Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Nice effects though.

Good start, but then it gets ruined

One of those movie experiences that is so good it makes you realize you've been grading everything else on a curve.

Savage Island (1985) ** (out of 4)An escaped convict (Linda Blair) who was tortured manages to find the man (Leon Askin) who ran the operation. She then holds him at gunpoint while she explains the ordeal that she had to go through. This butcher job from Charles Band and Empire Pictures is actually two EuroTrash films, ESCAPE FROM HELL and HOTEL PARADISE, which were originally shot back-to-back with the same cast. Those two films are edited down in one 79-minute movie, which features newly shot stuff with Blair at the start and end. Why Band decided to shoot the new scenes is anyone's guess but he must have thought Blair on the poster would get more ticket sales. Overall this film is hard to fully judge because on one hand you're basically watching a chopped down version of ESCAPE FROM HELL and why do that when the full thing is available? You might as well watch that and if you must see the new scenes with Blair you can just fast forward through everything else here. As far as the new footage goes, it's all done pretty cheaply and doesn't feature anything that you must see. As for the two films that are edited into this, they both seem a lot better as there's all sorts of nudity, sex and of course silly violence. Ajita Wilson plays the lead prisoner who starts up a fight as the women are being killed and beaten in order to dig up diamonds for their evil owner. As for SAVAGE ISLAND, it's an ultra cheap film but with all the naughtiness going on, it's worth watching for exploitation fans.

A group of women are incarcerated at a brutal prison farm located on a remote island where they are forced to work as slave labor for a South American mining operation. Assisted by a band of jewel thieves, the much mistreated ladies decide to fight back against their cruel captors. This decidedly grim and unpleasant entry in the ever-popular chicks-in-chains exploitation sub-genre certainly covers all the essential seedy bases: Plentiful gratuitous female nudity, a group shower sequence (of course), ferocious catfights, scummy rapist guards, and the unavoidable climactic exciting revolt and subsequent break out. The harsh downbeat tone, an unremittingly sordid atmosphere, the complete dearth of campy humor, and a marked emphasis on sadism all give this perfectly putrid pip an extra foul and unnerving edge. This flick further benefits from a solid cast of familiar European exploitation cinema faces, with especially sturdy contributions from Anthony Steffen as the gallant leader of the jewel thieves, Cristina Lay and Ajita Wilson as a couple of tough and determined inmates, Luciano Rossi as a vicious slimeball, and Luciano Pigozzi as the supremely evil and callous warden. Moreover, it's always a hoot to see Linda Blair act tough while brandishing an Uzi and spitting out a few vile expletives. Leon Askin positively oozes as slimy crime kingpin Luker. Penn Jillette pops up in a fleeting bit role as an ill-fated security guard. The grubby cinematography provides an appropriately washed-out look. The droning redundant synthesizer score by Mark Ryder and Phil Davies likewise possesses a certain cheesy charm. Good scroungy fun.

I have this obscure movie on VHS and the cover features Linda Blair in a revealing outfit, holding a machine gun. In the actual movie, she does hold (and fire) a machine gun, BUT: A) Her outfit is a formal dress under a fur coat, B) Her part is a 5-minute cameo (plus a few lines of narration). The rest of "Savage Island" consists of copied-and-pasted footage from TWO Italian/Spanish Women-In-Prison films, one of which I've seen ("Escape from Hell") and one I haven't ("Orinoco - Prison of Sex"). The result is, as you might expect, a complete mess. There is no continuity between the scenes, sometimes even between the shots. 2 women start fighting dressed, in the next shot they are naked (because a lesbian scene in-between has been omitted). In one shot it is night, in the next shot it is day. In one shot the prisoners are in a circle, in the next shot they have formed lines. There are TWO different prison wardens, and the SAME female guard gets killed twice. It's all quite laughable and shameless. Rating: 0 out of 4 stars, pushed up to 0.5 because Linda Blair with a machine gun is sexy.

Escape From Hell??? Prison Of Sex??? Which is it??? This movie su-u-u-u-u-u-u-cked! Take Linda Blair, put her in furs, have her cap a security guy, (A slumming Penn Jillete.) then put her face to face with a sleazy diamond merchant/slave farm owner. It must have sounded cool at one point.Both of the early films that were ripped off, and had the Blair footage wrapped around, seemed like passable entertainment. But this horrid mess must have been made as a joke.No coherence. Characters switching on and off at will. Seemingly endless shots of chicks in jungle gear sweating and running before dying. That does get boring when done wrong. And this was WRONG.And who/where was that sneering voice coming from? (" Come on! You gotta WOOORRRKKK!!!!") The late Leon Askin (Gen. Burkhalter in "Hogan's Heroes.") was the lone watchable one. His brief scenes seemed like the only serious ones.Crap!