WOMEN
BEHIND BARS (1975)Director: Jess Franco
Blue Underground
WOMEN
BEHIND BARS (1975) Upon seeing Severin Films’
discs of two quite lesser Jess Franco films (INCONFESSABLE ORGIES OF EMANUELLE
and SEXUAL STORY OF O), who could be blamed for wondering if the bottom of the
Franco barrel had been scraped for the DVD market? With the release of Franco’s
WOMEN BEHIND BARS, an obscure Eurocine women-in-prison, fans may see some light
at the end of the tunnel. While this isn’t one of Franco’s best,
it’s a light, entertaining diversion that manages to remain interesting
while forgoing most of the sleazy excess that permeated most of Franco’s
WIP films from this period.
Hard-boiled femme fatale Shirley Fields is thrown into prison for six years
after shooting her boyfriend, a “crime of passion.” However, when
it is learned that the murder took place shortly after her boyfriend double-crossed
his partners in a daring diamond heist, the hunt is on for the jewels, with
Shirley as the only key to their whereabouts. Coming from all sides are the
slimy warden; his buxom blonde prisoner-cum-lover; a mysterious insurance investigator
(who narrates); and a violent gangster thirsty for treasure.
Viewers
familiar with Franco’s WIP films from this same era (namely the Erwin
C. Dietrich-produced BARBED WIRE DOLLS, LOVE CAMP, and WOMEN IN CELL BLOCK 9)
will be pleasantly surprised at how restrained and downright innocent WOMEN
BEHIND BARS is! Other than a brief lesbian scene (with loving zoom-in close-ups
of Lina Romay’s culo), a whipping scene, and a show-stopping set piece
featuring Lina receiving electric shock treatment to her vagina (Franco remembers
to zoom in on Romay’s jiggling breasts as she screams for mercy), this
is WIP lite. In fact, the script focuses more on the diamond heist and crime
story, using the women’s prison as a backdrop more than anything else.
Don’t be dissuaded, though, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
While the pacing is a little slow at times, the ludicrous dubbing more than
makes up for it (including such nuggets as “Stoolies make me puke!”
and “Turn around! I’m tired of looking at your ugly face!”).
Rather than throw in endless lesbian and torture scenes, Franco takes a different
approach to the genre, more interested in a throwback to the film noir genre
than pushing the envelope; as a matter of fact, similarities to Roger Corman’s
gritty SWAMP DIAMONDS, another crime tale masquerading as a WIP film, are too
clear to ignore.
As a leading lady, Lina Romay more often than not left a lot to be desired in
the acting department, but she seems up to the challenge of playing a bad girl
(she even gets to kill three characters and figures well into the surprise ending)
and she, as usual, appears in several eye-catching nude scenes. Jess Franco
appears in a supporting role as the tough gangster after the diamonds, and roughs
up real-life long-time girlfriend Lina Romay in a stand-out scene; in another
odd casting clash with reality, the actor playing Lina’s murdered boyfriend
was in fact Lina’s real-life boyfriend at the time, Ramon Ardid! And like
many of Franco’s films from this time, blonde Martine Stedil, this writer’s
choice for most underrated Franco starlet, adds allure and charm to the cast.
Go into WOMEN BEHIND BARS with an open mind; its tongue-in-cheek focus on the
crime thriller aspect of the script is refreshing and as long as you don’t
expect wall-to-wall lesbianism and sleaze, you should have a good time with
this one.
The
anamorphic 2.35:1 scope transfer of WOMEN BEHIND BARS is spectacular, with clear
colors and a bright image; there are no signs of print damage or debris, indicating
this is probably from the original negative from the Eurocine vaults! The mono
English audio is a little rough in the dialogue department, requiring some volume
cranking during some scenes, though the wonderful musical score (by frequent
Franco composer Daniel White) is brought to life beautifully. It’s too
bad a French language option with English subtitles isn’t included, but
it’s not really required to appreciate and enjoy the film.
Director Jess Franco, who has never given a bad interview, appears in another
illuminating featurette, and even reveals that of all his women-in-prison films,
WOMEN BEHIND BARS is his favorite (this writer’s tastes tend to lean towards
SADOMANIA). In 17 minutes, Franco muses about working with Lina Romay (the two
are still together after all these years), his introduction to women-in-prison
films, the cast members of the film (including Martine Stedil), shooting in
Nice, France (with contemporary shots of the same locations), his theories on
sexuality and pornography, and the ridiculous notion that the film utilized
stolen footage from BARBED WIRE DOLLS. Helpful English subtitles are included.
A French trailer (with welcome English subtitles) plays up the action angle,
barely touching on the women’s prison of the title. (Casey
Scott)