom mikes everywhere, Chained Heat and it's insipid in name only follow-ups, Chained Heat 2 and Chained Heat 3: Devil's Mountain

An Upscale WIP Drama

[Falconeer · 7/10 · 28 February 2019]

While no movie from the "women in prison genre" will ever be called a masterpiece, 1982's "The Concrete Jungle" is a cut above the rest, largely because it does take itself somewhat seriously, while it tells a plausible story of what goes on inside the prison system. There are no group shower scenes in this one, but there is some rather ugly, vile depictions of forced sex and other sordid goings on. The best thing about this one is it's effective study of power hierarchy inside the prison system, from guards over prisoners, to prisoners over weaker prisoners, and most interestingly between warden and direct underlings. Every angle is covered. Even the power that a man has over a woman, simply by using love as a weapon to control and deceive; it's all here. The most impressive thing is how this nightmarish world is captured, as the story's heroine, Elizabeth, sinks deeper into the sordid and desperate life behind bars. Tension builds to an almost unbearable level as the attacks of the 'Queen Bee' become more vicious, from beatings, to shooting up rivals with syringes of air, to razor blade attacks, as in the film's most effective scene, that finds the once timid Elizabeth, becoming the aggressor and cutting her abuser with the same blade that was pulled on her. Soap Opera legend Tracey Bregman shines in her role, and is convincing, especially when her character begins to change into one of the animals that had at first horrified her. This title has finally been restored for Bluray and it makes a big difference, as now the competent cinematography and it's highly polished look can now be appreciated. The director followed this successful movie with another WIP film the following year. "Chained Heat" with Linda Blair, which cranked up the exploitative elements considerably, but does not have the same quality of this lesser known, earlier film. As far as the genre goes, "Concrete Jungle" is one of the best. Also recommended are the prison movies "Vendetta," and "Red Heat," which is hard to find in an uncensored version.

A Slammer Spectacular!

[phillindholm · 8/10 · 10 October 2005]

Women's prison films have always had an appreciative audience. Perhaps the first noteworthy one was "Caged" which starred Eleanor Parker. Released in 1950, it garnered good reviews and great box office. It also led to numerous inferior imitations, such as "Women's Prison" (1955) which at least featured a scenery-chewing performance from Ida Lupino as the wicked warden--(a role she would repeat, more or less, in the 1972 TV movie "Women In Chains".) There was also 1962's "House Of Women" which starred Shirley Knight. The seventies ushered in such examples as the Roger Corman/New World productions of "Women in Cages" and "The Big Doll House". Then came Jonathan Demme's take on the subject "Caged Heat", after which the genre was pretty much left to porno producers. But in 1982, one of the best films on the subject was released. "The Concrete Jungle" was produced on a low budget and a quick shooting schedule (but, then, weren't most films in this genre?) and managed to deliver a gritty and tense story of one relatively innocent girl's battle to survive a hellish female penitentiary.

When her slimy boyfriend Danny (Peter Brown) uses his unsuspecting girlfriend Elizabeth (Tracy Bregman) to carry a stash of cocaine in her skis, she is nabbed by airport security. After a speedy trial, she is sent to the Correctional Institution for Women in California. There she learns quickly that she must toughen up if she hopes to leave there in one piece. She also eventually finds that the warden (Jill St John) is not only cruel and unsympathetic, but in cahoots with an inmate Cat (Barbara Luna) the prison's Queen Bee, who is her partner in a prison drug and prostitution racket. When Elizabeth witnesses a murder committed by Cat and her henchwomen, she spurns her attentions and becomes her enemy. Meanwhile, Deputy Director Shelly Meyers (Nita Talbot), aware of the drug and prostitution business run by the warden and Cat, also suspects that Elizabeth has knowledge that could help her convict the villains, and she begins to press her for information. This does not bode well for Elizabeth, for by now, the warden is also suspicious and seeks to destroy the girl before she can talk.

