Brightest Young Things

Washington Psychotronic Film Society is playing "Jailbird rock" at the Warehouse tonight. Since seeing one hot women in shower movie (this one with bonus dance sequences) inevitably leads to a desire to see MORE hot women in jail movies I figured this is the right time to use my (many) years of slaving away in a video store for good and create a handy guide of some of the classics of this revered genre.

Hope you're ready for all this.

THE BIG DOLL HOUSE (1971)
This was one of the first "big" hits of the genre. Directed by Jack Hill ("Spider Baby", "Foxy Brown" and "Coffy" being some of his other seminal classics you may have heard of) and starring a very young Pam Grier. Foreign prisons, young girls, the inevitable sadistic woman warden, masked tormenters, secret basement dungeons and a tag line that says "White skin on the black market". Essential viewing.

BLACK MAMA WHITE MAMA (1972)
Pam Grier continued her domination of the genre here as the prostitute part of the prostitute/revolutionary inmate duo that hate each other but are CHAINED TOGETHER while escaping a maximum security prison. Drama, intrigue, coordinated fighting and more ensue.

CAGED HEAT (1974)
Before he brought "Philadelphia" and "Silence of the Lambs" into the world Jonathan Demme worked under Roger Corman and made his debut with this 1974 classic which opens with one of the great exploitation genre lines from the Prison's resident physician Dr Randolph (Warren Miller): "Girls, this isn't something I enjoy either but I need you to get undressed....now we're going to begin with some calistenics...I want you to do some deep squat thrusts...". No time wasted.

CHAINED HEAT AND CHAINED HEAT 2
Once the 80s rolled around, no one was safe. "Chained Heat", which rolled out in 1983 featured in-career-limbo Linda Blair sent to a prison where where the other female inmates are sadistic crack-selling lesbian rapists and the guards and warden are no better. Shocker.

A decade later it was time for extra-pneumatic Brigitte Nielsen to star as the drug-addicted, sadistic Razik Prison warden Magda Kassar in a movie that seemingly has no connection to the original one, but does optimize on the whole panties and wife beater look.

bonus: Chained Heat 3000 came out in 1995 and Chained Heat 3 in 1998 but they were nothing to write home about

THE NAKED CAGE (1986)
The usual drill but bonus points for prime Valley girl fashions featured all over it.

I feel all dirty now.
Use comments to share some of your (not so secret) favorites (bonus points for those who offer some insight the whole reform school subgenre)