Angel of Death 2: The Prison Island Massacre (2007 Video) User Reviews

Despite an avalanche of gore and sleaze, this is flat

[fertilecelluloid · 4/10 · 28 March 2008]

Clearly, Andreas Bethmann would like to wear Jess Franco's crown whilst coveting (at least cinematically) the old workhorse's wife, Lina Romay. Romay plays a corrupt, salacious, masturbating prison warden in this modern, ambitious W.I.P. film. With some exceptions, many of Franco's films are ineptly produced and directed in a slipshod, hurried manner. Shots don't always cut together and the sound mixes can be horrific. While watching "Angel of Death 2" (aka "Prison Island Massacre") I asked myself if Bethmann is deliberately trying to replicate Franco's patent shoddiness, or is he just naturally shoddy like his mentor? Is this movie deliberately bad, which would be self-defeating, or is it simply bad by neglect? After a hitchhiker is forced to give a gunpoint blowjob, her rapist fills her mouth, then fills her vagina with some drugs. Minutes later, she is hauled into a clifftop prison for reasons not explained and subjected to the leers and rough handling of staff and other inmates. As this is a WIP film, there are lesbian scenes galore and plenty of violent behavior. The gore is bloody and sadistic, too, with delights such as teeth pulling and scalping (courtesy of Olaf Ittenbach). The acting is pretty awful and the fight scenes are lame, but there is a love of sleaze in every frame and an understanding of what trash fans enjoy. Unfortunately, the flat script makes for a flat movie. So, despite numerous atrocities, hardcore sex, and a guest appearance from Jess Franco, the experience is an empty one. But isn't that what most Jess Franco movies are?

an ode to the 70's WIP flicks

[trashgang · 5/10 · 16 July 2009]

It took me a whole day to watch the 4 disc box of Angel of Death 2. Due the reason that the first part was Andreas first success he made this sequel, but to be honest and I said it before, it has nothing to do with part 1. Okay, he uses some shots from the first part but it isn't in the same context as in part one. He in fact re edited the shots. Of course Andreas is in this flick too as is the man he adores, Jess Franco. The difference with part one is that there is gore available only you have to wait until the last half hour of the flick. But it is worth waiting for. All made by his friend Olaf Ittenbach. As always he make use of the same actors as in his other movies, like Franco and Lina Romay. Just of the record, when you watch the interview on the extra disc with Romay you can notice it is at the office of X Rated Kult. And just have a close look, some OOP DVD's are available in his office. The acting is believable and much better then part one, the editing and score is better. Anyway, the limited box I own has 3 versions of this flick. Frauengefangnis 4: ungekurzte version. It clocks in at 88 minutes no English subs, German language. This is the part that you will find in the shops. The gore is intact, the movie starts immediately with a view over the prison island. The nudity is intact. No more no less just say, the cut version available all over the world. Women behind bars 4: director's cut. This one clocks in at 105 minutes and is the only version with English subs. It is also the only version with an alternative opening. This version is hard to get because the alternative opening has some XXX features. A girl hitch hike and is picked up by a weirdo. In fact this opening has nothing to do with the movie except that the girl appears later on the prison island. Of course the guy take a short cut into the woods and she has to give him head. all filmed on screen facial cuming included. Further this version has the explicit nudity/lesbo scene's all shown. This is the XXX version only available at specialised shops. Further on the gore is intact. Angel of death 2: rohschnittversion. This version has the same opening as the cut version and clocks in at 124 minutes. The gore is available uncut but the nudity/lesbo scene's are more explicit and there are other lesbo scene's available not seen in the other versions.

This film, as the title says refer to those 70's women behind bar exploitation/grindhouse flicks combined with an ode at the Ilsa flicks. Only watch it if you can take real gore and are not offended by the XXX nudity.

Does size matter?

[kosmasp · 3/10 · 20 November 2012]

First of all I did watch the unrated cut of this movie. I saw it under the title "Prison Island Massacre" and have to admit that I didn't exactly thought or knew where this was going before I watched it. I'm not offended by the Gore (some really good effects courtesy of Mr. Ittenbach), but I'm sure some people will be appalled by either that or the sexually charged theme running through the movie.

Then again the WIP movies (as in Women in Prison although some might argue that the movie itself could also be called a Work in Progress) are almost always about the sleaze, gore and nudity factor. And while Jess Franco and apparently one of his muses appear in the movie, the acting isn't something you will remember fondly. Unless you have a soft spot for non-acting (some might call it amateurish) approach that is. Overall too long, strange editing choices, but good effects, especially for the money that probably was involved.