Lurid, (and undeniably sleazy at times), "The Concrete Jungle" is nevertheless a fully satisfying melodrama, and one which tells a convincing story. The supporting cast is full of exploitation-film regulars, each of whom does a good job. Bregman is fine as the heroine, St John is a chilling warden, and Luna gets the role of her life as the vicious Cat who makes life hell for those who oppose her. Especially noteworthy is Talbot as the crusading penal official. "Jungle's" Producer, Billy Fine, would try to top the box office success of this one with "Chained Heat" the following year, but that film (and most of those that followed it) were really unintentional parodies of the genre.

Decent, well-acted female prison film

[oprlvr33 · 7/10 · 27 March 2010]

I remember watching this on HBO back in the mid-80's. I thought Tracey E Bregman (who apparently took a summer break from Young & Restless) was mostly believable as Elizabeth. I say 'mostly' because there were moments she is just too glamorous to be believable as the hard-luck prisoner. Barbara Luna is quite notable as QueenBee "Cat"; a role she was almost born to play. Jill St. John mostly skirted around her warden role, in which I gave a C+ rating, if that. The best performances, ironically, were the female prisoners, and Robert Miano (Stone).

I had been a young fan of U.K.'s 1970's series, 'Prisoner, Cell-Block-H'. While I don't compare this film to that series, some of the action bears reflection on surreal existence within actual prison life.

Entertaining prison drama...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 30 May 2022]

I stumbled upon the 1982 crime drama "The Concrete Jungle" in 2022, a mere 40 years after it was initially released. I had never heard about the movie, so I didn't have much of any expectations as I sat down to watch what writer Alan J. Adler had to offer with this movie.

And I will say that I was actually adequately entertained by "The Concrete Jungle". Sure, the storyline is somewhat generic for a movie such as this, but it still proved to be enjoyable enough. The storyline was nicely enough written and had some good moments to it, which drove the movie forward. Was it predictable? You betcha.

It should be said that for a movie with 40 years on its shoulders, then director Tom DeSimone actually managed to put together a movie that has withstood the passing of time quite nicely, because "The Concrete Jungle" is still a very watchable and enjoyable movie in 2022.

The cast ensemble in the movie was good. I can't claim that I was familiar with the ensemble here in the movie, but they definitely were nicely cast and put on good performances.

If you enjoy the women-in-prison genre of movies, then "The Concrete Jungle" is actually an enjoyable foray.

My rating of "The Concrete Jungle" lands on a six out of ten stars.

Good entertainment for fans of the genre.

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 3 March 2023]

Elizabeth (Tracey E. Bregman, "Happy Birthday to Me") is a young woman set up by her scummy boyfriend Danny (Peter Brown, "Foxy Brown"), who hid some cocaine in her skis. Since she won't rat him out (as we will see, she has a major aversion to being a squealer), she must do hard time in your standard Women In Prison exploitation flick / drama. Among her nemeses: the icy cold warden (Jill St. John, "Diamonds Are Forever"), who's in cahoots with the swaggering top convict, Cat (BarBara Luna, "Firecreek").

"The Concrete Jungle" doesn't really offer you anything that you haven't seen before, although it regularly serves up melodrama, sleaze (albeit maybe not *enough* sleaze for some viewers), and atmosphere. The characters (with predictably colorful names like Icy, Spider, Sweets, and Cheeks) are all pretty standard-issue, and nothing that occurs is particularly surprising. Still, it tells a fairly decent story, and it DOES get a lot of juice from the standout performance by Luna, who does look like she's relishing this role of hers. Bregman is fine, taking her character through her arc, although she is outshone by Luna, who's playing a more dynamic individual.

