Thanks for the memories!

Highly Overrated But Still Good

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

Jack Hill is back again (a year after 'The Big Doll House'), to write and direct another low-budgeted drive-in Roger Corman produced women-in-prison joint in the tropics of the banana republic. This second run-of-the-mill dig is meaner, snappier, sweatier and is a lot more accomplished technical production, but I really do have a soft spot for rough-around-the-edges, but enjoyable 'Big Doll House' that sees me actually favour it over this particular effort… plus it had the feisty blonde buxom Roberta Collins! Nonetheless Hill competently engraves the prominent staples (even adding few new novel ideas) and patterns one hope for from its exploitative subject matter, which is handled in a brightly lit manner than truly beating it down with despair. Sleaze, violence, profanity and a whole lot of socking personality all rolled in one. There's no better to deliver it… a lively Pam Grier and charming Sid Haig come to the show with such an electric chemistry. When they go missing-in-action, you simply crave for them to appear again. Vic Diaz is delightfully amusing as camp gay prison guard and Anitra Ford adds brazen class, but seems to be struggling to keep a straight face. Saying that it seemed more comically daffy, as the script holds a cheeky edge amongst it harden dialogues. In the latter half it became insanely humorous and hysterical. Hill confidently executes it with a little more briskness and latitude, concentrating not only on the posing drama at hand, but detailing the exotically open locations with crisp photography work despite the limitations. The story can open up a notable can of worms, but it's in-your-face and well-rounded flavor made it hard not to simply enjoy.

Despite the fact that women in prison films are famous for sex and sleaze (two of my most favourite things to see in movies), I have to say that I'm not a big fan of the genre overall and it's mostly due to the fact that these films are often very similar to one another. The Big Bird Cage cuts down on both of these two elements, but replaces them with a bucket load of fun and good humour; and the result is a film that sets itself apart from most of the rest of the genre. The film is made up of two parts; on the one hand, we have a women's prison ruled over by the usual assortment of sadistic guards, and on the other hand; we have a band of revolutionaries lead by Sid Haig and Pam Grier. After a robbery in a bar, a young female socialite is captured and wrongly imprisoned in said women's prison, where the inmates are forced to work inside a huge wooden structure known as 'The Big Bird Cage'. It's not long before one of the revolutionaries comes up with a plan involving the liberation of the women at the prison camp in order to attract more men to their regime...This film features three standout performances - from Sid Haig, Pam Grier and Anitra Ford. It's Haig and Grier's screen time together that is the main highlight, and we get treated to things like Haig slapping Grier with a wet fish! Of course, the film is really rather stupid with several silly decisions taking centre stage; but this all just adds to the fun! One of the best things about the film in my opinion was the gay prison guards - quite a difference to most women in prison films! The setting also sets this one apart from most of the rest of the genre - gone are the damp and dirty insides of most women's prisons and it's replaced by a rather more sunny setting and it's certainly a very welcome change. The plot really doesn't make much sense and is often played more for laughs than anything else - but personally I'm completely fine with that and the film really is very funny - Sid Haig's infiltration of the camp being a big highlight. The film is constantly entertaining throughout and manages to keep this up until the climax - although the ending does represent something of a change in tone. Overall, The Big Bird Cage is an excellent film and undoubtedly one of the best women in prison flicks ever made - don't miss this one!

In the jungles of some unnamed banana republic sits a women's prison. The inmates are treated as slaves and forced to work in the sugar cane fields. A nearby band of revolutionaries comes up with an idea to recruit additional soldiers – they need women to attract more men. The prison offers them a ready made supply of women. But how to get the women out? Most WIP films I've seen are, in truth, very downbeat and depressing. They present scene after scene of women being tortured and otherwise humiliated. The Big Bird Cage is something of a change from the standard formula. Sure, the movie features some of the same torture scenes, gratuitous nudity, and violence, but much of it is done with a sense of humor that worked for me. Watching Sid Haig do his over-the-top queen shtick may be un-PC, but sign me up for sensitivity training because I found it very funny. It's a novel idea for a WIP film to have gay male guards to keep them from falling for the temptations of their prisoners.The plot makes little sense if you stop and think about it. The plan the revolutionaries come up with to get the women out of the prison makes about as much sense as skydiving without a parachute and has about as much chance for success. It only serves to get Pam Grier into the prison to work from the inside. The film works best if you ignore the implausibility of the situation and just enjoy.I love watching Pam Grier, but to be honest, her delivery is often stilted. This is especially true in her early films. The Big Bird Cage may be the best of her early work. For the most part, she's more natural sounding. She and Sid Haig have a real chemistry that works in these movies. I would love to see someone reunite the pair in a new movie. The cast also features Anitra Ford, who may not be the best actress in the world, but she's definitely easy on the eyes.

I got a hold of this one mainly for the presence of Pam Grier. Needless to say, I was surprised at just how amusing this one was. Although it contains its share of exploitation elements, large sections of this film are really tongue-in-cheek and pretty damned funny actually. Sid Haig and Pam Grier are great as revolutionaires, and there are a sprinkling of decent character actors that round out the cast for a decent outing. The ending is chock full of early 70's combat sequences and wonderfully photographed burning buildings. Actually, I was also impressed by the director's good use of scenery; I hate to admit it, but the backdrop (jungle and mountains) were actually breathtaking in parts.