One of the sleazier entries in the women-in-prison sub-genre of exploitation flicks, this obscurity is a Spanish-Italian co-production that boasts realistic-looking sweaty jungle locales – indeed the realism of the surroundings is the film's high point. The low budget nature of the production and the grim, dirty look of the actors (none of the Hollywood white teeth nonsense here!) make it seem also like a documentary, so it taps into the could-be-real buzz of similar jungle flicks like CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST. The emphasis in this film is very much on sex, with many near-hardcore moments inserted periodically into the proceedings to pad out the slim plot and offer titillation to the male viewer.
Sadly, watching ugly men committing sexual acts on unwilling women is not my idea of fun, so I fast-forwarded these moments. There's not much to say about them really, other than the women are unsurprisingly attractive and the guys all have those sleazy '70s porno moustaches. The exception is Anthony Steffen, a one-time successful spaghetti western actor who must wonder what the hell he's doing here. Playing a washed-up alcoholic doctor, when I saw Steffen performing apparently unsimulated oral sex on one of the actresses, I wondered how close the 'alcoholic' label was to the truth. Steffen's good value for money, even here, but it's sad to see how the once mighty have fallen (reminds me of Cameron Mitchell's turns in schlocky '80s horror flicks).
Anyone who's seen any prison flicks will know what to expect from this one. There are gun-toting guards, happy to shoot anyone who steps out of line; tortures for those committing forbidden acts; a corrupt governor (this one played with customary gleeful relish by Italy's Peter Lorre, Luciano Pigozzi); lesbian acts (ever-present is transsexual star Ajita Wilson, who has a weird nude dance seemingly inserted into the jungle footage near the climax) and finally a mass escape. There really any violence or gore in the film until the last twenty minutes, where things finally pick up and the film turns into a halfway decent action flick. Somebody gets covered in leeches, innocent people are shot and Steffen has a shoot-out with the bad guy guards, blowing holes through their bodies with his shotgun in some surprisingly realistic special effects shots. Things culminate in an ending which is unusually poignant, considering what's come before. Director Edoardo Mulargia is another one who saw better days with his '60s-made spaghetti westerns, and he finished his career with the double bill of this and ORINOCO: PRISON OF SEX; a similar flick which shared locations and actors. Trashy days!
Sadly, watching ugly men committing sexual acts on unwilling women is not my idea of fun, so I fast-forwarded these moments. There's not much to say about them really, other than the women are unsurprisingly attractive and the guys all have those sleazy '70s porno moustaches. The exception is Anthony Steffen, a one-time successful spaghetti western actor who must wonder what the hell he's doing here. Playing a washed-up alcoholic doctor, when I saw Steffen performing apparently unsimulated oral sex on one of the actresses, I wondered how close the 'alcoholic' label was to the truth. Steffen's good value for money, even here, but it's sad to see how the once mighty have fallen (reminds me of Cameron Mitchell's turns in schlocky '80s horror flicks).
Anyone who's seen any prison flicks will know what to expect from this one. There are gun-toting guards, happy to shoot anyone who steps out of line; tortures for those committing forbidden acts; a corrupt governor (this one played with customary gleeful relish by Italy's Peter Lorre, Luciano Pigozzi); lesbian acts (ever-present is transsexual star Ajita Wilson, who has a weird nude dance seemingly inserted into the jungle footage near the climax) and finally a mass escape. There really any violence or gore in the film until the last twenty minutes, where things finally pick up and the film turns into a halfway decent action flick. Somebody gets covered in leeches, innocent people are shot and Steffen has a shoot-out with the bad guy guards, blowing holes through their bodies with his shotgun in some surprisingly realistic special effects shots. Things culminate in an ending which is unusually poignant, considering what's come before. Director Edoardo Mulargia is another one who saw better days with his '60s-made spaghetti westerns, and he finished his career with the double bill of this and ORINOCO: PRISON OF SEX; a similar flick which shared locations and actors. Trashy days!