Numerous other familiar faces play their roles with conviction: Robert Miano ("Donnie Brasco") as a predatory guard, Nita Talbot ("Night Shift") as the official looking out for the interests of the inmates, Carole White ('Laverne & Shirley'), Camille Keaton ("I Spit on Your Grave"), Bob DeSimone ("Friday the 13th: A New Beginning"), Tiana Pierce ("Mother's Day" '80), and porn actress Carol Connors ("Erotic Adventures of Candy"), to name a couple. They all make "The Concrete Jungle" an appropriately grim and nasty tale that doesn't mess around.

All in all, "The Concrete Jungle" is compelling trash that does deliver some real satisfaction in the end.

Followed by "Chained Heat"; director Tom DeSimone later parodied this genre with his fun flick "Reform School Girls".

Seven out of 10.

Concrete Jungle

[sheila-hall60 · 8/10 · 12 July 2006]

I liked the film Concrete Jungle it reminded me of the Australian TV series shown here in the UK Prisoner Cell Block H. Concrete Jungle had a good storyline, perhaps too much swearing in it, but in this day and age this is nothing to crow about. The swearing in the film would not stop me from watching it again and again The acting was very good from everyone in the film and I was routed to the spot watching the film, I just had to see how the film ended and if everyone got their just deserts. I am a great admirer of the actor Peter Brown and it was great to see him in the part of Mr Bad Guy for a change, although I still prefer him in westerns and Mr Nice Guy.

A Decent Women's Prison Drama

[nettiegurl · 7/10 · 29 April 2021]

The first time my girlfriends and I sat down to watch this old TV movie, we were excited because we loved Tracey Bregman (The Young and the Restless).

Re-watching it these 30 years later ... I must say, its been interesting. Some parts have unfortunately been revamped (as disclosed in the movie's opening disclaimer) Like the illustrious rape scene involving Stone. Which was much more brutal or intense in its original airing. And made me and my friends cringe.

Bregman plays Elizabeth "Cherry" a naive and innocent young woman who gets horribly duped by her sleazebag boyfriend during a drug search. Falsely booked for possession she faces the harsh realities of "the other world" known as the concrete jungle. The ugly game of survival in a women's prison. While the story is compelling enough, the script and acting are intensely weak in parts such as the interactions between the warden, the governor, and Cat. But I blame that on the director. Truthfully, it's the inmates who deserve the Emmy. Overall, it is a great TV movie and I'm glad I found it online after all these years.

Yet another exploitation flick focusing on women's prisons...

[Aussie Stud · 10/10 · 3 February 2001]

Regardless of what anyone says, I still feel this movie should be classified as "comedy". Just about everything that goes on in this women's prison is hilarious.

The title of the film, "The Concrete Jungle" refers to the women's prison where the main character, Elizabeth Demming, is sent to after she is found guilty of smuggling cocaine that was planted in her snow skis (thanks to her scumbag of a husband). Of course, her character being written as 'naive', her husband conjoles her through the prison glass windows via the conversation phone that he is doing his best to get her out of there, but she has to "remain strong" while he sorts this mess out. It doesn't take a genius to see through his guise that he's gonna let her take the fall and then let her rot in the slammer.

Needless to say, we cut to scene 2 and she's in the slammer whereupon she meets a variety of stereotyped characters. There's the jittery crackhead mean sistah, "Icy", the gone-cold-turkey-yet-sweet chick, "Sweets". The evil head honcho, "Cat", the ex-evil-head-honcho, "Margo", and then there's the prison warden Fletcher who knows all the evil going-ons within the concrete jungle yet doesn't care and is as corrupt as about every other prison warden in film history. There's a bunch of other hilarious characters with stupid names such as "Eyes" and "Breaker". They just add to the backdrop.

When our heroine, Elizabeth Demming, moves into the concrete jungle, Cat immediately takes a shine to her and brands her with the name, "Cherry". From thereon in, Cherry learns the horrors of rape, drugs and lesbianism from within the walls of the prison. Cat is running a drug operation within the prison and uses her lapdogs, Sweets and Icy, to make sure everything runs smoothly. Apparently, in this prison, drugs will get you anything, if not everything. We never get to find out where Cat gets these drug contacts in the outside world from, but hey, this movie stopped making sense from the opening credits!