And some people think Hostel and Saw are "extreme"...

[ultra_tippergore · 15 September 2007]

People who call movies like Hostel or Saw "Gorno", "torture porn", "gore porn" must watch Angel of Death 2 (aka Massacre in prison island). This is torture porn, this is gore-porn, not what Hollywood try to market as such. This is the sequel (in title only because its not plot related) to Angel of Death, a good rape-revenge exploitation flick. That movie was good but this one is much better. Like in Rossa Venezia, Andreas Bethmann mixes hardcore porn with gore but in this case with much better results. This movie have it all for exploitation fans: lots of nudity, excellent gore fx, hardcore sex, rape, snuff footage, a Ilsa type wicked warden Lina Romay, cameos by Schnass and Jess Franco... The production value is also high by this kind of movies standards. Highly Recommended

The epitome of (bad) amateur filmmaking

[Horst_In_Translation · 2/10 · 23 May 2017]

"Angel of Death 2" is a German movie from 2007, so this one has its 10th anniversary this year. It is one of the more, but not most, known works by writer and director Andreas Bethmann. And if you hear this name plus the names Kercmar, Manoush, Carsten Frank and Olaf Ittenbach, who was in charge of the effects, then you maybe guess correctly already what to expect here. The answer is: lots of sex, lots of gore and violence, but major deficits in all kinds of other areas, the most crucial being story-telling obviously. I wrote in the title of my review that this is a the epitome of an amateur movie, but while some may see this even as a compliment, in my opinion it means that it is a really bad movie. "Amateurish" is nothing you would aim at, especially if you have been making films for a long time already. After all, this one here is the sequel to another Bethmann movie from almost a decade earlier. And it seems he has nothing learned during that time. This also refers to his castings decisions as most of the actors and actresses are really unbearably bad and the worst is that this film (at least the version i saw) ran for a massive two hours and twenty-two minutes. And you could perhaps say that two hours and twenty minutes of that are garbage. It makes me a bit sad to see Lina Romay in here playing a crucial role as lots of the stuff she has done in her younger years is really far superior to films like this one here, even if you could it as well to the genre of sexploitation movies, especially with how it starts right away with a rape scene. Jess Franco also has a small cameo and I don't understand it as films like this one here are really nothing he would want in his body of work. The story is as bad as it is generic. Girl gets raped, then schemed for drug possession and she ends up on a prison island while her millionaire dad sends out men to free her from the humiliation. This film actually goes by several other names as well, not just in Germany, but also in other regions of the world. But no matter what you call it, it will always stay a huge piece of crap with horrible acting, writing and looks/direction. I suggest you stay far far away.

Typically uneven Bethmann Flick...entertaining nonetheless

[adrian-15 · 7/10 · 15 February 2007]

Andreas Bethmann has carved (no pun intended) a niche for himself in the underground film community as a producer/director/writer and-what-not who will do about anything to hold the interest of gore hounds and sleaze lovers. This is his most ambitious effort to date. This film is no exception: hardcore sex-rape, lesbian interludes, and extremely nasty torture, courtesy of fx-'Meister' Olaf Ittenbach. Remember the dentistry scene in Marathon Man? Multiply by 100....and you're not even close. So, if you're into that, you should love this one. If you're a politically correct viewer, stay away as far as possible. By the way, For lovers of Jess Franco's oeuvre, there's much to enjoy. Lina Romay - his muse - has a leading part as the director of the prison where female inmates are, well, not treated very well. And she does nudity too, at 52. The version I saw was the unrated gory edition from the German 4DVD set that came out recently. Alternative title is Escape from Prison Island.

One of the better WIPs out there.

[chuck-219 · 1 January 2008]

AKA "The Prison Island Massacre" - Lots of fun with this one, folks. My copy didn't have subs, but it didn't matter once things got rolling (which took all of 7 or 8 minutes). A hitchiking chick is picked up, fellatio raped at gunpoint and money shotted before being sent to prison on false charges (and what a glorious prison this is). It's run by an evil cigar smoking warden and her straight, black haired henchwoman. There are about three plot strings happening simultaneously, but I won't go into that since the juicy parts are more important. Let's just say that torture, rapes and violence are happily in abundance here (including a Ned Beatty rape scene that takes place ON camera, as opposed to "Deliverance"). One scene has a guy get his cock straightened with pliers, then has his teeth removed (with said pliers) and finally has his scalp taken off prior to having his throat slit. Sound like fun yet? You bet it is.

Watch this by any means possible. Loads of fun for any exploit fan.

Charlie.