In the meantime, we see the obligatory lesbian sex scenes in the dormitory, chicks getting high on crack and rape scenes committed by the sadistic prison guard.

Scooting forward, Cherry learns the ropes and in a final showdown between her and Cat for the crown of the prison, she pushes her onto an electrical fuse box where she does a happy dance and dies. Warden Fletcher's schemes are exposed and there are no points for guessing what happens to her (oh the irony of the situation!). Cherry's boyfriend is busted by the FEDS for drug smuggling and Cherry is finally released from prison, a much brighter and smarter girl (one would hope).

Some hilarious things to look out for in the movie:-

• The toilet door behind Cat reads, "LATRINE" (!!!!!)

• Icy blurting out, "Sure thing... Cherry!"

• Warden Fletcher assuring, "Are you sure Margo?!?!"

• Cat's happy dance when she gets pushed onto the electrical fuse box! (This scene is timeless!!!)

Anyway, that's my review of The Concrete Jungle. This is a pretty obscure run-of-the-mill early 80's women's prison exploitation flick. You'd be lucky if you found it at your local video store. Thank God I own a copy of this!

Enjoy!

Arguably The Best Women in Prison Film Ever Made

[Nglas · 8/10 · 4 October 2012]

Before 1983's Chained Heat, there was The Concrete Jungle. TCJ does what Chained Heat attempts to do, yet fails, despite its cast of beloved cult stars. What TCJ has that Chain Heat does not is a solid script, solid acting, and characters that you actually want to see prevail. In fact, it is the characters of TCJ that make the movie such a treat. From the innocent Cherry (played by daytime legend Tracey Bregman) to the sexy, but compelling top dog Cat (played by Star Trek and another daytime vet Barbara Luna), these characters take the viewer on a journey of life inside a women's prison. From her harsh arrival to her ultimate release, Cherry guides the viewers on the story of an innocent girl set up by her boyfriend to carry drugs into the county and end up in a prison where the guards are just as bad as the cons. And speaking of authority, Jill St. John portrays Warden Fletcher and what a fantastic character! Brutal rapes, a charming friendship, an obsessed lesbian who happens to be the prison top dog, and a corrupt warden who is running a lucrative drug business with the help of the prisoners, TCJ is a great film and one you will enjoy watching. And what makes it so special is that you will remember watching it and want to watch it again.

Not your typical women-in-prison exploitation scuzzfest

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 14 March 2018]

Sweet young Elizabeth (a fine and sympathetic performance by Tracey E. Bregman) gets sent to a brutal women's penitentiary after she gets caught carrying coke for no-count drug dealer boyfriend Danny (a nicely slimy turn by Peter Brown). While behind bars Elizabeth runs afoul of both ruthless top con Cat (a deliciously vicious and predatory portrayal by Barbara Luna) and stern corrupt warden Fletcher (well played with cold conviction by Jill St. John).

Director Tom DeSimone not only keeps the compelling story moving at a constant pace and stages a few exciting cat fights with aplomb, but also offers a gritty tone along with a pretty grim and fairly realistic depiction of the harsh world of prison that for the most part avoids the more trashy and exploitative aspects of the babes-behind-bars genre. Bregman makes for an appealing wide-eyed innocent heroine who becomes tougher and smarter as the plot unfolds; she receives sturdy support from June Barrett as the lethal Icy, Aimee Eccles as the mean Spider, Sondra Currie as the friendly Katherine, Robert Miano as loathsome rapist guard Stone, Niki Dantine as pathetic junkie Margo, and Nita Talbot as earnest social worker Shelly Meyers. Andrew W. Friend's slick cinematography provides an impressive polished look. A sold and satisfying little B-flick.